Rende-te, Bulldog Drummond

Public Media Inc. has released a neat two film set of Bulldog Drummond films on one tape. The other film paired with "Arrest Bulldog Drummond" is "Bulldog Drummond in Africa." If you like The Thin Man series, you may like this as well. If you absolutely love The Thin Man series, you'll probably be disappointed with Bulldog Drummond. John Howard plays "Bulldog," which is something of a misnomer as played here because he's rather quiet, handsome & shy, not what one would expect from a "bulldog." Heather Angel matches well with Howard as his Fiancee in Perpetuity. The movies have charm, wit, a bit of mystery, & solid acting. If you're not expecting William Powell & Myrna Loy, you should be pleased. Anthony Quinn fans note: a very young Quinn has a neat little part in "...Africa." George Zucco fans note: he has a good part in "Arrest...." I rate "Bulldog Drummond in Africa" 7/10, & I rate "Arrest Bulldog Drummond" 6/10.

Bulldog Drummond's wedding plans must be put on hold once again while he tries to stop a madman (George Zucco) with a stolen death ray. A good entry in the Bulldog Drummond series. One of my favorites, actually. John Howard and the cast of regulars are enjoyable. Heather Angel continues to be the best Phyllis -- clever, brave, spunky. H.B. Warner yells a lot this time around. It's annoying. Leonard Mudie is terrific in his brief part as the inventor of the ray. George Zucco and Jean Fenwick are loads of fun as the villains. The science fiction elements are wonderful. Drummond has a cool fight scene on the pier. It moves along at a brisk pace and keeps your interest throughout. It's got George Zucco and a death ray -- how can you not like that?

Dastardly Rolf Alferson (George Zucco) has killed scientist Richard Gannet who has invented an atomic disintegrator machine that can explode anything nearby.

Bulldog Drummond comes across Gannet's dying body and is accused of his murder.

Now Bulldog Drummond has to clear his name while Rolf and his associate Lady Beryl plan to sell the weapon to the highest bidder. Even attempting to demonstrate the weapon on Drummond at one point.

As Bulldog Drummond sends Phyllis away for her safety. She ends up on the same ship as the Rolf and Lady Beryl. They see her wave goodbye to Drummond and places herself at risk.

It is unpretentious fun, with dastardly foreign powers wanting to buy the weapon. Bulldog Drummond, Algy and Tenny trying to evade the police. The script is a bit ropey in places.

A superior entry in the series -- which means it is watchable. Most of the good lines are reserved for Reginald Denny, who infects those about him with energy. George Zucco performs his usual thankless role of the intelligent villain with his customary restraint. The plot is, as usual, exceedingly silly. To see how this sort of material can be done interestingly, take a look at the SAINT or FALCON series from RKO.

ARREST BULLDOG DRUMMOND is another adventure in the prolific series, with our hero unsurprisingly finding himself wrongfully accused of a crime and being forced to go on the run. He's also trying to get married, which seems to be a long-running joke in this particular series. The main story is about the theft of an atomic weapon which seems entirely timely given the era, and the globetrotting antics are quite interesting when you put them into the proper context. The best part of this one is the presence of George Zucco as the scheming mastermind; he propped up many a B-movie with his presence and he does so here too.