Despite its deliberately salacious title and advertising, "A Pair of Briefs" turns out to be a rather tame, verbose, clumsy, heavy-handed and overly repetitious farce. It's one of those stage pieces in which the characters take forever to make a jocular point that even the most cretinous audience fully grasped in the first few seconds. And in actual fact, aside from the credit titles themselves and a totally irrelevant (if "brief") scene in a strip club, there is little in the movie that would be judged unsuitable for an audience of novices or monks.
With the exception of Michael Craig, a rather wet and ponderously uninspiring hero, the players do what can to improve their tired and rather fulsome material. Liz Fraser comes off best. It's not that her lines are any sharper, it's just that she manages the rather difficult feat (considering the poverty of her material) of not outstaying her welcome. Mary Peach is okay as the concerned heroine, while James Robertson Justice (as an irascible judge) contributes his customary characterization. Ron Moody, who is "introduced" in this movie, strains mightily to make something of the caricature the script hands him. Likewise, Brenda De Banzie overdoes both sides of her dual portrait. The only other player worth mentioning is Charles Heslop, who does contribute a few amusing moments as a reminiscing registrar.
With the exception of Michael Craig, a rather wet and ponderously uninspiring hero, the players do what can to improve their tired and rather fulsome material. Liz Fraser comes off best. It's not that her lines are any sharper, it's just that she manages the rather difficult feat (considering the poverty of her material) of not outstaying her welcome. Mary Peach is okay as the concerned heroine, while James Robertson Justice (as an irascible judge) contributes his customary characterization. Ron Moody, who is "introduced" in this movie, strains mightily to make something of the caricature the script hands him. Likewise, Brenda De Banzie overdoes both sides of her dual portrait. The only other player worth mentioning is Charles Heslop, who does contribute a few amusing moments as a reminiscing registrar.