The Pot Carriers

Last updated

The Pot Carriers
The Pot Carriers (1962 film).jpg
British quad poster by Tom Chantrell
Directed by Peter Graham Scott
Screenplay byT.J Morrison
Mike Watts
Produced byGordon Scott
Starring Ronald Fraser
Paul Massie
Carole Lesley
Cinematography Erwin Hillier
Music by Stanley Black
Release date
  • 18 May 1962 (1962-05-18)(UK)
Running time
84 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

The Pot Carriers is a 1962 British comedy-drama film directed by Peter Graham Scott and produced by Gordon Scott for ABPC. [1] [2] It stars Ronald Fraser, Paul Massie, Carole Lesley and Dennis Price. [3] The film is largely set in Wandsworth prison and is a remake of the ITV Play of the Week: The Pot Carriers (1960), which writer Mike Watts based on his own prison experiences. [4] [5] The film centres around a young prisoner called Rainbow as he struggles to adjust to his first stretch behind bars. [6]

Contents

Cast

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "A nouvelle vague-influenced opening of Paul Massie striding along London streets to a pounding jazzy score (in shakily matched exterior shots) and the sharply observed prison routines and settings, lead one to hope for more than the conventional comedy-drama which emerges. The comedy scenes are brisk, however, and engagingly played by Ronald Fraser and Davy Kaye; uneasily hitched to some superficial social moralising about the degradation of prison life and the difficulty of going straight, they keep the interest and amusement going over the more embarrassing moments of self-sacrifice and home-spun philosophising." [7]

TV Guide gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing "Script and direction take a personable view of prison life, showing the prisoners as individuals. Though the picture is filled with humorous moments, underneath is the continual feeling of the degradation and humiliation the prisoners must endure." [8]

David McGillivray in the Radio Times also rated the film 3/5 stars, describing it as "Part social drama, part knockabout comedy, this is an odd but entertaining account of British prison life in the 1950s," and concluded that "the depiction of repetitive prison routine (the title refers to the detested practice of 'slopping out') still has an impact." [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>To Be or Not to Be</i> (1942 film) 1942 film by Ernst Lubitsch

To Be or Not to Be is a 1942 American black comedy film, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, starring Carole Lombard and Jack Benny, and featuring Robert Stack, Felix Bressart, Lionel Atwill, Stanley Ridges and Sig Ruman. The plot concerns a troupe of actors in Nazi-occupied Warsaw who use their abilities at disguise and acting to fool the occupying troops. It was adapted by Lubitsch (uncredited) and Edwin Justus Mayer from the story by Melchior Lengyel. The film was released one month after actress Carole Lombard was killed in an airplane crash. In 1996, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth Colley</span> English actor (b. 1937)

Kenneth Colley is an English film and television actor whose career spans over 60 years. He came to wider prominence through his role as Admiral Piett in the Star Wars films The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983), as well as his roles in the films of Ken Russell and as Jesus in Monty Python’s Life of Brian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Gregson</span> English actor (1919–1975)

Harold Thomas Gregson, known professionally as John Gregson, was an English actor of stage, television and film, with 40 credited film roles. He was best known for his crime drama and comedy roles.

<i>The Young Poisoners Handbook</i> 1995 British film

The Young Poisoner's Handbook is a 1995 black comedy-drama film based on the life of Graham Young, more commonly known as "The Teacup Murderer". It was directed by Benjamin Ross and written by Ross and Jeff Rawle. The film stars Hugh O'Conor in the lead role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronald Fraser (actor)</span> British actor (1930–1997)

Ronald Fraser was a British character actor, who appeared in numerous British plays, films and television shows from the 1950s to the 1990s. Fraser was a familiar figure in West End clubs during the Sixties, having had a long-standing reputation as a heavy drinker.

<i>Tunes of Glory</i> 1960 British film by Ronald Neame

Tunes of Glory is a 1960 British drama film directed by Ronald Neame, starring Alec Guinness and John Mills, featuring Dennis Price, Kay Walsh, John Fraser, Duncan MacRae, Gordon Jackson and Susannah York. It is based on the 1956 novel and screenplay by James Kennaway. The film is a psychological drama focusing on events in a wintry Scottish Highland regimental barracks in the period immediately following the Second World War. Writer Kennaway served with the Gordon Highlanders, and the title refers to the bagpiping that accompanies every important action of the battalion.

