A Vingança de Bulldog Drummond

This is one of the better entries in the Drummond series. Three of the best entries are from 1937. The real reason they are better may be because of the writer, Edward T. Lowe Jr. He wrote this one as well as 1937's Bulldog Drummond Escapes and Bulldog Drummond Comes Back.

The pace is quick, the dialog good, and there is some very nice physical humor throughout that features reasonable exaggeration without being too farcical. John Barrymore's more restrained performance as Col. Nielsen helps to highlight his bits of physical humor. The supporting cast is in especially fine form.

The plot centers on the theft of a powerful explosive and our hero's efforts to retrieve it and solve the murders associated with the theft. There is nice touch involving a hand and arm.

Lastly, if don't like to see women faint, stay away!

This is the eleventh Bulldog Drummond film, and the second starring John Howard as Drummond. It was released in December, 1937. Once again, the lead billing is instead given to John Barrymore as Inspector Nielson, in deference to his star status, despite the fact that he is only a supporting player who walks through his part, turning his Barrymore glare on and off again like a traffic light. This is a particularly good Drummond film, with lots of interesting second unit shots of London and Dover in 1937 and some amusing and original scenes (it starts with a joke about Americans chewing gum). Later Drummond films tended to be more set-bound, probably to save costs. John Howard is marvellous as Drummond, full of youthful buoyancy (not what Sapper the author intended, but still refreshing to watch), E. E. Clive is magnificent as always as Tennie the gentleman's gentleman, and Reginald Denny is the engaging and lovable but bumbling and clumsy twit Algy Longworth, Drummond's 'chum'. The plot is unimaginative, concerning a scientist who has invented a new high explosive ('one hundred bombs of it would wipe London off the map'), and baddies want to steal this and sell it to a hostile foreign power. The whiff of war to come was very much in the air when this was made. This film and the one preceding and following were extremely annoying for containing the insipid and irritating Louise Campbell as Phyllis Clavering, Drummond's fiancée whom he is always trying to marry, but crime always interferes. In the fourth Howard film, she was replaced, thank goodness. Also annoying in this and the following Drummond film is Nydia Westman, as Gwen Longworth. Her high-pitched chattering is infuriating and incomprehensible babble. The two women in this film could thus be described as: tedious, tepid, fainting all the time, dull, stupid, presumptuous, arrogant, feeble, useless, maddening, vacuous ... (That's enough adjectives, ed.) Despite the dreary women, the film moves along with jollity, firmness of purpose, good pace, and clicks like a train on a track. (I mean of course a 1930s track, before long rails were invented.) Yes, this is a good 'un.

John Howard settled into the role of adventurer Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond with this better-than-average entry. The dialog is quick and witty, and the plot is faster and more complicated than usual, with plane crashes, explosions, and scenes aboard trains and ships. Drummond gets mixed up with foreign agents smuggling some secret explosives in a suitcase and who just happen to be going Drummond's way. Barrymore has less to do as Colonel "Don't call me inspector" Nielson, but Phyllis is more helpful, and pal Algy and valet Tenny are never far behind. For those keeping score, in this one, Drummond and Phyllis are planning a European voyage to be married, and Algy is worried that his wife thinks he's left her (well, he has, but not on purpose).

The title in this film, Bulldog Drummond's Revenge is a bit of a misnomer because John Howard as the intrepid Bulldog is not out for any personal vengeance in this case. What he's looking to do is stop an international crook played by Frank Puglia from stealing a new, but as yet unstable explosive compound. In some of these B films the studios were never really careful.

Howard is once again planning his wedding with his ever faithful Louise Campbell who seems to be more faithful to him than Olive Oyl was to Popeye. A chance visit to his bete noire, John Barrymore as Colonel J.A. Neilson of Scotland Yard has him learn of the experiment of scientist Matthew Boulton. The source is of all people, a Japanese diplomat played by Miki Morita. This was probably the last time, other than in Mr. Moto films that a Japanese was given friendly treatment in an American film.

Matthew Boulton plays Sir John Hackston and of course he's named the stuff Hackstonite. It seems to come in grains and small pebbles and you never can tell when it will blow up, like liquid nitroglycerin that way. Anyway Puglia stages an elaborate plane crash killing Boulton and gets away with the stuff. The rest of the film is Drummond with his team of silly friend Algy, Reginald Denny, and his intrepid butler Tennison played by E.E. Clive. Clive actually proves in the films I've seen to have a head on his shoulders.

Not too bad, but did Louise ever get the slippery Bulldog to finally say 'I do'?

This is a pretty good, if unspectacular, Bulldog Drummond feature with the usual good cast and a story with plenty of action plus a little humor at the right times. The story is a little less imaginative than the ideas in some of the other features in the series, but it makes up for it with plenty of action that keeps things going.

Most of the story-line revolves around a secret new explosive that a scientist has invented, which the villains would obviously love to get their hands on. Some of the better moments come when the main action interferes with Drummond's plans to marry Phyllis (Louise Campbell), while flustering the befuddled but ever-helpful Algy (Reginald Denny).

John Barrymore is always good fun as Colonel Neilson, and he makes good use of his opportunities here, while E.E. Clive does likewise as the quick-witted Tenny. It's a good feature that should satisfy any fan of the series, though its fairly familiar plot ideas and rather nondescript villains keep it from being one of the very best entries in the series.