SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

GazerRise Fantastic!

Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Deanna There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Tweekums Newly engaged Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond is looking forward to the arrival of his fiancée Phyllis but plans for a peaceful visit don't last long. She hasn't been there long when she is kidnapped by Irena Soldanis and Mikhail Valdin. We soon learn why she was kidnapped; Irena wants revenge on Drummond because she blames him for her late brother's execution. She leaves a series of cryptic clues that are intended to make him suffer before they exact their ultimate revenge. Drummond follows the clues along with friend Algy and faithful butler Tenny. The kidnappers specifically told Drummond not to let Colonel Neilson of Scotland Yard get involved but the colonel decides to follow despite Drummond's instructions not to… this involves a series of impressive disguises.The adventure sees John Howard taking over the lead role and Louise Campbell taking over as Phyllis; Howard does a fine job as Drummond and Campbell is okay but not as good as Heather Angel was when the character was first introduced. The story may be a little cliché but it is still fun. The various clues aren't too convoluted; there is a good chance that the viewer will solve one or two before they are explained. There is a fair amount of action packed into the film's short runtime leading up to a gripping denouement. Mixed in with the drama there are some funny moments; Col Neilson's ingenious disguises were both amusing and surprisingly believable. The baddies are fairly cliché dastardly Central Europeans but that doesn't mean they aren't entertaining. Overall I'd say this is a fun action adventure that contains absolutely no offensive material.

gridoon2018 "Bulldog Drummond Comes Back" lasts one hour, but feels more like three. The problems begin with the leading man, John Howard, who takes over the role of Bulldog Drummond; he is the least charismatic of all the Drummonds up to that point in the series (1937). The problems continue with the plot, or rather the lack of plot; as the characters themselves comment, it's mostly just a lot of pointless running round. John Barrymore receives top billing, and a lot of screen time, as disguise-happy Colonel Neilson, but he's not very funny; neither is Reginald Denny as Algy; the only actor who scores comedically is E.E.Clive, as the loyal butler. Louise Campbell, who replaces Heather Angel as Phyllis, doesn't have the same spark, but is absolutely gorgeous nonetheless. The ending, involving lethal gas AND a bomb, is fairly suspenseful, but overall the film is a dud. ** out of 4.

MartinHafer During the 1920s-1950s, there were TONS of different actors who played the lead in the Bulldog Drummond films--too many. In fact, because of this massive turnover, the series never really caught on with the public. However, at least for a while, John Howard was able to provide some stability--appearing as Drummond in seven films. While none of these films were terrific, they were generally better than the other films of the series.This one finds Drummond about to get married--for the thousandth time! In fact, that was a huge running joke with many of the Drummond films--he was always just about to get married when disaster strikes in the form of some mystery. Here, Drummond cannot get married because his fiancée is kidnapped! It seems there is a strange couple who say they are doing this to destroy Drummond because he was responsible for the capture of their loved one! What makes this different from many of the Drummond films is that his fiancée is not a passive victim--she often goes out to try to solve the mystery herself and seems to love the excitement of the Drummond lifestyle! Overall, a decent addition to the series and interesting and worth seeing. Not the best of the Howard films (the villains and their cause seem weak), but also certainly not the worst. Average, but good for B-movie mystery/suspense fans (like me).

Terrell-4 With Bulldog Drummond Comes Back, we have a movie with two lead actors. One was a modest man with modest talent; the other, a man who had trouble distinguishing between acting and hamminess. One was a brave man who, when his acting career died out, became an English teacher; the other was an overbearing drunk some found amusing who died of alcoholism, and whose favorite anecdote among his friends was the night in a drunken stupor he peed against his hostesses curtains at a party. We're talking about John Howard and John Barrymore. Who would you want at your party? Unless your dry cleaners would give you a break on the price of cleaning your curtains, John Howard. But in a movie, it's John Barrymore. Even when he's just going through the motions, as here, he's watchable. And when he's at the top of his game...in both acting and hamminess, as in Twentieth Century...he's just about unbeatable.Barrymore gets top billing although Howard is the hero. In some ways, the point of the movie and the reason for Barrymore's billing is that it gives moviegoers a chance to see Barrymore put on disguises. Even though he's playing Colonel Neilson, the head of Scotland Yard, Barrymore pastes on false noses and dons scruffy wigs. He transforms himself into a cockney hunchback and an aged fisherman. As the fisherman, he looks a like a seagoing Fagin. "I really think I should have been an actor," Neilson tells a young Scotland Yard detective. "I was very good at amateur theatricals," We all get the in-joke. Why is the head of Scotland Yard walking around carrying a basket of dead fish? He's helping his friend, Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond (John Howard) rescue Drummond's perennial fiancé, Phyllis Claverling (Louise Campbell), from the clutches of Irena Soldanis. Drummond sent her husband to the gallows the year before. Irena still bears a grudge. Irena has kidnapped Phyllis and, through a series of riddles, she's sending Drummond, accompanied by his manservant Tenny (E. E. Clive) and his friend Algy Longworth (Reginald Denny), on one wild goose chase after another. When Irena finally decides to let Drummond rescue his fiancée, he will be trapped along with her...and Irena's revenge will be completed with a fiery explosion. But thanks to Colonel Neilson's disguises, Tenny's ingenuity and Algy's...well, Algy is the perfect English ninny, so we'll have to say, thanks to Algy's comedy relief, all will turn out fine. Bulldog Drummond, a brave survivor of WWI, a wealthy man who, naturally enough, decided to become a gentleman detective, will continue to foil criminal masterminds. My favorite in these movies has always been E. E. Clive. Tenny is aged, attenuated and acerbic. He's no lover of second-rate love poetry, even when written by his employer. Tenny usually gets the best lines and Clive knows how to deliver them. John Howard was a lead actor who was conscientious and pleasant, but who never made much of a splash. He was shy and, some have said, seemed most comfortable during the heyday of the big studios when roles were assigned and actors did what they were told. Yet if he was diffident, he was also a brave man. In WWII when his ship struck a mine off the French coast, the captain was killed. Howard took command, fought to save the ship and personally rescued several wounded sailors. He was awarded the Navy Cross and seldom mentioned it. Finishing off your life as an English teacher strikes me as far more noble and useful than simply becoming a talent-wasting drunk. So here's to John Howard...an average actor but a superior human being.