A film with an extraordinary pedigree,a cast of fine actors,directed by one of the true mavericks of the studio system who worked with D.W.Griffith,"The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw"is a gem of a movie.So artless that is of course extremely artful,what appears as serendipity is in fact the result of good pros getting together and having a lot of fun whilst never taking their eye off the ball. Mr Kenneth More is immaculate as the Englishman Abroad,so well - mannered,well - dressed and well - spoken that in a lesser actor those characteristics might have seemed a parody,but Mr More,all breeze and confidence carries it off perfectly.America may no longer be a British colony but he doesn't have to believe it if he doesn't want to. He takes up with Miss Jayne Mansfield,the owner of the saloon and very innocent and appealing she is too.In 1958 her career was reaching its peak - if I may use such an expression - ,a young,winsome and tragically ill - fated actress who very few took seriously but who is - in my opinion - due for a reassessment in an era when women's achievements are considered in contexts other than those of their physical attributes. Mr Bruce Cabot and Mr Henry Hull are on hand to add authenticity to what is a fish - out - of - water comedy.Unlike other Western Brits (English Bob,say,or John Cleese in "Silverado")Mr More does not have a nasty streak.He is simply the old - fashioned decent English chap finding himself in a tricky situation a long way from home and muddling his way through. I have no idea why "The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw" was made,whether Mr Walsh owed the studio a picture of whether Rank thought Mr More's career might benefit from more U.S. exposure or whether somebody just thought it seemed like a good idea at the time,but after fifty years I'm happy to report that to me it still seems like a good idea,and with the passing of time it has become a funny rather touching movie that will please lovers of the Western because it is respectful of the genre and lovers of innocent beautifully played comedy because it is respectful of that genre too.

Kenneth More plays Jonathan Tibbs, a rich upper class guy with little sense...or so it appears when the story begins. For some reason, the rich guy owns a gun company and they are in financial straits....so he decides to head to the American west because as the English all know, those cowboys love their guns.

On the way there, Jonathan begins having all sorts of crazy adventures. First, he captures a local Indian chief and then spares his life. Second, when he arrives in town, he is mistaken for a gunslinger and suddenly this results in him being appointed sheriff AND everyone apparently now wanting to kill him. How is this clueless guy going to manage to avoid being killed AND woo the local hot babe (Jayne Mansfield)?

I was very surprised by this film. The title sounds pretty dumb but the story is charming....a comedy but with many cute moments instead of laugh out loud ones. A cute parody of the Hollywood version of the old west, instead of debunking all the American myths about the west, it runs with them and results in a fun time for the viewers.

By the way, the singing appears to actually be done by Mansfield, as later in life she had a nightclub act and sang for guests.

Kenneth More and Jayne Mansfield star in The Sheriff Of Fractured Jaw which plays very much like a Carry On film. In fact Sid James of the Carry On company has a brief role as a drunken stagecoach passenger and kind of lends an official presence to this satire of the western. The Carry On crew would later film Carry On Cowboy which this bears some resemblance to.

The real model for this film is Destry Rides Again as Kenneth More plays a rather mild mannered Englishman who goes west to sell firearms, firearms manufactured by his father Robert Morley's company. More sells Morley on the fact that in the lawless American west what better place can the company find a better market.

Poor Moore he manages to get himself involved in a range war between two large ranches, gets appointed sheriff of the town of Fractured Jaw and gets made an adopted member of the local Indian tribe. But this was not without its pleasant side as he manages to also win saloon singer Jayne Mansfield. She's more like Wrangler Jane of F Troop than Marlene Dietrich.

Jayne gets three songs also and she's dubbed by the familiar voice of Connie Francis. Not that Connie doesn't sing them well, but we know that's Connie Francis coming from Mansfield. They should have used an unknown singer.

The film has its amusing moments, but it really is an overblown Carry On film.