Spikeopath Dandy fop Sir Rodney Effing has an alter ego, The Black Fingernail. A man, who along with his partner, Lord Darcy Pue, rescue French aristocrats from the clutches of the revolutionary police chief, Citizen Camembert.Carry On producer Peter Rogers had severed his links with Anglo Amalgamated and swiftly signed up with Rank Organisation. Miffed at losing their number one cash franchise, and no doubt with a touch of petulance, Anglo's brass refused Rogers permission to using the "Carry On" prefix. Thus this picture was initially released as just "Don't Lose Your Head" in 1966. Eventually common sense prevailed, and this rightly became known as the 13th franchise entry as "Carry On Don't Lose Your Head" {tho the American release of it being called "Carry On Pimpernel" makes better sense one feels}.Spoofing The Scarlet Pimpernel legacy with a ream of innuendo and double entendre's, the Carry On team deliver one of the better efforts from the series. This is in the main down to Talbot Rothwell's screenplay. Rothwell wrote the screenplay for 20 of the series efforts, he was someone who director and producer both trusted, and crucially that the cast also had faith in. Here his writing is excellent, if of course you be a fan of the saucy shenanigans that came with this particular part of British cinema that is? With characters called Citizen Camembert {refered to as the big cheese, get it?}, Duc de Pommfrit, Citizen Bidet and Sir Rodney Effing {yes that's two F's}, Rothwell lets loose with wave after wave of cheeky dialogue, all delivered with comic aplomb from the likes of Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Jim Dale and the undervalued Peter Butterworth.There's also a real good production from Rogers. Armed with £200,000, Rogers assembled a fine wardrobe of period costumes and hired out Clandon Hall, Cliveden House and Waddesdon Manor to give the story its 18th Century feel. It's also a film that asks of its stalwarts to do a little bit more than just say risqué lines and act the goat. Oh it's all still gaudy and simple in premise, for sure, but some nice swordplay and derring-do from the boys shouldn't go unnoticed. It of course is just like most of the others they made, a cheeky romp, but to me it's proof positive that the "Carry On" series had some crackers mixed in with the dregs. Sit back and romp with the rompers I say. 7.5/10

crossbow0106 This film is set during the French Revolution in 1789, where public executions were carried out efficiently and, seemingly, for entertainment. Basically, in order to stop all these rampant executions, two British noblemen, played by Sid James and Jim Dale (of course) travel to France and use various ways to thwart them. This is very amusing, in that their symbol of valiance is the "Black Fingernail", a funny send up of the "Scarlet Pimpernel". As it is a Carry On film, you're going to get one liners, slapstick, sight gags etc. You also get some pretty decent swashbuckling, that was a surprise. Also, you get a lot of speaking to the camera, also funny. Not perfect, but an amusing film. I'd recommend it, especially if you're a Carry On fan.

Jackson Booth-Millard Spoofing the French Revolution is the great British Carry On team, and 21 years later Blackadder did the same. Anyway, this mock of the great Scarlett Pimpernell has Sir Rodney Ffing a.k.a. The Black Fingernail (Sid James, with a great constant laugh), is the anti-hero saving people from execution, but mainly his own life as a master-of-disguise. Citizen Camembert (Kenneth Williams) and Citizen Bidet (Peter Butterworth) are the only two that can possibly stop him. This is a really good comedy film with great depiction of the period, and the other Carry On members do their great parts as well. These include Jim Dale as Lord Darcy Pue, Charles Hawtrey as Duc De Pommfrit and Joan Sims as Désirée Dubarry, but where's Barbara Windsor when you want her? Carry On films were number 39 on The 100 Greatest Pop Culture Icons. Very good!

