A solid Eurospy effort, 15 June 2015
A Russian spy ring operating in Spain is proving very successful in tracking the American fleet. Agent Jeff Larson (Ray Danton) is sent in to put a stop to the Russian efforts. Larson quickly discovers, however, that the Russians seem to be on to his every move. Larson is convinced there's a mole operating in Spain.
At the very worst, Code Name: Jaguar is a harmless bit of fun. Nothing deep or meaningful, just an enjoyable enough way to spend 90 minutes. The plot is straightforward an not overly complicated, but still held my attention throughout. Nice fight scenes, interesting Spanish locations, good pacing, and a few tense moments make Code Name: Jaguar an above average Eurospy effort. My biggest complaint was how easy it was to spot the mole. A neon sign over his head flashing "Mole" is the only way it would have been any easier.
Ray Danton may be my favorite actor to play the lead in one of the these Eurospy films. Looks, athleticism, attitude - he's got it all. The rest of the cast is solid. I especially enjoyed the scenes shared by Pascale Petit and Helga Sommerfield. Their bickering over Larson's attention is a hoot. Frank Horst is one other actor I'll single out. Frank is one of the best baddies you'll find. He just had the right "look".
A rock solid 6/10 from me.
6/10
"I told you I didn't wanna fight.", 12 June 2015
Bad Ass reminded me a lot of one of those 70s era Blaxplotation films like Coffy where the good guy (or girl) is out to right a wrong because the police seem unable or unwilling to help. Frank Vega (Danny Trejo) is a Vietnam vet getting by 40 years later selling hotdogs from a cart. One day on a public bus, he comes to the aid of an old man being harassed by a couple of punks. A video shot by another passenger is put on the internet, leading to some local fame for Vega and a new nickname, "Bad Ass". But after his best friend is shot down just blocks from Vega's home, he'll have to put his new name to the test to bring the guilty to justice.
I sincerely doubt that anyone involved with this movie thought they were making high art. Instead, they probably set out to earn a little money by making a reasonably entertaining film. And that's just what they did. Bad Ass is a solid movie and a lot of fun. Trejo is always a pleasure to watch. I really enjoyed the Everyman characteristics Trejo and the filmmakers brought to Vega. From watching Vega earn an honest dollar selling hotdogs to watching him brush his teeth, it's a character more grounded in reality than the type Trejo usually plays. The supporting cast is, for the most part, as good as you could hope for. Charles Dutton is a standout in the role of head baddie, Panther. Special effects, fight scenes, technical aspects, and the rest were serviceable enough. Overall, I enjoyed the movie and am looking forward to catching Part 2.
There were, however, a couple of points that I didn't care for. Vega's beard and the forced love story were both unnecessary and hard to watch. Still, I'll give this one a 6/10.
6/10
"The backup brain was hidden years ago, just in case!", 11 June 2015
Frankenstein Island is an incomprehensible mess of a movie. Anyone rating it higher than I have is kidding themselves. There may be a laugh or two in the "so bad, it's good" sort of way, but this doesn't make up for the overall disaster than is this movie.
Most any review you'll read on Frankenstein Island will point out the numerous faults in the film. While I'm not going to even attempt to go over all of that well-worn ground, a few things really hit me that I want to mention.
1. Plot – What a disaster! Frankenstein Island feels like someone took about five movie plots and tried to jam them into one movie. Plot threads go nowhere and are never resolved. And in the end, we're left with a movie that has no ending. No attempt was made to wrap things up with any explanation or resolution. It just ends.
2. John Carradine – He may be listed as one of the stars, but he's never really in the movie. A poorly projected image of Carradine rambling on about a golden thread and power inserted about every 20 minutes doesn't' really mean he's in the movie. The 8X10 glossy of Carradine conspicuously placed in a number of shots doesn't cut it either.
3. Cameron Mitchell – Poor, poor Cameron Mitchell. He really must have been in a hard way to appear in this thing. He's one of my genre favs – love him in Blood and Black Lace. His role here is embarrassing.
I could go on and on, but there's really no point. I could write pages about things like: Sheila Frankenstein's name and hair, zombies dressed like WWII French resistance fighters, Amazons in leopard skin bikinis (where were the leopards?), Steve Brodies ridiculous one-eyed Jocko, a "backup" brain, building a raft when you already have a raft, long stretches of film with an uncomfortable lack of dialogue, etc. There's just too much.
1/10
"I've handled Twisted Sister, I think I can handle Floyd.", 10 June 2015
A scientist/terrorist/general loon (not really sure what he is) puts a toxin in the local water supply that turns ordinary folk into rampaging zombie-like creatures. Wings Hauser, Bo Hopkins, and Company set off to put a stop to . . . well, to put a stop to whatever is going on. That's really all you need to know. The rest is either unexplained or makes no sense at all anyway.
Is Nightmare at Noon good? No. Is Nightmare at Noon fun? You bet ya. Zombies, a mysteriously mute albino, explosions, Wings Hauser . . . what more do you need? For all its many (many, many, many, many, etc.) faults, being dull is not one of them. There's a shoot-out, chase scene, or murderous rampage around every corner. Highlights for me include: Brion James albino get-up - including white eyes, hat, and suit; George Kennedy - always a pro regardless of the material; the green acid-filled zombies; Kimberly Beck - always enjoy seeing her; and the above average amounts of sweet 80s cheese. God, what a good time!
6/10
A lot to enjoy in this episode, 1 October 2014
John Drake's Mission: Rescue an American journalist being held prisoner in a foreign country on trumped-up charges.
