Double X: The Name of the Game

You probably thought every film Norman Wisdom ever made had been on TV at least a dozen times in the past five years. But his personal favourite of his own films was an independent production in which he played a safecracker trying to go straight called 'There Was a Crooked Man' which flopped in 1960 and which problems over rights have kept off TV screens for over fifty years.

Shot at Bray Studios and in Scotland, parts of 'Double X' resemble a semi-remake of the earlier film; although in 1960 Wisdom would have played a character called Norman rather than Arthur, and Robert Asher would have breezed through it in about half the time. A serviceable cast (including Bernard Hill camping it up in the role Garry Marsh would have played in the fifties) disappear and then reappear throughout this tinny, talky film which looks and sounds as if it was shot on a camcorder by film students; and is more dated after less than thirty years than the earlier film probably is after over sixty.

Norman Wisdom's swan song. Playing it straight and badly to be fair . The "brains" behind a major London gang of criminals. He wants out. Sadly he won't get to leave.

The films low production values and poor acting and atrocious script make it worth watching for all the wrong reasons

DOUBLE X: THE NAME OF THE GAME is one of those long-forgotten independent films that came out during the 1990s, when a lot of young directors suddenly found themselves with the means to make their own movies unconstrained by the studios. This one's directed by a guy better known for his work on the BBC TV series DOCTORS and apparently based on a novel by an author nobody's heard of, which doesn't bode well.

It turns out to be an unwieldy little gangster film featuring Norman Wisdom in the leading role. Norman Wisdom! Yes, I couldn't quite believe it myself either. It's very odd to see Wisdom playing it straight and as an elderly hero type, although casting him as the young woman's father instead of grandfather was a very odd decision. There are even a couple of action scenes which are incredibly embarrassing for the old-time comedian. Bless him. He's not the world's greatest actor, but you love him anyway because he's Wisdom.

The film features a second lead in the form of CARRIE star William Katt. He's obviously been shoehorned into the plot in a bid to appeal to American audiences who'd no doubt scratch their heads at the prospect of seeing some old duffer as the main character. Katt feels wooden and uncomfortable, but being a fan of the actor I liked him anyway. The film begins quite promisingly with explosions and car chases and the like before descending into inanity with a boring, drawn-out back story with some very unsatisfying plot twists.

Basically, Wisdom plays a bad guy surrounded by even more ruthless gangster types. A bit of back-and-forth back-stabbing plays out, along with some mild thriller elements, but it's not particularly believable and the story seems to literally fall apart as it goes on. To compensate for this, a bunch of familiar faces have been brought into play. Bernard Hill and Simon Ward are here, alongside cameos for Derren Nesbitt and Vladek Sheybal, and the gorgeous RED DWARF actress Chloe Annett. Their presence doesn't make DOUBLE X a good film, but it is a fun oddity to seek out.

Well. I caught this on a new satellite channel called "Badmovies.com". What can I say, it's brilliant. In that its probably the worst film ever made. Well, there are worst. I could rattle off some bigger names, but why bother. You know them already.

Back to the movie. It's a stinker. Apart from the old 'bible stuffed in the shirt' routine to avoid being stabbed and the often hysterical dialog its just about the daftest plot going. But hey! He should have stuck with being Perry Mason's side kick.

My personal favorite part is the bullet that clearly must have gone through his left lung but only left superficial damage! Then he hops into a dirty cold lake with no affects. Must be a good diet or something.

Why do some reviewers stupidly tell u the whole story of the film? . Stick to watchable, didn't enjoy it, great movie, etc u know who you are!

It was ok , done!