Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of Some Girls Do; here's the breakdown of my ratings:
Story: 1.75
Direction: 1.50
Pace: 1.50
Acting: 1.50
Enjoyment: 1.50
TOTAL: 7.75 out of 10.00
One thing lept off the screen and into my soul as soon as the movie started. Joyfulness. For some reason, we appear to be missing this element in most of today's pictures, even the comedies. But in Some Girls Do, the gaiety is in every frame, in every performer's performance, and in every twist and turn in the story. It was a true delight and pleasure to watch.
The story is quite simple; a terrorist plans to make millions when he stops the production of the world's first supersonic plane. What makes the narrative so engaging and thrilling are the twists and turns the writers weave into the script; and boy, aren't they plentiful - and they keep coming right up to the end credits. Some are easy to deduce or guess, some are difficult, and others are plain wacky - though logical, in their own way. And the reason why most of them work is down to the first-rate character-building of the writers. Every individual in the story has their own traits and personality, this aids in creating a captivating and enchanting narrative. Throw in the comedy elements of slapstick, verbal gags, witty comebacks, and double entendres, and you have a delightfully enjoyable and amusing picture.
Ralph Thomas' direction adds to the film's cheerful mood. He keeps every scene colourful and full of interest - it also doesn't hurt that the beautiful girls' shorts are short and the minis mini. His timing is superb as he deftly shoots sharp and exciting action sequences and hits all the right beats for the slapstick components. The special effects don't look too terrible because of his speedy cutting. Even though our heroes aren't in a speedboat race, the green screening and quick editing techniques make it more realistic and believable. The only scene which niggled me was when the plane was in flight. This segment should have been reminiscent of The Thunderbirds. Sadly it looks cheap and tacky because the model team keep the aeroplane on a forty-five-degree climb, wobbling its wings. I could, all too easily, reenvision the painted-out rod at the jet's rear, where the puppeteers manipulated its movements. For me, it was the only disappointing moment in the whole movie.
The cast is excellent. I especially loved Sydne Rome as Flicky. Rome got lucky enough to get one of the best characters in the story, and the viewers get lucky because she is perfect in the role. She is witty, sassy, "blonde", and wickedly smart. Her male counterpart would be James Villiers, who does an equally brilliant job portraying the bad guy, Carl Petersen. The one person I had a slight issue with was the lead, Richard Johnson, as Hugh Drummond. He isn't as powerful and distinguished as Drummond calls out to be. He could have done with a bit more oomph and pizazz. However, he isn't terrible, and that is always a bonus.
Some Girls Do is a Boys Own Adventure style movie with blitheness running through its veins. As such, I'd recommend everyone to treat themselves to a viewing. Everyone, at one time or another, deserves to feel this type of euphoria. That said, the story is well written, skilfully constructed, superbly filmed, and splendidly performed, which should be enough to grab the attention of any movie watcher, particularly the Thrillers and Espionage fans out there.
Now you've aided the robots with their seduction techniques, take a time out and look over my IMDb lists - Holding Out For A Hero, The Game Is Afoot, and Guilty Pleasures to see where I ranked Some Girls Do.
Take Care & Stay Well.