JohnHowardReid
Entertaining spy send-up. Franciosa virtually carries the film single-handed with a forceful and ingratiating performance. Miss Welch tries to do a little more than look decorative but fails dismally. (I don't think anyone will mind). Mr. Revill is disappointingly clumsy. The action sequences are good, but tend to run on too long, however director Martinson does a much better job here than on "Batman". Of course the script is better too, and there is some fine 2nd unit direction and photography.When I saw this film in 1967 I was but a callow youth and I must admit I quite enjoyed it. Fifteen years later, it isn't nearly so entertaining. The story is so absurdly ridiculous it would strain the credulity of a new-born gnat and the characters are so forced to dance to the plot that they have more shadow than substance — with the exception of Clive Revill who comes on so over=strong as a figure-of-fun Russian as to provoke nausea rather than amusement.At least Tony Franciosa turns on the charm come what may, whether he is telling a background story that is intentionally full of holes or whether he is giving Fathom the true version (which is unintentionally full of holes). As for wide-eyed Fathom, when she is not yielding place to her stunt double on the sky-diving plane or in a speeding car or whatever, she is prancing around showing off a bit of well-turned skin here and there, trying vainly to act and displaying about as much personality as a well-rounded goldfish.Director Martinson is no help — pedestrian, heavy-handed with overuse of close-ups and about as much sense of pace and style as my Aunt Minnie. The action sequences are a slight improvement but remember these are the work of Peter Medak (2nd unit) and Kenneth Vos (sky-diving). Photographed in Spain but none too colorfully, not that much use is made of the scenery. Credits are merely passable (the film editing in particular displays little skill and the art director has little imagination) and production values moderate.
Red-Barracuda
The heightened tensions of the cold war in the 1960's led to a craze for spy films. Some went for gritty realism like The Spy who came in from the Cold, while most went down the high glamour route typified by the James Bond series. Fathom is one of those latter efforts, even if strictly speaking the title character is not a bona fide spy. It also fitted into an even more specific sub-genre – the spy spoof. It could probably best be compared to the previous year's Modesty Blaise, which had a similar light comical approach and also featured a female protagonist played by a luminous beauty, in that case Monica Vitti. For my money, Fathom is a superior film to that one and is, of course, pretty clearly a vehicle for the top sex symbol of the time, Raquel Welch. She had just come off the back of her iconic performance in One Million Years B.C. and it must've seemed like a pretty obvious idea to have her star as a sexy action girl in a spy flick. She is Fathom Harvill, a famous sky-diver who gets roped into the middle of a situation between intelligence agents and international thieves.It's hard not to describe this movie without using the word 'breezy'. It's such a light hearted and playful romp. It's comic for much of the time, although there are also definite suspense moments too, including a memorable scene in a bull ring. But mainly it's a film that relies on sun-kissed locations and the undoubted sex appeal of its main star who cavorts about in bikinis and skimpy attire. The film pulls off the difficult stunt of being a little bit sensual while being completely family friendly. It maybe doesn't necessarily add up to a huge amount at the end of the day but I always find this film kind of fun and charming. The cast also includes several other interesting actors such as Anthony Franciosa, Clive Revill and, perhaps most unsurprisingly, 'The Good Life's' Richard Briers but at the end of the day this is Raquel Welch's film and she's a lot of fun to watch.
DKosty123
This movie starts with it's strongest part, Raqual Welch in her prime at every possible camera angle packing her parachute. They even use what was still rare in 1967, a classic shot of her back side. I doubt that anyone complained about that.Once this opening sequence is over, the film settles into a light plot involving a stolen Chinese Artifact which everyone is after though the good people versus the bads ones are very hard to sort out.Tony Franciosa is the other name actor in the cast but this movie is mostly Raquel. The rest of the supporting cast makes out alright but the action is slight and the style of photography is much in evidence in this film. Welch gets a 10 for effort but the script is a little lame so over all the movie is not that good. Still, there are worse ways to spend a couple of hours.Raquel & Tony face down a bull in one sequence. There are times when everyone around her seem to be part of a load of bull. Raquel is Fathom, the lead character who gets involved with a lot of people but manages somehow to come out whole.
LynxMatthews
Welch looks good in this, to be sure. But she also carries across the oddball charm this movie is attempting to convey. She looked good in Bedazzled and Myra Breckinridge as well, but wasn't given much to do. Here she gets some good dialogue to parry the men with, and she comes across as an exciting heroine that unlike Flynt or Matt Helm, should have been given more than one movie to do her thing. This film is very reminiscent of the more whacked-out Modesty Blaise. Just a little funnier. One could also find the roots of the current Charlie's Angels flix in this movie, albeit without the battering music.Leslie H. Martinson is a director who should be studied more closely. He did so many TV shows, it would be easy to dismiss him as style-free. But from what I've seen (Hot Rod Girl, PT 109, Batman) he uses simplicity in his favor, and makes good little movies that stick with you.
AD