What a fantastic episode! There's a lot here to enjoy. My laundry list of what I liked about Colonel Rodriguez: intrigue, murder, false accusations, a mysterious letter, Honor Blackman, spy gadgets, fights, blackmail, and a fantastic con played on the titular Colonel Rodriguez. This episode is chock-full of goodness. I'm amazed at how much they were able to pack into 25 minutes. Drake's face-off with Colonel Rodriguez is as good as anything I've seen so far in any of the Danger Man episodes. Really good stuff.
I mentioned Honor Blackman in my list, and while she's good, Maxine Audley and Noel Willman are the real stars in the supporting cast. Willman's Rodriguez is played perfectly. And Audley has the type of presence that commands attention in any scene she appears. Overall, a top-notch cast.
My vote - a very strong 8/10.
8/10
Barbara Shelley returns, 30 September 2014
John Drake's Mission: Drake sets off for the mountains of Kashmir to catch an agent passing sensitive information on to a foreign (Chinese, I presume) government.
Another below average episode, The Traitor succeeds in being a confusing mess. Why did the agent just give himself up? Why did Drake spend so much time with the worthless contact in India? Why did Drake spend so much time with the garage owner? Why do people who live "at the top of the world" who have had only three or four visitors in years feel it necessary to "dress" for dinner? When Drake discovers his cover has been blown, why is he so casual about the Chinese government ordering his death? The answer to all these question - poor writing. The Traitor is easily the worst written episode of the series I've seen so far.
The major highlight for me was the return of Barbara Shelley to Danger Man. From the moment she walks on screen, she steals every scene she's in. She has poise, presence, and beauty - she's just fantastic.
As much as I hate to do this, I'm rating The Prisoner a 5/10.
5/10
A tired plot device, 30 September 2014
John Drake's Mission: Free an American being held captive in an American embassy in a foreign country.
I would most likely rate this episode higher had Drake come up with a different plan - almost any other plan - to free James Carpenter from the embassy. His plan involved the tired old plot device of a double who could pass for Carpenter. As another reviewer wrote, it's "cliched". It's been done a million times and never is it believable. The Danger Man script would have you believe Drake was able to find at least three (might have been four) candidates that were exact duplicates of Carpenter. Apparently, in the world of Danger Man, doppelgangers grow on trees. Like I said, any other plan to free Carpenter would have been more original than this one.
Still, if you accept the look-alike, The Prisoner is not half bad. Good action, interesting plot twists, a nice ending, and more good looking sets. Also, The Prisoner features William Sylvester in five or six different roles. He's always quite good whether battling monsters in Gorgo, matching wits with a hypnotist in Devil Doll, or playing someone's double in Danger Man, he always gives a solid performance.
I'm giving this one a 6/10.
6/10
"This isn't one of those tough cases which depends on clues.", 29 September 2014
As the movie opens, Mary (Jean Parker) is making her way to the electric chair. Crimanologist/psychologist Charles Finch (Lionel Atwill) believes Mary to be innocent, but is running out of time to prove it. To make matter worse, Mary's boyfriend is the State's executioner and will throw the switch on Mary. Can Mary be saved in time?
Lady in the Death House is far from the worst of the Poverty Row films I've seen, but it still has a number or problems. First, there are far too many utterly ridiculous plot points. To start with, Mary's boyfriend is (conveniently) the executioner. Why not get someone else to do this one? Ridiculous! The witnesses used at the trial that help convict Mary saw the murder through a solid shade, meaning they only saw a silhouette. Any first year law student could have poked holes in this eyewitness evidence. Ridiculous! Next, as evidence is gathered that will clear Mary, the Governor, the only person who can stop her execution, has (inconveniently) stopped for a Denver sandwich and can't be reached. Again, ridiculous! There are many more of these ridiculous moments that make much of the movie . . . ridiculous.
That's not to say it's all bad. Lady in the Death House does feature better than expected (at least for this kind of movie) acting. Lionel Atwill is the kind of actor that's always good. It's an interesting change of pace seeing him play the hero. Jean Parker, Douglas Fowley, and Marcia Mae Jones hold up their end and give solid performances. Another plus is the "look" of the film. A lot of these Poverty Row films look like they were shot on the same dirty, poorly lit set. Not here. Sets and lighting look better than the budget would suggest. Finally, I thought the use of flashbacks was a nice way to tell the story of Lady in the Death House. We see Mary headed to the electric chair, but have to wait 50+ minutes to see if she really is put to death. Quite nice.
Overall, the bad outweighs the good and I'm left rating the movie a 4/10.
4/10
More relaxed than most episodes, 26 September 2014
John Drake's Mission: Determine whether or not a defecting scientist is who she claims to be with the help of her long lost sister being held inconveniently, in some Eastern European country.
The Sisters is an enjoyable enough episode that kept me guessing (correctly this time) all the way to the end. Drake is convinced that one of the sisters isn't who she claims to be, but how to find out? Drake devises a solution that, while it may be simple, is a pleasure to watch unfold. The final revelation is nicely handled. As usual, good performances from all involved. It's always nice to see Anthony Dawson pop-up in something like Danger Man.
As another reviewer pointed out, The Sisters is the first episode I can remember with "filler". While it did provide a chance to see John Drake in a more relaxed and different light, I would have preferred more scenes of the escape from whatever the name of that Eastern European country was. That section of The Sisters could have used some beefing-up.
Overall, a 7/10 from me.
7/10
