MARIO GAUCI Campier, less successful sequel to DEADLIER THAN THE MALE (1967) – basically the only department where this surpasses the original is in the title track! Incidentally, it makes no attempt to be a direct continuation of the earlier film – with, for instance, the figures of the boss and his secretary nowhere to be seen: in fact, here Bulldog Drummond (a returning but not-as-effective Richard Johnson) seems to have gone up in the world as he now has a female assistant of his own and, when we first see him, he is sun-bathing (and ditching a host of Hungarian girls!?) in the company of a debuting Sydne Rome.The latter's amiably klutzy character recalls those played by Stella Stevens and Sharon Tate in the first and fourth entries in the comparable and contemporaneous "Matt Helm" series with Dean Martin. Indeed, the whole film seems to be closer to the spoofy spirit of that franchise (attributable perhaps to the fact that Hammer's Jimmy Sangster did not collaborate to the script this time around) – which, unlike the Drummond duo, had copied the gadget-craze that were a fixture of the prototypical James Bond extravaganzas.More illogically, not only does the supposedly-dead arch-criminal Carl Peterson turn up again here (albeit played by a different, younger actor i.e. James Villiers) but the two do not even recognize one another immediately (besides, Peterson had merely dual identities in the first film whereas he has three here and is a master of disguise besides!). That said, it does attempt to duplicate elements that had worked first time out, namely Peterson's two principal hench-girls working as a team, except that Daliah Lavi (who had appeared in the first and best Matt Helm adventure THE SILENCERS {1966}) and Beba Loncar are not nearly as intriguing as Elke Sommer and Sylva Koscina and, what is more, there is little chemistry between them! Perhaps realizing this, the script singled out not one but two other girls to share the spotlight with them (by the way, most of Peterson's girls are actually robots – which raises uncomfortable parallels to Mario Bava's dispiriting DR. GOLDFOOT AND THE GIRL BOMB {1966]): one is Yutte Stensgard (soon to take the leading role in Hammer's maligned – and Sangster-directed – LUST FOR A VAMPIRE {1971}) and Vanessa Howard (who more or less duplicates the Suzanna Leigh role from the first film, in that she improbably hitches up with the hero at the finale)…with Rome (who proves no nitwit but rather a triple agent!) going all of a sudden for Drummond's comic-relief partner (describing his car as "positively psychedelic" and eliciting a "Cool, baby!" response from Drummond at a party!). By the way, Robert Morley also puts in an irrelevant cameo as a flamboyant cooking instructing named "Miss Mary" (complete with golden earring)! The 'McGuffin' in this case is a supersonic plane, whose infra-sound is capable of killing but also accelerates the movement of, say, a speed-boat during a race – big deal! Drummond, in fact, is made to fly one but subsequently has to bail out (after an attack by another aircraft!) – only to find the rip-cord of his parachute had also been pulled beforehand! As for the climax, in spite of all the ongoing action at the villain's fortress (which again includes a couple of non-entities for male underlings), Peterson's come-uppance is down to that infallible – and completely baffling – in-built self-destructing switch in his unwieldy controlling device!

Bogmeister MASTER PLAN: utilize female robots and a sonic weapon. Some do satisfy you and they do mystify you, there's no doubt about it. This follow-up to the James Bond-type thriller "Deadlier Than the Male" features the return of investigator Hugh Drummond, as played by Richard Johnson, who can pass for Sean Connery's brother from certain angles. It's safe to say, even, that Johnson would have made a pretty good James Bond in the sixties, though Connery is hard to beat. The plot and tone of this one seems to copy certain aspects of the previous Drummond adventure, especially the sight of two smiling femme fatales carrying out their assassinations in a good-natured manner. Like the previous entry, Drummond is also saddled with a silly sidekick here (it was his younger nephew in the last one). As seems to be the doom of many an action spy series, the succeeding entries in a film series always succumb to the more banal and camp ingredients, as if the filmmakers have to shy away from making things too serious and make it more fun (Bond survived this, but others did not). Drummond is portrayed in pretty much the same manner as before, but everyone else is caught up in the campy phase of the later sixties. Of course, nothing can surpass the hammy performance of Morley in a brief role.The first half of this escapist thriller sort of plods along, with the highlight being a tepid sequence of Drummond falling from a small airplane/glider with an apparently malfunctioning parachute. A lot of it is standard detective stuff, with the main femme fatale (Lavi, she of "The Silencers" and "Casino Royale" Bond spoofs) offering some intrigue. But then, we and Drummond shift to the island base/lair of the main villain (Villiers) and his private army, composed mostly of female robots. This abruptly shifts everything into high camp mode and I was never clear on the purpose of these programmed babes (even though Drummond asks this very question at one point and gets some vague answer). I was also never sure whether these were real females with robotic brains or just plain robots; in one scene, the head of one of these females catches fire and there's no sign of damage after the flame is extinguished. Eh? Still, it's kind of entertaining, in that lopsided fashion, and Johnson as the maverick agent is still very good in the role. The last half reminded me of the 'Flint' duo of Bond spoofs, especially "In Like Flint." There's a bit of a twist at the climax, but it's fairly meaningless and arbitrary. And, the title song, also sung at the end, is terrific, outdoing the previous entry. Johnson as Drummond would not return, though there was a spoof of a spoof, "Bullshot," in 1982 or '83. Hero:8 Villain:6 Femme Fatales:7 Henchmen:5 Fights:6 Stunts/Chases:5 Gadgets:5 Auto:6 Locations:6 Pace:6 overall:6

bensonmum2 Even though the comparisons with James Bond are inevitable, I don't think they are fair. I enjoy the Bond movies and however similar, the two Hugh Drummond films from the 60s have their own, unique style. They're played a little more for humor and lack some of the big budget special effects. But fans of the better known Bond films should find something to enjoy in either of the lesser known films Deadlier Than the Male or Some Girls Do.I can just about sum up what I like about Some Girls Do by using what I wrote for Deadlier Than the Male as a guide. However, if push comes to shove, I actually prefer Some Girls Do to the first film in the series. The 60s feel, Richard Johnson's Drummond, the villainous James Villers, scenes stealers like Ronnie Stevens and Robert Morley, terrific locations, and the implausible yet wonderful gadgets and traps, including a small army of female automatons, are all a delight. As with the first movie, my absolute favorite moments are those with the two female killers. Daliah Lavi and Beba Loncar make the movie worth checking out just to see them. Lavi, in particular, is one of those women that seem to have only existed in the 60s that I enjoy watching so much.It's too bad they only made two of these films. I would have liked to see this series continued.

ShadeGrenade Three years after 'Deadlier Than The Male', Richard Johnson was back as Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond, this time investigating mysterious sabotage incidents involving the S.S.T.-1, Britain's newest supersonic airliner. The 'Matt Helm' and 'Derek Flint' sequels disappointed, but nobody who enjoyed 'Deadlier' can fail to appreciate this. The same ingredients ( beautiful girls, gadgets, nice location filming, fast-moving action ) are here, but with a dash more humour. Its all so over the top its practically orbiting Saturn. Charles Blackwell's score catches the right mood of '60's kitsch, the opening theme song is a knockout! Tightly edited, the film moves so fast you don't have time to dwell on its absurdities. Daliah Lavi and Beba Loncar head a long line of luscious babes, including a young Joanna Lumley, and the delectable Adrienne Posta! Nigel Green isn't around to reprise baddie Carl Petersen, alas, but James Villiers is not too bad. Robert Morley is delightful as the eccentric cookery teacher 'Miss Mary'!