utgard14 Bulldog Drummond's in love and ready for marriage. But that'll have to wait because his fiancée has been kidnapped by the brother and widow of an executed criminal Drummond put behind bars. The kidnappers intend to torture Drummond by making him follow a series of clues that lead him into dangerous situations. He must rely on his friends to help him figure out the clues and stay alive in the process.John Howard's first Bulldog Drummond movie. Many actors played the character over the years (three in 1937 alone) but no one played him more than Howard. He would play Drummond for a total of seven films, all in the span of two years. Interestingly, despite playing the title character, Howard isn't top-billed. That honor goes to John Barrymore, who plays Bulldog Drummond's friend Colonel Nielsen. Barrymore's career was in a poor state at this time and he needed work. You would never know it from his performance as he's a lot of fun to watch. A little hammy at times but that's to be expected with him. John Howard isn't quite as lively as Ray Milland was in the role but he's good in a serviceable B hero kind of way. Reginald Denny continues on as Drummond's sidekick Algy and E.E. Clive as Drummond's butler Tenny. Both are entertaining. Helen Freeman and J. Carrol Naish make good villains. Louise Campbell plays Drummond's love interest Phyllis for the first of three films. She reminds me a little of Maureen O'Sullivan, which is not a bad thing. It's an enjoyable B detective picture. Nothing more special than that but it doesn't have to be. I happen to like these types of pictures. It's an entertaining way to pass an hour.

blanche-2 Now John Howard is Bulldog Drummond in this 1937 film, "Bulldog Drummond Comes Back," with John Barrymore getting top billing.Phyllis (Louise Campbell), the fiancée of Bulldog, is kidnapped. In order to find her, Bulldog, who has wronged the kidnappers, has to solve a series of clues. It's all to trap him. The villains are J. Carrol Naish and Helen Freeman, and John Barrymore is the Colonel. He did two Bulldog films. What a great actor -- it's kind of sad to see him here. He uses some disguises very effectively.Tenney (E.E. Clive) is very good as Bulldog asks for his approval on a poem, and Tenney provides him with further help. And poor Algy (Reginald Denny) is trying to get back for his baby's christening. Somehow Bulldog always lures him away from family.I like John Howard in this role. He's handsome, smooth, and sophisticated. He's best remembered (by me anyway) as Katharine Hepburn's fiancée in The Philadelphia Story. The story idea is interesting if lightweight, with villains played by J. Carrol Naish and Helen Freeman using a series of riddles and puzzles, along with a kidnapping, in their attempts to lure Drummond into a trap. The series of puzzles gets a bit far-fetched, but it does hold your interest, and perhaps with a little more careful writing and editing it could have made a pretty good movie. Entertaining.

Tweekums Newly engaged Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond is looking forward to the arrival of his fiancée Phyllis but plans for a peaceful visit don't last long. She hasn't been there long when she is kidnapped by Irena Soldanis and Mikhail Valdin. We soon learn why she was kidnapped; Irena wants revenge on Drummond because she blames him for her late brother's execution. She leaves a series of cryptic clues that are intended to make him suffer before they exact their ultimate revenge. Drummond follows the clues along with friend Algy and faithful butler Tenny. The kidnappers specifically told Drummond not to let Colonel Neilson of Scotland Yard get involved but the colonel decides to follow despite Drummond's instructions not to… this involves a series of impressive disguises.The adventure sees John Howard taking over the lead role and Louise Campbell taking over as Phyllis; Howard does a fine job as Drummond and Campbell is okay but not as good as Heather Angel was when the character was first introduced. The story may be a little cliché but it is still fun. The various clues aren't too convoluted; there is a good chance that the viewer will solve one or two before they are explained. There is a fair amount of action packed into the film's short runtime leading up to a gripping denouement. Mixed in with the drama there are some funny moments; Col Neilson's ingenious disguises were both amusing and surprisingly believable. The baddies are fairly cliché dastardly Central Europeans but that doesn't mean they aren't entertaining. Overall I'd say this is a fun action adventure that contains absolutely no offensive material.

classicsoncall In this entry in the Bulldog Drummond franchise, the Captain (John Howard) finds himself on the trail of a pair of villains who have kidnapped his fiancée Phyllis Clavering (Louise Campbell). What makes the story interesting are the written and audible clues that Irena Soldanis (Helen Freeman) and her brother-in-law Mikhail Valdin (J. Carrol Naish) leave for the detective. The motive behind the kidnapping hearkens back to a murder trial that sent Irena's husband to the gallows, courtesy of Drummond."Bulldog Drummond Comes Back" seems to be a follow up to the same year's "Bulldog Drummond Escapes". In that film, the running gag had Drummond's sidekick Algy (Reginald Denny) fretting over the birth of his first son; this time out, Algy is worried about making the christening. Scotland Yard's Colonel Neilson is portrayed by the venerable John Barrymore this time around, and as befits his reputation, is actually top billed above the film's lead character. He earns it though, with a repertoire of disguises necessitated by the villains' threat to kill Miss Clavering if Scotland Yard gets involved.But in this, my third viewing of a Bulldog Drummond movie, the scene stealer is once again Drummond's butler Tenny (E.E. Clive), who's deadpan repartee and mannerisms make for beautifully understated comic relief. He's also a bit more adventurous this time out, inviting himself along as Drummond and Algy take after the bad guys. It's interesting to note that it was Tenny who figured out one of the clues to be the old disappearing ink trick.Note the scene in which Tenny hitches a ride on the back of the car which shanghais Drummond outside the Anglers Rest. Tenny looks into the rear window of the vehicle, and clearly visible inside is the back of a person's head. However inside the auto, Miss Soldanis and the kidnapped Miss Clavering are in the back seat, but with a shade pulled down over the window! I've seen J. Carrol Naish now in a number of films, and he looks different every time out. Here, as the creepy villain Valdin he looks almost Oriental in appearance, in a characterization that would have done Peter Lorre proud.Before the mystery is over, Drummond, Algy and Phyllis must escape a death trap before succumbing to lethal gas. Ever the enterprising butler, Tenny makes use of a Scotland Yard auto to remove a fallen tree from the road and arrive just in time to make the save. One thing though, can you really shoot the pin out of a door hinge with a handgun? If you can overlook some of the less plausible elements in this and other films in the Drummond series, they're worth the effort in entertainment value. I'm still waiting though to see if Captain Drummond ever winds up at the altar; in both "Escapes" and "Comes Back" he winds up still single at the end of the film.