lizziebeth-1 In `Don't Lose Your Head' (aka `Carry On Pimpernel') the Scarlet Pimpernel myth/legend is presented by the `Carry On' gang as an hysterical parody. Real revolutions are generally bloodthirsty, and often go wrong LONG before they achieve their aims. Oh YES, the peasants were revolting! Cheering the guillotine, they stank on ice! This spoof by the double-entendre-gang stands unique among other Carry Ons, because it almost passes for serio-comedy, milking considerable drama and adventure from the story. It helps if you know a smattering of French, because the puns, especially the character names, rely on gag translations. There's also a touch of the Marx Brothers here, so SOMEONE had the right idea about its caliber! Without question, artistically this is the gem of the `Carry On' franchise.The film opens at a Paris guillotine. "What's the tally for the day so far?" asks the Secret Police's Citizen Camembert, the Big Cheese (Kenneth Williams). "Twenty-six set of aristo's", answers his toadying assistant Bidet (Peter Butterworth). " -Carry On Chopping!" cries Camembert, providing a thinly veiled alternate title.Sir Rodney Ffing (Sidney James), and his "inseparable companion,' Lord Darcy Pew (Jim Dale) are two "fashionable layabouts" who do not discriminate between "a girl" and "a chap" in order to pursue "hunting", "shooting" and "fishing,' all of which amount to much the same thing. So, both "exceeding bored" by the "same old girls...same old balls,' they decide "to lift a finger, or two" over the French Revolution. Sir Rodney becomes the `Black Fingernail,' who always leaves his calling card at his rescues of French aristocrats from Madame La Guillotine.This of course "utterly bedevils" Robespierre (Peter Gilmore), Camembert's boss and the real zealot behind the Revolution. The leader of the Royalists, the Duc de Pommfrit (Charles Hawtrey), meanwhile, hilariously refuses to get off the execution cart to go to the guillotine because he's "just on the last chapter of the latest Marquis de Sade", and "Couldn't POSSIBLY put the book down". We're even offered beheading jokes: "Your grace, there's an urgent letter for you!" " -Oh, drop it in the basket, I'll read it later" quips Pommfrit, who's definitely about "to have his chips" (a gag based on his name). When the blade gets stuck, he complains that "this would NEVER have happened under a ROYALIST government", to which Camembert snippily retorts, "-There's no need to make a political issue out of it!" (Now this really IS quite clever).When the Black Fingernail rescues Pommfrit, Robespierre threatens Camembert with the loss of his own head; so Camembert, his charge Desiree, and his trusty Bidet all pose as escaped French aristocrats in order to follow the Black Fingernail's trail back to England. Thus begins my favourite, the Calais scene, viz "Alais to Calais". At the chief exit port between France and England, Camembert encounters a border guard: "Listen, has anyone passed out within the hour?" he asks. The guard (an Eric Idle-lookalike and soundalike) replies " -Only the sergeant, but he's sleepin' it orff now". Camembert presses on: "I'm looking for a woman". Guard: " -Aw, nothin' doin' out here, chum; you wanna try LaMatre!"In England, Sir Rodney meets Desiree (a very busty Joan Sims) at the ball, greeting her with "You're a picture M'moiselle...a trifle overexposed". But Camembert has come to the ball to sniff out The Black Fingernail. "We must be circumspect", he warns Bidet. "-Oh, I was, when I was a baby!" offers his illiterate assistant.Sims' ample endowments and the locket upon them are used both as a ruse to trap the Fingernail, as well as a running gag (thankfully without becoming crass).At the ball Sir Rodney realises that "Count Henri de LaPlume de MarTonte" is really Camembert, but he and Darcy `act natural' by indulging in a somewhat gay and anachronistic polka! Still, Camembert manages to pick a pretext duel with Sir Rodney. "As the injured party, I have the choice of swords or pistols", he demands. "-Oh, we won't quarrel over that! You have the swords, I'll have the pistols" quips Sir Rodney in a gag that preempts `Raiders of the Lost Ark' by 14 yrs!With a decent plot and visually rich sets, the double-entendres are entirely at home in this spoof, providing more substance than other `Carry Ons.' It's difficult to fault either the screenplay or the cast; Peter Gilmore is an almost entirely serious(!) Robespierre, and Joan Sims, Jim Dale, and Charles Hawtrey are all in tune and excellent. Sidney James, sadly though, is too old to swash much buckle or woo Desiree, even as a ruse. Williams flares his nostrils and Butterworth puts up his dukes a few times too many, but otherwise everyone is pretty good.The screenplay delves into quite a few political issues for such a "fluff" movie. There's no attempt, for instance, to gloss over the facile hubris of the aristocracy; conversely, the emotionally blunt populace cheering at the guillotine are most like Bidet, who is revealed as a bastard child and a dull, inept peasant. The supercilious Camembert is revealed as a grubby plutocrat, contemptuous of both peasants, and even the Revolution: "I DO wish you'd stop Vive-ing all over the place!" and, "Oh, I really hate these peasants; give me the aristocracy any time!".Talbot Rothwell's modest but clever screenplay adapts the Pimpernel legend/myth to suit the `Carry On' gang like a glove. It gives each castmember something to shine with, while still milking the inherent drama. The custom (ie not overdone) double-entendres still sound fresh, and serve to justify the plot adaptations; while the surgical casting allows the actors to successfully trade on their established quirks.The one element that does fail is the story arc about the aging Black Fingernail's sudden "true love" Jacqueline (Dany Robin); their asides to camera are merely disruptive, and her Beatles-ed-up "He Loveth Me" harp scene is cringingly bad.Otherwise this is a hilarious spoof, good for laughs & quotes aplenty! 9.5/10.