Nuns on the Run

1990

Britain

Produced by George Harrison, Denis O’Brien

Written and Directed by Jonathan Lynn

Handmade Films

Umbrella Entertainment 2009

Reviewer: Bob Estreich

This classic piece of British humour features Eric Idle and Robbie Coltrane as Brian and Charlie, a pair of gangsters on the run from a Chinese Triad gang, the police, a girlfriend and their own gang.

Brian and Charlie are unhappy with the increasing violence of the younger gangsters running their mob, but they know what the repercussions will be if they try to retire. They decide to go straight but first must get some money first to finance their flight to Brazil. Their boss has found out about their plans to leave and marked them for death, planning to steal drug money from a Triad gang with Charlie and Brian being killed during the robbery. Brian and Charlie meanwhile have decided to steal the proceeds of the robbery from their own gang.

Everything goes wrong, of course, and they find themselves hiding in a convent disguised as nuns and carrying a million pounds of stolen money. From here the plot moves into the farcical comedy the British are so good at. There is love interest, alcoholic nuns, naked teenage girls, cross-dressing and even a nun who has her hand in the convent’s till to the tune of fifty thousand pounds, which she has gambled on the horses. It can only end in tears (of laughter), except for the rather worrying sight of the very large Robby Coltrane dressed as a nun. (Why do the British like to dress in drag?) He looks too perfect in the part. There is also a bit of fun at the expense of the doctrines of the Catholic Church, but it is lighthearted and inoffensive.

There is more than a passing resemblance to the cheeky Carry On type of humour and the earlier St Trinians. The characters are fairly stereotypical, the action predictable, the one-liners thick and fast - however. In spite of the increasingly demented plot the film never loses its direction or its ability to entertain. The humour is not particularly sophisticated, not in the Monty Python tradition, but for this style of film it doesn’t have to be. It’s just good entertainment and a great laugh. It is surprising how many people remember this film from its earlier release years. Now you have a chance to enjoy it again. This is Handmade Films’ last movie and it is good to see it re-released.

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This review will appear in Volume 2 No.4 (2009) of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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