Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police

This British film from 1939 may surprise you by how much fun it is to watch. It's time for a wedding and the bride and the groom have gone back to open up the groom's family castle for the wedding. The castle has been closed for twenty years. The groom seems to have a history of delaying the wedding. A famous professor shows up with an old diary of a king who is purported to have hidden valuable jewels in underground passageways under the castle. Murder, mayhem and laughs abound. John Howard is good as Bulldog Drummond. Heather Angel is great as his fiancee. Elizabeth Patterson is hilarious as Aunt Blanche. The comedy is explosive in this screwball adventure! Well worth watching and the running time of under an hour goes quickly. I found this movie on a compilation DVD of several tv detectives including 'Dragnet' and a couple of 1930's movie detectives. It was a pleasant surprise. I'd rate this movie as an 8/10.

Terrific adventure that caps the 1937-39 series nicely, with John Howard comfortable in his role as Drummond and Heather Angel a treat (if not an especially good actress) as poor Phyllis. The whole gang is at the old tower estate, preparing for the Drummond wedding, when an absent-minded scholar shows up with a tale about secret passages and treasure right under their feet! Drummond tries to keep out of it, but a sinister figure enters in the night and causes havoc. Soon, the whole troupe is creeping thru dark passages and avoiding deadly traps.

The dialog isn't quite as witty or sardonic as in previous entries, but the tension is keen. Ciphers, skeletons, spikes, raging torrents, crumbling platforms, and more make this one of the best of the Bulldog Drummond series. For those keeping score, in this one, Drummond is (again) about to marry Phyllis, and Algy seems to have forgotten that he is already married.

"Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police from 1939 was John Howard's last film as Bulldog, and it was a cheap way to go out. It looks as if it was slapped together in a day. With a running time of 56 minutes, there was footage from other films in the series. And the title doesn't match. There aren't any secret police.

Hugh Drummond is again attempting to marry Heather (Phyllis Clavering). Hugh and the bridal party go to the Drummond estate to prepare, Heather's Aunt Blanche (Elizabeth Patterson) accompanying them.

There, they meet a man who claims that the civil war Cavaliers left a treasure buried in the house. Drummond is intrigued. The man, named Harvey, winds up dead.

It's obvious whodunit. There's some secret passageway action and Algy's typical clumsiness, but not much else.

Disappointing.

After five failed attempts, it appears British adventurer John Howard (as Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond) will finally marry girlfriend Heather Angel (as Phyllis Clavering). Drummond and friends gather at his Rockingham Tower mansion. Accident prone pal Reginald Denny (as Algy Longworth), Scotland Yard detective H.B. Warner (as Colonel Nielson) and gentlemanly servant E.E. Clive (as Tenny) are there, of course. While you're wondering, "What could go wrong?" a sneaky-looking new butler arrives, looking like Leo G. Carroll. There is also an unexpected guest, absent-minded professor Forrester Harvey (as Downie). The professor reveals a treasure worth one million pounds is hidden somewhere on the estate...

"Secret Police" must be one of the lowest-budgeted episodes in the "Bulldog Drummond" series. The running time is less than 60 minutes and includes a "dream sequence" involving flashbacks to previous adventures. Most of the action takes place on Drummond's estate. But it's a nicely decorated set and includes some surprises. In fact, this is one of the better entries in the series. Although he never appeared in a classic "Drummond" film, Mr. Howard is fine in the title role. Director James Hogan and writer Garnett Weston manage the story well, especially Mr. Denny and guest-star Forrester Harvey. As the faltering professor "Downie", Mr. Harvey is delightful from beginning to end.

****** Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police (1939-03-24) James Hogan ~ John Howard, Reginald Denny, Heather Angel, Forrester Harvey

The penultimate Bulldog Drummond movie from Paramount starring John Howard finds Drummond once again on the verge of marrying Phyllis. But, once again, something interrupts their plans. This time it's in the form of murder and a search for hidden treasure at Drummond's family estate. There's a different vibe to this one than others in the series. It almost doesn't feel like a Bulldog Drummond movie at all. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing. I pretty much like any movie of the 'old dark house' variety and this one fits that bill nicely.

John Howard and Heather Angel are both fine. The interrupted marriage plot is already stale by this point but they do what they can with it. E.E. Clive is great as Tenny. He was typically the highlight of these movies and this is no exception. Reginald Denny and H.B. Warner also return. Denny is especially slapsticky this time around. Mrs. Trumbull herself, Elizabeth Patterson, plays Phyllis' aunt. She's a nag but a fun one. Great character actor Leo G. Carroll plays the villain. I don't think that's a spoiler since he almost always played the villain. Makes use of lots of footage from previous Drummond movies for a dream sequence. It's not poorly done but it raises some eyebrows given the already-brief runtime. After a slow start, it turns out to be an enjoyable B mystery thriller of the 'old dark house' variety. Effective atmosphere and good sets help. It is one of the best of the series, as several other reviewers here note. But I can't rate it as high as some of them do because, while good for a Drummond film, it's really not all that special judged against other similar movies of the era.