KING OF THE MOUNTIES

Allan Lane returns as Sgt. Dave King

KING OF THE MOUNTIES (12-chapter Republic serial/1942). Director: William Witney. Colorized version.

After the success of King of the Royal Mounted, Allan Lane was brought back as Sgt. Dave King of the RCMP in this new cliffhanger with even more formidable adversaries. A deadly triumvirate consisting of Japanese admiral Yamata (Abner Biberman); German Marshal Von Horst (Wilhelm von Brincken); and Italian Count Boroni (Nestor Paiva) are working behind the scenes to destroy Canada. Professor Brent (George Irving of Spy Ship) has invented a special device that can detect the activities of the Axis trio's "Falcon," a rocket-controlled aircraft which takes the group into their HQ inside an active volcano. Traitors working for the Axis include Blake (Bradley Page) and Harper (Douglass Dumbrille of The Catman of Paris), with Anthony Warde and Jay Novello on board for more nefarious activity. William Bakewell plays another Mountie and associate of King's, Peggy Drake is Brent's daughter, Carol, and Duncan Renaldo is Harper's right-hand Pierre. 

Axis trio: Paiva, Biberman and von Brincken

King of the Mounties is another exciting serial with Lane making the most of his role, and such memorable cliffhangers as a car exploding with Carol inside it; King being dropped right out of the bomb bay of the Falcon; planes colliding in mid-air; and a runaway car that smacks into King as he stands at the edge of a cliff. As usual, you can easily lose count of how many fist fights with broken furniture there are -- at least two in every chapter -- and there are plenty of chases and breathless escapes. The actors are all game as well. There's a splendid climax inside the exploding volcano where our villains come to a satisfying ending. 

Verdict: Fine follow-up to King of the Royal Mounted. ***. 

CAPTAIN AMERICA

Dick Purcell as Captain America

CAPTAIN AMERICA (15-chapter Republic serial/1944). Directors: Elmer Clifton and John English. Colorized version. 

Dr. Maldor (Lionel Atwill of Lady in the Death House) is royally pissed. All he got out of a trip to some Mayan ruins with several associates is a lowly position at the Drummond Museum of Arts and Sciences. Maldor is not about to take this slight lying down, so he uses a drug called the purple death to force the other men to commit suicide and calls himself the Scarab.  And that's just for starters. Maldor has other nefarious plans in mind and has to continually keep dealing with District Attorney Grant Gardner (Dick Purcell of X Marks the Spot) and his alter ego Captain America, who is out to stop him whatever it takes. Maldor uses a "dynamic vibrator" to make an entire building collapse in chapter one, and then uses a stolen "electronic firebolt" to rob banks and the like. He even gets involved with a professor who can bring dead animals and even people back to life. Grant/Cap has a take no prisoners attitude, and it seems as if every other chapter one of Maldor's gunsels is being thrown to his death from a great height. 

Atwill, Gray, Pucell

Captain America is one of the very best Republic serials, with a constant stream of riotous action, fabulous fisticuffs, and some great cliffhangers, including the aforementioned collapsing building, a crushing tractor on a direct path to Cap's prone body, a guillotine that nearly beheads Grant's plucky associate Gail (Lorna Gray), and an ore car that is dropped down a shaft on top of our semi-conscious hero. In one scene Atwill whips John Hamilton when he won't talk, and puts Gail in a case where he intends to employ "mummifying" gas to turn her into a desiccated prune. Gail thinks of a clever way to trap Maldor, making up the name of a doctor which is the Scarab's real name spelt backwards. Purcell and Gray are suitably heroic, but Atwill walks off with the movie with his smooth, amused, and highly sinister turn as the utterly evil and sociopathic Maldor. John Davidson and George J. Lewis are Maldor's primary henchmen, and Jay Novello has a neat scene as a gunsel who comes to a bad end. Mort Glickman's score also works overtime to keep the excitement level up. Gray and Lewis  also appeared together in Federal Operator 99. NOTE: Even though the serial's hero has a different secret identity than in the comic books, this is the very first Marvel Comics movie adaptation.

Verdict: Lots of thrilling fun. ***1/4. 

THE LOST WORLD

Yehudi, the fire monster, pops in for supper

THE LOST WORLD (1960). Produced and directed by Irwin Allen. 

"This is the greatest moment of your lives." -- Professor Challenger. 

The peppery Professor Challenger (Claude Rains) insists that he saw dinosaurs on a South American plateau from the air and wants to mount an expedition right away. Against his better wishes and despite skepticism, he assembles a team consisting of explorer Lord Roxton (Michael Rennie), reporter Ed Ames (David Hedison), the doubting and persnickety Professor Summerlee (Richard Haydn), and late arrivals Jennifer Holmes (Jill St. John ) and her brother David (Ray Stricklyn). Rounding out the motley crew are pilot Manual (Fernando Lamas) and his pal and helpmate, Costa (Jay Novello). The group do find the expected dinosaurs, as well as a race of decidedly unfriendly cannibals. It's not only a question of how they will get off the plateau but which will kill them first -- the monsters or the natives?

