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<blockquote data-quote="Mel O&amp;#039;Drama" data-source="post: 88020" data-attributes="member: 23">Watching Henry last night it struck me how appealing this must&#039;ve been from a dramatic perspective for some of the actors. There&#039;s no shortage of mugging and slide whistles, but in among the now expected Carry On gags are some moments that are played for real. From Kenneth Williams&#039;s Cromwell warning Sid&#039;s Henry that &quot;wars have been fought over less&quot; to Kenneth Connor&#039;s Hampton&#039;s treasonous plotting to Henry throwing over the banquet tables in a rage... there are some very truthful moments.This is perhaps Connor&#039;s most restrained and subtle performance in the entire series, and it&#039;s consequently one of his best. Patsy Rowlands has only a cameo at the film&#039;s start which she also chooses to play entirely straight. There&#039;s torture, images of hanged bodies still swinging from scaffolds and the decapitation of a number of characters and the film being based (albeit rather loosely) on real historical characters. It&#039;s a very different sort of reality to the gritty warmth of the early Hudis films but the balance here is enjoyable, with the dramatic undercurrent making the camp antics seem somehow more nuanced and clever.Terry Scott is less restrained but brings colour to the proceedings as Cardinal Wolsey - all righteous indignation, heavenward gazes and crossing himself. That tottering waddle as he presses his prayer hands together is a marvellous sight. And there&#039;s that wonderful double act between Scott and Williams which makes me wish they&#039;d been paired up more often. It all comes together to make this my series favourite Scott performance. <img src="http://www.comicbrits.co.uk/Films/Carry_On_Henry_2001/comicBrits_image8.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />Henry is actually far better than I&#039;d remembered.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Mel O'Drama, post: 88020, member: 23"] Watching [I]Henry[/I] last night it struck me how appealing this must've been from a dramatic perspective for some of the actors. There's no shortage of mugging and slide whistles, but in among the now expected Carry On gags are some moments that are played for real. From Kenneth Williams's Cromwell warning Sid's Henry that "wars have been fought over less" to Kenneth Connor's Hampton's treasonous plotting to Henry throwing over the banquet tables in a rage... there are some very truthful moments. This is perhaps Connor's most restrained and subtle performance in the entire series, and it's consequently one of his best. Patsy Rowlands has only a cameo at the film's start which she also chooses to play entirely straight. There's torture, images of hanged bodies still swinging from scaffolds and the decapitation of a number of characters and the film being based (albeit rather loosely) on real historical characters. It's a very different sort of reality to the gritty warmth of the early Hudis films but the balance here is enjoyable, with the dramatic undercurrent making the camp antics seem somehow more nuanced and clever. Terry Scott is less restrained but brings colour to the proceedings as Cardinal Wolsey - all righteous indignation, heavenward gazes and crossing himself. That tottering waddle as he presses his prayer hands together is a marvellous sight. And there's that wonderful double act between Scott and Williams which makes me wish they'd been paired up more often. It all comes together to make this my series favourite Scott performance. [IMG]http://www.comicbrits.co.uk/Films/Carry_On_Henry_2001/comicBrits_image8.jpg[/IMG] [I]Henry[/I] is actually far better than I'd remembered. [/QUOTE]

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