Carry On... Up the Khyber

As with glass, you can see straight through this movie, for what it is. Hilarious and witty, as is the talent of this huge Classic British Comedy Team.

Come on, you know deep down, they couldn't resist making a movie that rhymed with "Khyber Pass".

What a wonderful awry of comical satire and self-ridicule that Khyber Pass is. This, 1968, typical nostalgia trip from the Great Carry On team has bought us the usual Cast. We see Sidney James, as Sir Sidney-Rough Diamond and the beautiful Joan Sims as his torturous wife, Lady Joan Rough-Diamond, the very intelligent Kenneth Williams as the Rhandi Lal, the Khasi of Kalabar. Here, personally, I think that this is Bernard Bresslaw's, as Bungdit Din, best performance, his last Carry On was 1975's Carry On Behind, he passed away in June 1993, aged 59.

Without wanting to give too much away here, for you have to see Up the Khyber to appreciate the delivery of the script, ad libbing and comic simplicity that is Up the Khyber, which, excuse the pun here, carries itself off very well. Too much forewarning will only dilute the movies hilarious gags.

Not seeing Up the Khyber for many years, it was really a pleasant surprise, forgetting just how funny it is, and the combination, and their delivery, of the names of the characters. Lets face it; the absurd and totally ridiculous names of these characters are what truly make this movie.

This movie contains one of the most obvious (non) location doubles that I have ever seen. Since when has the real Khyber Pass in India looked like the green rolling hills of Wales, I mean, it's a five bar gate along a rocky green path running up Mount Snowdonia, they even put a tiny wooden sign on top, saying, "Please shut the gate". The Extras, seen at the Khyber Pass, who are dressed as local "natives" look like locals that have been paid to wear Turbans for the day, and the make up department haven't even applied make up. If it were not so funny, then it just would not be the Carry On it is. You just know too, that they must have had a great laugh trying to pull this one off. Pure admiration.

This movie shouldn't be passed over; it really is one of the best, where as Carry On Screaming was the better Produced, this is better scripted.

There is Glass and there are Diamonds, this is a Diamond of a movie.

Priceless.

This is now generally regarded as the best CARRY ON movie which,in retrospect,may not be saying that much.On the other hand,there seems to be an increasing fondness here in Britain(and perhaps even the US)for the series' persistent innuendo,cheerful vulgarity,slapstick corn,and venerable comic performers(most of whom are sadly long since gone) now nearly four decades after it's peak.Compared with much cinema gross-out humour today(as typified by the Farrelly Brothers in the US,with the UK's SEX LIVES OF THE POTATO MEN not far behind,perhaps literally!),the CARRY ON style of fun with it's saucy double entendres virtually present in every line seems oddly charming and innocent when in previous generations appeared as crude and tasteless,certainly to many weary film critics of the time.It could come across as witless and repetitive,as it certainly did in the later CARRY ON's of the 1970's(when the series finally finished),but despite the relentless puns on view here,UP THE KHYBER executes them all with an unexpected style,panache and energy,with arguably the entire series' most memorable visual gags and genuinely funny verbal one-liners.

The talented comedians on view,Sid James,Kenneth Williams,Peter Butterworth,Joan Sims,Terry Scott,Charles Hawtrey,Bernard Bresslaw,etc. are all on fine comic form throughout,handling the timing with considerable aplomb,with the farcical plot(the film's only negative point;it is never subtle,and it's attempts at satire are fleeting to say the least,probably very deliberately)about colonial conflict in India caused by British 'Devils in Skirts' not turning out in underwear oddly seeming to work rather well.It has great confidence and courage in it's convictions,and some lines and ideas("Gone For Tiffin","Fakir,Off!!",the 'Arsitarsi' tribe),and especially the dining room sequence(perhaps the funniest in the series' entire history)are the very best examples of typical lowbrow British humour.

Even the production values seem above average for the CARRY ON's,admittedly streamlined but still fairly elaborate and convincing,only faltering in it's actual depiction of the Khyber Pass itself,which is actually Snowdonia in North Wales.The film's very non-PC racial stereotyping and impersonation could be a problem for some,but may in fact add a certain extra period charm.

UP THE KHYBER represents CARRY ON humour at it's peak,preceded as it was by some of the other best efforts in the series(CLEO,SCREAMING,DOCTOR).With the arrival of the 70's,the CARRY ON's went into gradual decline from around 1973,ending in EMMANUELLE in 1978,generally recognised as the worst,before the critically-derided COLUMBUS emerged in 1992.UP THE KHYBER,however,shows us how amusing the series could be at it's best.

This film defines British comedy. The jokes, puns, and characters are all classic carry on. I'd say this is the best of the series, and atcually the most accomplished plot-wise. The 'dining room attack' scene, I think, is one of the best moments in film history, and should be seen. Highly recommended.

This film is brilliant i laugh every time i watch it . The whole thing is amazing Kenneth Williams is amazing as the Khazi of Khalibar a very unusual name! Charles Hawtrey is excellent as private Widdle. Sid is Magicial as usual Joan is excellent in fact the whole cast are excellent. This is the one start with in my opinion if you have never watched a carry on before then watch carry on up the Kyhber you will not be disappointed. Its one of the best carry ons ever made this is what the series was all about. Much better then carry on England. The film is so well done that they can get away with pretending that Wales was India!!.

'Carry On Up The Khyber' sees many of the usual Carry On favourites, this time in colonial India. Sid James plays Sir Sidney Ruff Diamond, head of the Third Foot and Mouth regiment located close to the Khyber Pass, whilst Kenneth Williams takes on the role of the Khasi of Kalabar, who is beginning to believe that the British might not be as invincible as previously thought.

'Carry On Up The Khyber' is a welcome change for the series as it is one of the few that's not based in the UK, but that's the only change you'll get because this film is laden with the usual Carry On double entendres and gags.

For many years, this wasn't one of my favourite Carry Ons but I've realised that it's actually one of the best. It largely benefits from being able to ridicule two cultures, namely British and Indian, and because it's set in colonial times, it allows Peter Rogers to successfully satirize the old fashioned Victorian attitudes as well as the more pertinent attitudes of the late 1960s when this was filmed.

There's no way a film like this would be made today but the humour is actually quite harmless, even endearing at times, and there are some clever one-liners too. It's a fallacy that Carry Ons were purely unintelligent, bawdy humour aimed at the brainless masses.

The amount of dryness in Up The Khyber is enough to give a man a thirst but it works particularly well. Excellent performances all round, particularly Sid James and Joan Sims, who bounce of each other so well, and Terry Scott, who was born to play Sergeant Major McNutt. Roy Castle too. I'm surprised he wasn't in more of the films.

Definitely worth a watch, whether you're new to the series or whether you've got them all on video.