Counterspy Meets Scotland Yard

The good thing about these old films is that they are always well written and efficiently made with a professional handsome tempo that keeps you following on whatever happens, with actors of clear articulation that don't make you miss one word and with generously sumptuous and gorgeous music. The Americans might have made it without calling on Scotland Yard, but Britain sent a man across just in case to give a helping hand in a matter that concerned the world. There is some psychiatric mumbo-jumbo as well with hypnotism and dirty tricks, but the intrigue is well spun and fascinating to get involved in, as it is practically impossible to discover. Ron Randell gets roughed up by the villains but succeeds in getting the message through of how the foul play gets through by almost getting lost on the way, but there is Amanda Blake also...

"Counter Spy Meets Scotland Yard" may not be high art, but it is an enjoyable spies and sleuths programmer that pits the good guys, led by Howard St. John and Ron Randell, against a nefarious network of villains out to defrock truth, justice and the American way. Released by Columbia Pictures in 1950, "Spy" also includes B film stalwart June Vincent and Amanda Blake, who was to find fame (and maybe fortune) on the television version of "Gunsmoke" as Miss Kitty, as two friends not quite as in sync with each other as one of them seems to think.

As scripted by Howard Green (based on the radio series "Counterspy") and directed in no nonsense fashion by Seymour Friedman, this one is an engrossing, low-rent potboiler that nicely entertains the entire 67 minutes of its economical running time.

Personally paired as 'our feature attraction' with the Columbia-released Gene Autry production "Gene Autry and the Mounties", it made for a great nostalgia film package, the sort that used to routinely play my beloved Granada Theatre here in Hamilton.

Oh how I miss those days!

Australian actor Ron Randell becomes the Scotland Yard man in the USA helping solve a case of badly leaking government secrets at a missile testing ground in Counterspy Meets Scotland Yard. An American agent played by Harry Lauter gets killed during his investigation and the bad guys went to great lengths to make it look like a suicide.

The leak is an innocent one and it's played by Gunsmoke's future Miss Kitty, Amanda Blake. How the information is being gotten out of her is the key to the whole film, but it involves our developing missile guidance systems which the Russians would like to steal.

The villains are a clever and ruthless bunch and the film is from the B unit at Columbia Pictures. Doesn't have any great production values, but the story is an intriguing one and the players are all fine in their parts.

I actually like these movies, they're quick and sometimes quite entertaining.

Ron Randell plays a Scotland Yard inspector working in the US to help find out who is leaking government secrets at a missile testing ground to the Russians. The American agent investigating purportedly committed suicide, but further investigation proves that he was murdered and that it was set up to look like suicide.

The leak is revealed to the audience fairly quickly, and she doesn't know she's a leak. It's none other than Amanda Blake in her pre-Gunsmoke "Miss Kitty" days. She and the star, Ron Randell, became engaged during this time, though they never married.

Black and white, pretty good, and I could listen to Ron Randell talk forever. What a voice.

That's the first Seymour Friedman movie I comment. He was an acceptable B director. Most of his movies were made for Columbia Pictures, and not under Sam Katzman's rules, except one or two; I am not absolutely sure. Wallace Mac Donald produced most of his movies.

This one is not a film noir but a spy tale, as so many in these anti red years. Nothing special in this story of enemy agents tracked by David Harding. We already saw him in a Ray Nazzaro's film : David Harding Counterspy - one of the are non western Ray ever shot !! -, and a buddy hunter from SY. An opportunity to specify cooperation between UK and US in spy hunt.

Guided missile, charming secretary, dark rooms, a little talk and some good action sequences - for a B movie, I mean, nothing more. What could be expect more?

Well, in short, you can waste 67 minutes on it. Try "Forgotten Noir" disc set. It's in it. With eight other ones. You won't regret.