Carole Skinner is an Australian retired actress, particularly known for her performances in theatre and television, although she has had small parts in films. She is perhaps best known internationally for her soap opera role's as Nola McKenzie in the soap opera, Prisoner, and Sons and Daughters, as Doris Hudson, as well as miniseries, The Harp in the South, and its sequel, Poor Man's Orange, as Delie Stock.

<i>The Rag Trade</i> British TV sitcom (1961–1978)

The Rag Trade is a British television sitcom broadcast by the BBC between 1961 and 1963 and by ITV between 1977 and 1978. Although a comedy, it shed light on gender, politics and the "class war" on the factory floor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eddie Kaye Thomas</span> American actor (born 1980)

Eddie Kaye Thomas is an American actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronald Lewis (actor)</span> Welsh actor (1928–1982)

Ronald Glasfryn Lewis was a Welsh actor, best known for his appearances in British films of the 1950s and 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Dorning</span> English musician, ballet dancer and actor (1913–1989)

Robert Dorning was an English musician, dance band vocalist, ballet dancer and stage, film and television actor. He is known to have performed in at least 77 television and film productions between 1940 and 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Massie</span> Canadian actor and academic (1932–2011)

Paul Massie was a Canadian actor and academic. He later became a theater professor for the University of South Florida during the 1970s. He remained with the faculty until his retirement as professor emeritus in 1996.

<i>Crooks in Cloisters</i> 1964 British film by Jeremy Summers

Crooks in Cloisters is a 1964 British comedy film directed by Jeremy Summers and starring Ronald Fraser, Barbara Windsor, Bernard Cribbins and Melvyn Hayes. It was written by T. J. Morrison and Mike Watts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive Donner</span> British film director (1926–2010)

Clive Stanley Donner was a British film director who was part of the British New Wave, directing films such as The Caretaker, Nothing but the Best, What's New Pussycat?, and Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush. He also directed television movies and commercials through the mid-1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Davy Kaye</span> English comedy actor and entertainer (1916–1998)

Davy Kaye MBE was a British comedy actor and entertainer.

<i>Private Potter</i> 1962 British film by Caspar Wrede

Private Potter is a 1962 British drama film directed by Caspar Wrede and starring Tom Courtenay, Mogens Wieth, Ronald Fraser and James Maxwell. The screenplay was by Wrede and Ronald Harwood.

<i>There Was a Crooked Man</i> (1960 film) 1960 British comedy film by Stuart Burge

There Was a Crooked Man is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Stuart Burge and starring Norman Wisdom, Alfred Marks, Andrew Cruickshank, Reginald Beckwith and Susannah York. It is based on the James Bridie play The Golden Legend of Schults. The film was one of two independent films in which Wisdom appeared in an effort to extend his range, as British audiences strongly identified him with his Gump character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Davies (Welsh actor)</span> Welsh actor (1906–1974)

David Lewis Davies, was a Welsh stage and film actor. At 6 feet 4 inches tall, he was often cast as a heavy, police officer or in a military or authoritarian role, such as Mr. Arrow, the first mate and enforcer outwitted by Long John Silver in Disney's 1950 Treasure Island. Davies appeared mainly in British film and television programmes, and was in demand for films set in Wales, such as The Three Weird Sisters (1948), The Last Days of Dolwyn (1949), Tiger Bay (1959) and Only Two Can Play (1962).

<i>Doin Time</i> (film) 1985 American film

Doin' Time is a 1985 American comedy film directed by George Mendeluk and written by Franelle Silver, Ron Zwang and Dee Caruso. The film stars Jeff Altman, Dey Young, Richard Mulligan, John Vernon, Jimmie Walker, and Judy Landers. The film was released by Warner Bros. on May 19, 1985.

Winning Widows is a British television sitcom which first aired on ITV between 1961 and 1962. It stars Peggy Mount and Avice Landone as Martha and Mildred, two widowed sisters who move in together.

References

  1. "The Pot Carriers". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  2. "The Pot Carriers (1962)". BFI. Archived from the original on 3 May 2019.
  3. "The Pot Carriers (1962) - Peter Graham Scott - Cast and Crew". AllMovie.
  4. "The Pot Carriers (1960)". BFI. Archived from the original on 17 May 2019.
  5. 1 2 "The Pot Carriers – review - cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online". Radio Times.
  6. "The Pot Carriers (1962) - Peter Graham Scott - Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related". AllMovie.
  7. "The Pot Carriers". The Monthly Film Bulletin . 29 (336): 95. 1 January 1962 via ProQuest.
  8. "The Pot Carriers - TV Guide". TVGuide.com.