Les requins volent bas

I saw this when I was in the ARMY, a BIG waste of time what's worst the The Projectionist must have missed a reel as 1 could see it just didn't fit

For years I thought Victor Mature was the most uncharismatic, untalented actor to have ever managed to succeed in Hollywood, but now, ladies and gents, I stand corrected. That dishonor must go to the, er, "star" of Hammerhead, Mr Vince Edwards. In short, he's an utter bore. As is the movie. But my God, is he dreadful. His face is like a catcher's mitt, just expressionless throughout the whole movie. His voice is one note of droning monotony and as for his physical presence, well, I suspect most of the action was performed by a double as they consisted mostly of suspicious close ups of legs and arms being thrust in the direction of bad guys without ol' Vince's hammerface in the shot.

Won't bother with the plot, critique the direction or soundtrack ... sufficed to say it all pretty much stinks.

I'm a massive spy movie fan - seen 'em all pretty much - especially the 60s adventure ones, and I must say this movie is easily one of the worst. Even the mostly incomprehensible Italian stuff of the same era is a lot more fun and watchable than this rubbish.

The only good thing from Hammerhead are the girls. Plenty of them and all pretty.

The spy genre popularized by the James Bond series certainly gave fruit to a lot of attempts worldwide to play in the same sandbox. This British effort (with an American star) isn't anything great, but at least it is largely played tongue-in-cheek (while firmly dating itself as a 1960s piece), and ought to earn some smiles, or chuckles, if few real belly laughs. Vince Edwards plays Charles Hood, a special agent trying to get the goods on the title master criminal (played by top British character actor Peter Vaughan). This he does by using the cover of selling the man vintage pornography! As he gamely goes on his mission, Hood keeps encountering Sue Trenton, a jovial young lady played by the lovely Judy Geeson.

"Hammerhead" does ultimately get a little tiresome, and goes on a bit too long, but there ARE some pleasures to be had. Chief among them are the very sexy ladies on hand (also including Diana Dors as Kit, Beverly Adams as Ivory, Tracy Reed as Miss Hull, and Veronica Carlson as Ulla). The film is likewise attractively photographed by Wilkie Cooper & Kenneth Talbot, and is partly shot in picturesque Portugal. Vaughan is fun as a bad guy who knows how to make an entrance, Edwards is amiable as the hero, and the enticing Ms. Geeson is a lively leading lady (although some people might find her effervescent personality a bit much). They're supported by some excellent British actors, with Michael Bates standing out in a dual role. And that's David "Darth Vader" Prowse in the small role of Hammerheads' young muscleman. This viewers' favorite sequence involves Hood & Sue being trapped inside a coffin, on their way to certain doom (bad guys in these types of stories so often rarely kill the good guys when it is most advantageous to do so). They catch the attention of a young motorcyclist (Kenneth Cope) whose reactions are hysterical.

Decently guided by the American director David Miller ("The Opposite Sex", "Lonely Are the Brave"), this moves along adequately, doling out some entertaining action sequences while accompanied by a jaunty music score by David Whitaker. The oddest touch is the performance art playing out alongside the opening credits, presided over by an eccentric artist (Douglas Wilmer).

Five out of 10.

While I have not seen the Hammerhead movie, I do have the soundtrack album.

I ended up ordering it by mistake about 25 years ago, and when I got it, I opened it anyway as I collect soundtracks, and had never heard of the movie Hammerhead.

There is a catchy theme song, and some cool chase music, as well as other tunes, and even a Hammerhead 'concerto' on the record.

If this movie ever comes out on video, I would like to see it in order to associate the music with the scenes.

The music is typical of the 60s and is very light-hearted and fun to listen to.

Zany spy caper with an American James Bond and an assortment of British b-movie stars.

It's bookended by two crazy freak out style montages of hippie youths doing dangerous antisocial things like dancing and taking off their clothes which the cops put a stop to, but it neatly introduces Judy Geeson who repeatedly shows up in each change of location so often I was convinced she would be revealed as some sort of British intelligence operative masquerading as a nymphomaniacal socialite junkie, stealing every scene she's in by giggling and pouting. Her omnipresence is so remarkable she is the mugaffin.

The rest of it was something about missiles and piano recitals and scenes of torture, the victim of which gets moved around almost as often as Judy Geeson but happily delivers his expository dialogue before expiring giving necessary depth to the hapless stooge before killing off everyone else without worrying about the ethical quandary.

Sadly it's neither funny enough to be a spoof nor serious enough to be a thriller. The violence/ action scenes are a bit unnecessary and the diabolical masterplan seems too fantastic and risky to be plausible. Happily there was no secret underground lair but there were henchmen wearing stripy T-shirts.

A host of familiar faces play small roles including David Prowse, Diana Dors, Kenneth Cope and Veronica Carlson and there's a bit of humour involving a hearse chase but like the diegetic theme song which appears at least 3 times including the hippy dance at the end, it's highly derivative and repetitive. Our man Hood in one scene names the artists of various paintings to demonstrate his cultivation; but does it so many times in succession the he ceases to resemble a gentleman and turns into a tour guide.

Like the crazy kid/ stoner at the end, lowering his caged self into the bay water while everyone dances; it all seems kind of random, dangerous and stupid and someone really should put a stop to it.