ThiefHott Too much of everything

HeadlinesExotic Boring

Huievest Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

bsmith5552 Having just watched "Bulldog Drummond" (1929) with Ronald Coleman, this film suffers greatly by comparison. In the first place, Coleman was the perfect screen Drummond, whereas Walter Pidgeon the lead in this picture lacks much of the bon vivant, devil may care persona of Coleman.The story takes place in London where a gang of criminals led by Arthur Gunns (Robert Beatty) and directed by an unseen boss, has been robbing big businesses all over London. Scotland Yard Inspector McIver (Charles Victor) goes to the retired Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond Walter Pidgeon), now raising prize pigs, for help. Drummond reluctantly agrees to come out of retirement to help.Drummond fakes his flight to Africa under the guise of having cheated at cards in an exclusive men's club, to "disappear" from sight. He is teamed up with Scotland Yard Sgt. Helen Smith (Margaret Leighton) to pose as rival crooks in order to infiltrate the gang.Gunns, suspicious at first, takes a liking to Smith much to the dismay of girl friend Molly (Peggy Evans). Molly by chance, discovers the plot by Drummond and Smith and......................................Walter Pidgeon, although a competent actor in his own right, was totally miscast as the sleuth Drummond. He has none of the humor and romantic nature or the British accent of either Coleman or of John Howard, who starred in the late 30s Drummonds. Margaret Leighton, on the other hand, is excellent as the undercover detective. David Tomlinson as Algy Longworth provides what humor there is but has little to do otherwise. In fact he doesn't appear with Pidgeon until three quarters of the way though the film. Robert Beatty, a Canadian sans British Accent, is a competent adversary. Bernard Lee ("M" in the early James Bond films) plays Colonel Wetson a member of Drummond's men's club.As a stand alone mystery, the film is not to bad but, as a revival of the Bulldog Drummond series, it fails miserably.

gridoon2018 When I saw the famous MGM logo at the start of this picture, I was fairly certain that it was going to have considerably higher production standards than most, if not all, of the previous entries in the series, as MGM is famous for putting gloss even in its "B"-movie section. And I was right - this is the slickest of all the Drummond films (even the music score is pretty sweeping!). Is it the best? It might have been, but it gives away some of its secrets too soon; for example, the identity of the villainous No.1 would have made for a good surprise at the very end, but the audience learns his identity much earlier. Walter Pidgeon is a bit stodgy as Drummond, but he is surrounded by a fine cast: Margaret Leighton is natural and appealing as his female assistant (an example of early feminism, she gradually overcomes Drummond's "This is not a job for a woman!" doubts with her competence), Robert Beatty as the suave-sleazy villain, Peggy Evans as his jealous but smarter-than-she-looks moll, David Tomlinson as an almost ideal Algy (nowhere near as stupid as he is usually portrayed), and Bernard Lee as a fellow member of Drummond and Algy's "gentleman's club.". A fairly strong note for the series to finish on. **1/2 out of 4.

blanche-2 "Calling Bulldog Drummond" is my first exposure to this character, so I can't judge the film or the acting the way others on this site do. I will be seeing more Bulldog films in the future, and perhaps I can look at this one again.Walter Pidgeon is Bulldog Drummond, and his costar is Margaret Leighton. Both are working undercover to unmask a gang of thieves.I always enjoy Walter Pidgeon, and he acquits himself well. Is he Bulldog? I don't know because I haven't seen the other films. He is certainly charming and has a light touch on the material. Victor Saville does a good job of directing. The film moves along, and the story is interesting.The standout here is Margaret Leighton, a wonderful stage actress whom I believe played the original Hannah in "Night of the Iguana" on stage - I could be wrong there. She is excellent, slipping into her low-rent character and back into her policewoman persona beautifully. A real find.Very enjoyable, but I take it NOT if you're familiar with the entire Bulldog Drummond series, which I'm looking forward to seeing.

krorie This is a very good movie with Walter Pidgeon doing an excellent job as Bulldog Drummond. Algy too is back and played to perfection by David Tomlinson. The story is filled with suspense and action. But where are Colonel Neilson, Tenny, and Phyllis Clavering, The woman Major Drummond is always about to marry but, alas, usually does not? Margaret Leighton as Sergeant Helen Smith fills in nicely for Phyllis Clavering and this somewhat compensates for Ms Clavering's absence, plus giving a new twist to the comparable role. This is a faithful rendition of the Bulldog Drummond series and highly recommended for fans and non-fans.