Bulldog Drummond's Revenge (1937)

one of my absolute favorites!

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

...he can ever stop working on a case long enough.In this Bulldog Drummond film, Hugh (John Howard) and Phyllis (Louise Campbell) are close to their wedding, when he becomes involved in the protection of a new explosive, recently invented by a scientist. Supposedly this explosive is fragile and will go off if you even brush past the container.The explosive is in a suitcase, which is stolen. For something that will go off if you breathe on it, this suitcase was thrown, dropped, you name it, and it never blew up.Phyllis, in her sweet way blew up, however, and wondered if she could marry Hugh Drummond when he's so involved in detective work.John Barrymore again gets top billing as the Colonel, and he's great. Howard is an excellent Drummond, Reginald Denny is on hand as the confused Algy, and E.E. Clive is the butler who is so much more. It's a nice cast.These Drummond films are B movies and are enjoyable and entertaining. They shouldn't be judged in comparison to Citizen Kane. The Saint, Bulldog Drummond, Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto - all second features that are delightful.

The title in this film, Bulldog Drummond's Revenge is a bit of a misnomer because John Howard as the intrepid Bulldog is not out for any personal vengeance in this case. What he's looking to do is stop an international crook played by Frank Puglia from stealing a new, but as yet unstable explosive compound. In some of these B films the studios were never really careful.Howard is once again planning his wedding with his ever faithful Louise Campbell who seems to be more faithful to him than Olive Oyl was to Popeye. A chance visit to his bete noire, John Barrymore as Colonel J.A. Neilson of Scotland Yard has him learn of the experiment of scientist Matthew Boulton. The source is of all people, a Japanese diplomat played by Miki Morita. This was probably the last time, other than in Mr. Moto films that a Japanese was given friendly treatment in an American film.Matthew Boulton plays Sir John Hackston and of course he's named the stuff Hackstonite. It seems to come in grains and small pebbles and you never can tell when it will blow up, like liquid nitroglycerin that way. Anyway Puglia stages an elaborate plane crash killing Boulton and gets away with the stuff. The rest of the film is Drummond with his team of silly friend Algy, Reginald Denny, and his intrepid butler Tennison played by E.E. Clive. Clive actually proves in the films I've seen to have a head on his shoulders. Not too bad, but did Louise ever get the slippery Bulldog to finally say 'I do'?

In this installment of the Bulldog Drummond series, Bulldog and his fiancée are on their way to get married and go on a honeymoon when, naturally, bad happenings occur and put a stop to their plans. In one of the weirder plot elements in film history, an inventor is killed and his secret formula for a bomb is stolen. Now here's where it gets weird, the bad guy plants another person's arm in the plane and puts his ring on it--hoping that the police will assume BOTH men perished in the crash. Well, the bomb formula accidentally falls into the lap of Drummond and the rest of the film consists of Drummond and the baddies fighting over the bomb. The only really remarkable thing about all this is the presence of John Barrymore as the Police Inspector, the Colonel.By the way, in this film he's on the way to marriage and a honeymoon. Two films later, with the same fiancée, he's AGAIN on the way to get married and once again, the marriage never takes place. There's a later Drummond entitled BULLDOG DRUMMOND'S BRIDE--and again, the wedding plans are put on hold to solve a mystery. What a patient dame!

This is one of the better entries in the Drummond series. Three of the best entries are from 1937. The real reason they are better may be because of the writer, Edward T. Lowe Jr. He wrote this one as well as 1937's Bulldog Drummond Escapes and Bulldog Drummond Comes Back.The pace is quick, the dialog good, and there is some very nice physical humor throughout that features reasonable exaggeration without being too farcical. John Barrymore's more restrained performance as Col. Nielsen helps to highlight his bits of physical humor. The supporting cast is in especially fine form.The plot centers on the theft of a powerful explosive and our hero's efforts to retrieve it and solve the murders associated with the theft. There is nice touch involving a hand and arm.Lastly, if don't like to see women faint, stay away!