Exemplary British farce
I thought No Sex Please: We're British was an excellent British farce/sex comedy of the early 1970s. Much of the film's success comes down to the casting of no less than Ronnie Corbett in the central role, taking over from Michael Crawford who played the part on stage. Corbett is an exceptional delight here and thoroughly, thoroughly amusing; I can't imagine anyone else playing the role so successfully. He's a delight every time he's on screen, which is for most of the film.The story is simple stuff, but effective: the mild-mannered employees of a bank are shocked when a mix-up means that they start receiving pornography through the post. The subsequent farcical storytelling sees them trying to get rid of said pornography, which just keeps on turning up, and trying to avoid the authorities finding out both in the form of their own boss and the local police.
This is cracking stuff, fast-paced and never less than funny; an exemplary British cast of familiar faces is also well chosen to play in support. Ian Ogilvy and Susan Penhaligon take the straight-man roles and do very well, while Arthur Lowe plays a familiar part with relish. Beryl Reid is delightful while the cameos from the likes of Michael Ripper, Frank Thornton, David Swift, Gerald Sim, Brian Wilde, and Robin Askwith are a hoot. Watch out for Margaret Nolan and Valerie Leon in an eye-popping double act at the film's climax.
score 8/10
Leofwine_draca 5 December 2016
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3592514/35972
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