Some Girls Do is a British comedy/spy film starring Richard Johnson as Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, a debonair secret agent posing as an insurance adjuster, who is called in to investigate the sabotage of a new supersonic airliner and a potential £8 million payout.
The movie also stars Robert Morley, Sydne Rome, James Villiers, and Florence Desmond. Joanna Lumley is in an uncredited role as Robert #2.
Some Girls Do is a spoof of the James Bond films, and it features many of the same elements, including high-tech gizmos, in this case infra-sound weapons; exotic locations; beautiful women (mostly fem bots!); and action sequences. Unfortunately the gags are pretty lame, and the action, even by 1969 standards, is a bit of a snooze. The locations on Spain's Costa Brava are boring. They look like a generic 1960s Mediterranean resort area. It is not entirely clear how the fem-bots came into being. There is some hint of surgery, which would be pretty gruesome and not very funny.
On the plus side, Johnson is well cast as Drummond. He delivers a witty and charming performance with an accent even more posh than Sean Connery. Morley is also excellent as Miss Mary, Drummond's eccentric, obviously gay, butler. He is an undercover agent posing as a culinary instructor. He's one of the few sources of real laughter. Rome plays Flicky, a Bondian seductress and triple agent who exudes a sort of silly sexuality. Desmond, in her last film role, is credible as an aging, ex-pat society host who is also a spy. The best performance is from Villers, who plays the villain, Petersen (odd name for a bad guy) to the hilt. He looks especially mad in his Duke of Wellington outfit.
But none of it really comes together. The really good laughs are few and far between. The action sequences (a glider sabotage, a speed boat race) do not produce much adrenaline. Special effects are so-so. The photography is meh. The musical score - always fun in a Bond film - is forgettable. It's a bland, paint-by-the-numbers Bond spoof.
So a great set-up. Fun cast. But a major miss on entertainment value.
The movie also stars Robert Morley, Sydne Rome, James Villiers, and Florence Desmond. Joanna Lumley is in an uncredited role as Robert #2.
Some Girls Do is a spoof of the James Bond films, and it features many of the same elements, including high-tech gizmos, in this case infra-sound weapons; exotic locations; beautiful women (mostly fem bots!); and action sequences. Unfortunately the gags are pretty lame, and the action, even by 1969 standards, is a bit of a snooze. The locations on Spain's Costa Brava are boring. They look like a generic 1960s Mediterranean resort area. It is not entirely clear how the fem-bots came into being. There is some hint of surgery, which would be pretty gruesome and not very funny.
On the plus side, Johnson is well cast as Drummond. He delivers a witty and charming performance with an accent even more posh than Sean Connery. Morley is also excellent as Miss Mary, Drummond's eccentric, obviously gay, butler. He is an undercover agent posing as a culinary instructor. He's one of the few sources of real laughter. Rome plays Flicky, a Bondian seductress and triple agent who exudes a sort of silly sexuality. Desmond, in her last film role, is credible as an aging, ex-pat society host who is also a spy. The best performance is from Villers, who plays the villain, Petersen (odd name for a bad guy) to the hilt. He looks especially mad in his Duke of Wellington outfit.
But none of it really comes together. The really good laughs are few and far between. The action sequences (a glider sabotage, a speed boat race) do not produce much adrenaline. Special effects are so-so. The photography is meh. The musical score - always fun in a Bond film - is forgettable. It's a bland, paint-by-the-numbers Bond spoof.
So a great set-up. Fun cast. But a major miss on entertainment value.