The explorers get their first look at a dinosaur

Very loosely based on the novel of the same name by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the movie is fun and colorful as long as you don't take it too seriously. The monsters are genuine lizards who are placed into process shots of varying effectiveness with the actors -- there's a marvelous scene with a monster's huge tail nearly sweeping Hedison and St. John off of a cliff as two dinosaurs have a battle nearby. The climax, greatly embellished and extended from Doyle's novel, features a cavern with a giant skeleton, angry pursuing natives, and a fire monster that makes a tasty snack out of poor Costa. It's ironic that he is so terrified of being sacrificed to cannibals but winds up eaten by a monster instead. 

Hedison, Stricklyn, St. John

Novello is probably the best actor in the bunch aside from Rains, who appears to be having fun if nothing else. The others all perform with a certain stalwart dignity, although many critics noted that St. John in her "shocking pink knee boots" seems out of her element. The film is well photographed in CinemaScope and Technicolor by Winton C. Hoch, and the score by Paul Sawtell and Bert Shefter is quite effective. 

Verdict: The biggest star is the Fire Monster. ***. 

FEDERAL OPERATOR 99

Marten  Lamont and Helen Talbot

FEDERAL OPERATOR 99 (12 chapter Republic serial/1945). Directors: Spencer Gordon Bennet; Wallace Grissell; Yakima Canutt.

Master criminal Jim Belmont (George J. Lewis) who loves classical music but only seems to play "Moonlight Sonata," has a number of decidedly anti-social money-making schemes in which people are kidnapped, threatened, and even tortured for information. (The owner of a Stradivarius is told he'll have his fingers crushed if he doesn't hand it over!)  Fortunately special federal operative 99, Jerry Blake (Marten Lamont), is out to stop Belmont any way he can. In this he is assisted by the gun-carrying Joyce Kingston (Helen Talbot,) who is far more than a mere "secretary." Belmont also has a female helpmate, a sadistic creature named Rita (Lorna Gray of Exposed), not to mention a chief assistant named Matt Farrell (Hal Taliaferro). Jay Novello [Atlantis the Lost Continent], "Mr. Versatile," plays a crooked jeweler.

Joyce and Rita have at each other! 

In addition to some great fight scenes, the serial boasts some splendid cliffhangers: Joyce is nearly incinerated when she is locked in a cabinet; a car crashes through a high floor with Jerry out on a ledge; Joyce goes over a cliff in a runaway laundry basket etc. The best and most horrifying cliffhanger has Joyce tied up in an aircraft factory while a huge propeller moves inexorably down a track directly towards her. Rita is broken out of jail in a clever fashion, and has a cat-fight with Joyce, who simply throws her out of a truck! At one point nasty Rita even threatens a countess by holding a cigarette lighter near her face. What a witch! Of the players, British Lamont is appealing and plays well with the feisty Talbot. George J. Lewis plays with restraint but there are times you wish he was a little over-the-top; Lorna Gray is more on the mark. 

Verdict: Federal Operator 99 is a remarkably entertaining serial with lots of action and interesting incidents throughout. ***1/2. 

ATLANTIS THE LOST CONTINENT

Joyce Taylor and Sal Ponti (Anthony Hall) 

ATLANTIS THE LOST CONTINENT (1961). Produced and directed by George Pal. 

Greek fisherman Demetrios (Sal Ponti, here billed as "Anthony Hall") finds a woman floating in the sea and discovers she is supposedly Princess Antillia (Joyce Taylor) of Atlantis. Demetrios and his father, Petros (Wolfe Barzell), think she must be out of her head, but she eventually importunes Demetrios to set sail beyond the Pillars of Hercules and on to Atlantis. There Demetrios thinks he will be showered with riches and marry Antillia, but instead -- unbeknownst to the princess -- he winds up a slave, as do all foreigners. Demetrios can win his freedom if he survives the Ordeal of Fire and Water, but even if he does he will have to contend with evil Zaren (John Dall), the true power behind the throne, who wants to wage war on other countries with his laser canon. Then there's that pesky volcano that keeps trembling in the background ... 

Atlantis sinks!

