The literary character of Bulldog Drummond has not worn well. Reading the books now, Drummond tends to come across as more of a fascist bully than as a hero. This 1929 movie was Ronald Colman's first in a talkie and he plays the character with his usual charm, honing down the more brutal aspects of the Drummond in the books (although in one scene he does gleefully choke a man to death with his bare hands).
The movie is based on the stage play rather than on the book and the stage origins show. One can almost sense actors waiting for their cue to make an entrance. Colman and Bennett are pretty good in the lead roles but the over acting of Lawrence Grant as the mad doctor is painful to behold.
For collector's it's worth seeing once for the record.
The movie is based on the stage play rather than on the book and the stage origins show. One can almost sense actors waiting for their cue to make an entrance. Colman and Bennett are pretty good in the lead roles but the over acting of Lawrence Grant as the mad doctor is painful to behold.
For collector's it's worth seeing once for the record.