Friday, July 17, 2020

Bulldog Drummond (1929)

The first talkie of the long-running Bulldog Drummond series. Captain Drummond (Ronald Colman) is a former airman who is bored of civilian life and craves adventure. Along with his toff friend Algy (Claud Allister) and servant Danny (Wilson Benge) he gets involved in a case of a damsel in distress and crime...

The damsel is Phyllis (Joan Bennett) who needs help with her uncle (Charles Sellon) who is being held prisoner by sinister gangsters led by Montague LoveLawrence Grant (mad doctor) and Lilyan Tashman (femme fatale). What follows is much to-ing and fro-ing as Drummond seeks to foil the gang, though his friends are often a hindrance rather than a help.

A good early talkie, it doesn't have the over wordiness or lack of movement that plague some films of the era. Some of the actors are still to fully transition from silent movie over dramatic movement though the leads generally do a good turn. The film still has some flaws though, plausibility is stretched somewhat. But it is a good old fashioned and straight forward adventure.