Privates on Parade – 1982 | 107 mins | Comedy | Colour

Plot Synopsis

A sort of Virgin Soldiers meets It Ain’t Half Hot Mum,Peter Nichols semi-autobiographical stage play is brought to the screen as a thinly plotted salute to National Service and the artistes caught up in Malaysia just after World War II. Despite the seemingly farcical and camp central theme, the film uneasily veers to the tragic and sober in the closing stages. The original idea of producer Denis O’Brien was to exploit Handmade Films most successful asset, the Monty Python team, and have each of the six members play parts in the film. The team rejected this idea, having vowed never to perform other people’s written material as a group, but O’Brien kept the notion with his casting of Cleese. Following unenthusiastic test audience reaction, additional scenes featuring moretypically wacky Cleese material was included, but the film still flopped at the box office. Despite the poor end product there are memorable performances from high-stepping major John Cleese, Denis Quilley and Welsh-cum-Indian glamour element Nicola Pagett.

Queen of the Boards, Captain Dennis (Denis Quilley),and his troupe of merry men traverse the Malayan jungle together putting on camp shows for blank-faced Gurkhas, and getting caught in the crossfire between Communists. In command of the concert party is God-fearing, bulldog-spirited Major Flack (John Cleese), calmly strolling through this manic camp with dignity and resolution, battling the spectres of communist corruption with undefeatable Britishness. Meanwhile, Sergeant Major Drummond (Michael Elphick) projects a good-natured laddish attitude, whilst happily lining his own pockets by gun-running to the enemy.