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Beloved by the British in the '50s, A Private's Progress is the kind of film that is always much better appreciated in its own home country; the references, atmosphere, and tone are so distinctly of their place (and time) that the film cannot be fully comprehended by one who wasn't "there." That said, Progress is still immensely engaging and enjoyable, kind of the cinematic equivalent of a friendly, garrulous stranger you meet in a pub while waiting for the rain to pass and are happy to while away the time with. Progress' strength lies in its perfectly tuned cast lead by Ian Carmichael, who makes dithering and silliness into something of an art and who can pull off even the hoariest comedic situations. Terry-Thomas is in especially fine form, giving, through his timing and delivery, immortality to the simple line "You're all absolute showers." (This makes no sense without the setup, but once a viewer has seen the film, he'll find himself quoting this line often). Throw in a delightfully scheming Richard Attenboroughand a wickedly amusing Dennis Price, and one can almost overlook the fact that there really is no plot until the last 30 minutes -- and that the end becomes a bit of a jumble because of that. The slapdash plotting is unfortunate, as it does keep the film from being a classic -- but in spite of that, Progress still has plenty of rewards.