Percy 1971 Based on Raymond Hitchcock's novel of the same name. Hugh Leonard wrote the script and Ralph Thomas directed this British film about a guy who gets the first penis transplant. Terence Feely contributed some additional material and Michael Palin is listed on the IMDb as an uncredited key writer. Ray Davies (The Kinks) supplies the music.
Hywel Bennett is the guy and Percy is the penis's nickname. The man who supplied the penis had climbed out the window of a woman he was shagging. Her husband had come home and she told her lover to go out on the balcony. Problem is there wasn't any balcony there and the man plummets to the ground, he fall broken by Hywel's crotch. The pile of man meat is rushed to the hospital where Denholm Elliott does the surgery.
Hywel is troubled by his new member, not so much by the larger size but who donated it. No one will tell him anything about the donor but a nice nurse gives him a list of possibilities to investigate. Hywel is also troubled by the media, first when the story breaks and again once the newspapers reveal his identity. All his efforts put him in plenty of goofy situations that sadly lack much humor. Ralph Thomas has directed better movies than this. Eventually things get sorted out for Hywel and he has a happy ending.
My not finding it to be that funny means I'm probably not going to watch it again so I won't need to go find a DVD. Good thing, the DVD is out of print and available copies are too much money, $30 plus. You Can see a copy on YouTube. There's also a better copy on Rarelust you can download.
Percy's Progress 1974 Re-titled It's Not The Size That Counts for US release. Written by Sid Colin and an uncredited Harry H Corbett, Ian La Frenais gets an additional dialog credit, Ralph Thomas returns to direct this way below average sequel. It really doesn't have much of anything in common with the first movie other than it being about a guy with the first penis transplant. It's more like a typical sex comedy than Percy was but it's just not that funny.
The cast is filled with good character actors, Elke Sommer, Denholm Elliott, Judy Geeson, Harry H Corbett, Vincent Price, Julie Ege, Barry Humphries, James Booth, Bernard Lee and George Coulouris. I didn't find most of them that interesting here. I was disappointed in the end, partly because of the state of the movie, partly because I had already bought the DVD. It's part of Network's series The British Film. Doubtful I'll watch it again.
Comments