I first saw Atlantis the Lost Continent when I was a kid, loved it, have seen it several times since, and still get a kick out of it every time I watch it. The film has been utterly excoriated in many circles as the worst film George Pal ever made, which I personally find ridiculous. The film is fun, colorful, entertaining, well-acted by the leads (neither Taylor or Ponti may ever have been tapped to do Shakespeare, but they are perfect for this picture) and most of the supporting cast, the FX work is quite good for the time, and there's a bang-up finish involving the volcano and that runaway laser cannon. Not to mention the exciting Ordeal of Fire and Water in which Demetrios must face a bull of a man in a pit in an arena which is first full of fire and then flooded with water. 

 John Dall and Frank DeKova

John Dall (in his last film, only appearing on Perry Mason thereafter) practically steals the movie as Zaran, with the man's smiles being even more lethal than his sneers, his every utterance a treacherous double entendre. Berry (sic) Kroeger is nastiness personified as the surgeon who turns men into animal-human hybrids, and Jay Novello [Soldiers of Fortune] once again exhibits his amazing versatility as the Greek slave, Xandros, who is slowly metamorphosing into a bull. However, Frank DeKova, who plays Sonoy, the astrologer, sounds about as "Atlantean" as Fanny Brice! Edward Platt is given the thankless role of the pious priest, Azor, another in a long line of characters who point out the evils of Paganism while never acknowledging that Christianity has its own set of  negative aspects. William Smith plays the Captain of the Guard but isn't given enough time or close-ups to really register. Paul Frees not only does the narration but dubbed three of the actors. 

Berry Kroeger sizes up Sal Ponti

MGM didn't give George Pal a huge budget, so there's some stock footage and short cuts in the movie, but that's not exactly an unusual avenue to take. I love the beast men attacking Berry Kroeger, the priest taking care of Zaren, the disintegrater beam that atomizes some people and merely skeletonizes others, the metal submarine that sneaks up on the couple in their boat, the impressive destruction of Atlantis, Demetrios flinging mud at the princess, and the princess telling off Zaren, who has stolen power from her father: "You would think you wore his crown!" Say what you will, for me this is a neat picture.

Verdict: A hoot! ***. 

SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE

John Russell and Chick Chandler

SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE 1955 - 1957 syndicated television series.

This half hour show lasted two seasons and concerned the exploits of two adventurers who would do just about anything and go anywhere if the pay was right: Tim Kelly (John Russell) and Toubo Smith (Chick Chandler). The show used old sets from Republic films and serials as well as a lot of adroitly-employed stock footage. Russell and Chandler -- the former tall, handsome and macho, with a splendid physique, the latter short and plucky -- complimented each other perfectly.

Chandler and Russell

In one first season episode Kelly suggests that Toubo is getting too old and tired, should settle down and marry, he's over the hill. "A friend shouldn't say that to a friend," says an offended Toubo. "Who says you're a friend," replies Kelly "We travel around together," protests Toubo. To which Kelly replies, "I'm just keeping you out of trouble." The viewer honestly doesn't know if Kelly is joking or not, but in an episode in the second season, Kelly clearly risks his life to save his buddy's when the latter is nearly sacrificed to natives, so there's no doubt that there is a genuine bond of friendship between the two men.

John Russell before his Lawman TV series mustache

Soldiers of Fortune was not a classic series, but it was entertaining and (via stock footage and standing sets) managed to send the boys all over the world. Among the more memorable "A" episodes were the following: a woman is plagued by a voodoo cult in "Drums of Far Island;" a Chinese salesman in Limehouse is embroiled in a smuggling plot in "Hatchet Man;" sabotage holds up construction of an underwater tunnel in Cuba in "Sandhogs;" and the boys go undercover on a cargo ship with a sinister crew in "Crew of the Dolly D." 

Chick Chandler

Out of fifty-two episodes I have managed to see all but five, but at least half are of B+ quality. Guest-stars include Henry Brandon ("Greatest Beast" -- was an oil man killed by a Tibetan monster?); Jay Novello ("Vanishing Island" -- that  occasionally rises to the surface and holds a treasure); Beverly Garland ("Lady and the Lion" -- intrigue on an African film set); Jean Byron ("Tattooed Lady of Torima" -- a beautiful woman runs a diamond racket in Columbia); Michael Emmet ("Skull of the Inca" -- an educated native returns to headhunter land to find treasure and encounters giant lizards from One Million B.C. instead). 

"City of Doom" with Pamela Duncan

Also Grant Williams ("Lady of Rajmahal" -- a rajah's frightened wife wants to leave home with some priceless art treasures); Adele Jurgens ("Danger Sisters" -- two gals with a knife-throwing act get into trouble in Tangier); and Pamela Duncan ("The City of Doom" -- a maharajah's sister fears that a cult that is against progress will eventually destroy the city). Many episodes featured women whom at first seemed warm and sympathetic and turned out to have a dagger up their sleeves, and duplicitous characters of both sexes abounded. 

Verdict: Basically a fun if imperfect series that was easy to take. **1/2.