Wonderful character development!

i know i wasted 90 mins of my life.

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

CARRY ON MATRON is the fourth and last of the hospital-themed CARRY ON films. It's a must for fans as it assembles a huge number of the series regulars although the sheer quantity of talent involved invariably means that some of the performers only get to shine in a scene or two (I mean you, Charles Hawtrey). The plot is an odd mix of gentle comedy and knockabout crime story, involving a gang of robbers who somewhat unbelievably decide to steal a huge quantity of pills from a maternity ward. Sid James takes a backseat here with an old-fashioned turn as the head of the criminal gang, although his 'Dr Zhivago' gag is a highlight.Elsewhere, the emphasis is on staff rather than patients for a change, although there are some nice roles for the female talent as you'd expect: Joan Sims, Valerie Leon, Madeline Smith, and Margaret Nolan all contribute efficient minor turns. Less impressive is Kenneth Cope in thankfully what was to be his last role in the series; his out of place pratfalls just serve to remind you how classy Jim Dale was in comparison. It's also disappointing that the likes of Kenneth Williams, Patsy Rowlands, and Hattie Jacques have to contend with broader (read: more lowbrow) humour than before, but the quantity of gags and fast pacing means that this is hard to dislike. Kenneth Connor is a real plus.

This is one of the last great Carrt On films. Sadly, this Jackie Piper's last Carry On film. She was my favorite female character in the series along with Angela Douglas. She has a much smaller part as a nurse and we don't get to see her out of her clothes which is a shame. Still this is one solid film. Sid James plays the head of a gang trying to steal "The Pill" from the hospital. He is helped by his son, played by Kenneth Cope, Bernard Bresselaw, who is always good & another bald gentleman. Sid is probably at his best when he plays the heavy. He cases the joint and tells Jackie Piper he is an expectant father. He takes off and plans for his son to dress up as a nurse to get the plans of the hospital and the location of the pills. Kenneth Williams plays the head of the hospital and Hattie Jacques plays the Matron very well. Terry Scott is not great here, he plays a sex starved doctor. Joan Sims also has a very solid role as an expectant mother who is in no rush to deliver. She likes eating more than having a child. Sid's son runs into Terry Scott and his womanizing ways, but he gets the plans. He also helps deliver a baby along the way. Sid puts on a disguise and drives up in an ambulance. He has Bernard dressed up as an expectant mother. The son is still dressed as a nurse. They can't find the keys to the door, so they blow it off. There is a real exciting chase scene to end the film. They must give the pills back, but they let them go because of the scandal it would cause for them letting in his son as a nurse. Solid film with a little too much sex talk and too little of a part for the lovely Jackie Piper.

A group of thieves plan to make a killing by stealing a large shipment of contraceptive pills that have been delivered to Finisham maternity hospital. Sending young Cyril in undercover, nobody planned that he would end up dressed as a nurse, living in the nurse's dorms and trying to convince everyone that he is a woman – rather too well in the case of amorous doctor Prodd. Cyril keeps trying to find the pills while being helped by his father Sid and the rest of the gang. Meanwhile the staff of the hospital carry on a collection of less-than-subtle and sordid affairs behind closed doors.With the 1970's came the gradual end of the Carry On series of films that had run since the 1950's and, although the seventies had one or two that were genuinely good, it also had a couple that barely reached the standard set by the poor sex "comedies" that were being mass produced by the UK during this decade. While Matron is not one of the latter, it certainly is not one the stronger films of the decade – although there are moments that are very enjoyable. The plot is pretty terrible and the robbery of pills fails to engage simply because it is so damn stupid from start to finish; I know it is a comedy but if ever a man was a less convincing woman than Kenneth Cope then I don't know who it would be – it is a problem that the lynch pin of the narrative is him passing himself off as a nurse. The subplots are actually better and the best scenes feature great witty interplay between series legends Williams, Hawtrey and Jacques. There are also some nice little additions such as Connor's waiting station master and little throwaway gags such as one of the wards being known as "The Bunn Ward"! These aspects threw up the odd laugh but anytime it fell back to the central narrative it tended to be weak and just be a series of obvious jokes and clumsy chases/pratfalls.The cast are pretty good if they have the material – in particular the trio of Jacques, Williams and Hawtrey. Scott has a basic role but is quite entertaining in his last appearance in the series but you do have to feel for Sid James who is dumped on the edge of the film with the weak plot to carry with little help from Bresslaw and Maynard. Windsor does her usual stuff but Cope is poor from the start to finish and cannot do anything with the silly narrative and pratfalls. Sims has little to do but it is nice to have as many of the faces as possible in the film.Overall this is an average entry in the series; the plot is weak and can't provide much in the way of structure or laughs but the subplots provide some classic moments and some good material for the cast members lucky enough to get it. There are much worse films in the series than this one but there are much, much better ones as well; fans of the series will enjoy the classic moments and be patient with the rest, but it is unlikely that this film will be the one to win converts to the series.

CONTAINS SPOILERSThis "Carry On" film was made in 1972, when they were considered to be "past it". It is set at Finisham Maternity Hospital where Sid James plans to steal some pills. He is assisted by dumb Bernard Bresslaw, cockney Bill Maynard and Sid' son Kenneth Cope, disguised as a nurse.The hospital staff include Hattie Jacques as Matron, Kenneth Williams as head surgeon Sir Bernard Cutting, Charles Hawtrey as Dr FA Goode, a psychiatrist, Barbara Windsor as the nurse and Terry Scott as lecherous Dr Prodd.There is also a good supporting turn from Joan Sims as an "eating machine" expectant mother who is a month overdue and Kenneth Connor as her fed-up husband.This film ends with Sid's gang getting away and wedding bells for Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams.10 out of 10!