The Girl Hunters

Enjoyed everything that Mickey Spillane wrote and enjoyed this film, but Mickey just did not fit into the role as Mike Hammer, he should have stayed at home by the typewriter. Even Hy Gardner, a famous, NYC newspaper reporter and Radio personality added greatly to this film with his assistance to Mike Hammer. Lloyd Nolan,(Federal Agent Arthur Rickerby), "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn" gave a nice supporting role, who was a great Classic Actor in his early career in Hollywood. The real hot sexy number in this picture was Shirley Eaton,(Laura Knapp),"Goldfinger", who did everything she could to tease and please Mike Hammer in hot bathing attire by the pool and in the bedroom. By the way, Shirley Eaton was the girl painted in Gold Paint during the filming of "Goldfinger". Great classic black and white film you will not want to miss.

Mike Hammer (Mickey Spillane) is found drunk and passed out by a police cruiser in an alley; he's taken to excessive drinking since the abduction of his girlfriend and secretary Velma, and is no good to himself or anyone else. Given a second chance and a new license to carry his cannon like .45 by new-found friend and FBI agent Rickerby (Lloyd Nolan) he sets out to find Velma and in the process meets the beautiful Laura Knapp (Shirley Eaton) who he first sees in her bikini as she's getting a suntan on an inflated raft in her pool. She makes a good femme fatale and has a neat seduction scene with him in her dark living room one night. Rickerby puts Hammer on the trail of "The Dragon" (Larry Taylor) a Soviet killer who might be connected to Velma's disappearance as well. The plot is difficult to follow, names are tossed out, and the viewer's job is to try and connect the dots. The pace is all right, directed by veteran Roy Rowland, and Spillane, though he isn't Olivier, grows on you as the film heads into a surprisingly violent ending.

Mickey also stars as P. I. Mike Hammer, who has been an alcoholic bum for the past seven years after his beloved secretary Velda disappeared. Police Captain Pat Chambers (Scott Peters) gets Mike sober in order to interrogate a a dying man who may know what happened to Velda.

Mike starts his own investigation, during which he meets wealthy society widow Shirley Eaton, who may hold the key to everything. A decent story and competent direction is undone by the casting of Spillane, who comes across like a constipated Merv Griffin sporting a crew cut and a weak voice. Eaton appears in a few swimsuits, but no gold body paint, unfortunately. There's a good fight scene in a barn between Hammer and a guy who looks like Oscar Homolka's little brother. This was a British production, set in New York, so you get to hear a lot of bad phony American accents.

I must disagree with the previous reviewer, who had nothing good to say aboout this movie. The Girl Hunters is I agree unusual--but unusual in a good sense. The acting is excellent. The characters sound as one would imagine real DAs and real private eyes to sound. They don't sound like Robert Di Niro--but that is refreshing.

And the musical score is actually exceptionally lyrical and moving.

In some ways I like this movie even better than Kiss Me Deadly.

Each one gets an A- in my book.

Granted, the other posters have valid comments.......Spillane cannot really act. However, for some bizarre reason, his stilted, monotone delivery works for me.

My major complaint, regarding acting, would have to concern Scott Peters, as Hammer's former partner. He screeches his way through every scene he's in, and he makes it completely unbelievable that his character could ever have been friends with Hammer.

The soundtrack is indeed grating. The crashing score overpowers many of the scenes, derailing the film noirish approach to the material.

Eaton is indeed great, although the usually wonderful Nolan comes across as a bit cartoonish.

That all being said, I still recommend this film, if only for the experience of seeing Spillane play his own creation.

One side note: WHAT happened to Velda????