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Bulldog Drummond's Peril

  • 1938
  • Approved
  • 1h 6m
IMDb RATING
5.8/10
744
YOUR RATING
John Barrymore, Louise Campbell, and John Howard in Bulldog Drummond's Peril (1938)
ActionAdventureCrimeMysteryRomanceThriller

Captain Drummond tries to find the killer of various people. All assassinations were provoked by a diamond of great value, but Drummond will face the danger.Captain Drummond tries to find the killer of various people. All assassinations were provoked by a diamond of great value, but Drummond will face the danger.Captain Drummond tries to find the killer of various people. All assassinations were provoked by a diamond of great value, but Drummond will face the danger.

  • Director
    • James P. Hogan
  • Writers
    • Stuart Palmer
    • Herman C. McNeile
  • Stars
    • John Barrymore
    • John Howard
    • Louise Campbell
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.8/10
    744
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • James P. Hogan
    • Writers
      • Stuart Palmer
      • Herman C. McNeile
    • Stars
      • John Barrymore
      • John Howard
      • Louise Campbell
    • 21User reviews
    • 7Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos12

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    Top cast40

    Edit
    John Barrymore
    John Barrymore
    • Colonel Nielson
    John Howard
    John Howard
    • Captain Hugh C. 'Bulldog' Drummond
    Louise Campbell
    Louise Campbell
    • Phyllis Clavering
    Reginald Denny
    Reginald Denny
    • Algy Longworth
    E.E. Clive
    E.E. Clive
    • Tenny
    Porter Hall
    Porter Hall
    • Dr. Max Botulian
    Elizabeth Patterson
    Elizabeth Patterson
    • Aunt Blanche Clavering
    Nydia Westman
    Nydia Westman
    • Gwen Longworth
    Michael Brooke
    Michael Brooke
    • Anthony Greer
    Halliwell Hobbes
    Halliwell Hobbes
    • Professor Bernard Goodman
    Matthew Boulton
    Matthew Boulton
    • Sir Raymond Blantyre
    Zeffie Tilbury
    Zeffie Tilbury
    • Mrs. Weevens
    David Clyde
    David Clyde
    • Constable McThane
    Clyde Cook
    Clyde Cook
    • Constable Sacker
    Austin Fairman
    • Roberts
    Jimmy Aubrey
    Jimmy Aubrey
    • Mechanic
    • (uncredited)
    Frank Baker
    Frank Baker
    • Constable Announcer
    • (uncredited)
    Frank Benson
    • Villager
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • James P. Hogan
    • Writers
      • Stuart Palmer
      • Herman C. McNeile
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews21

    5.8744
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    10

    Featured reviews

    6coltras35

    Ok Drummond entry

    Murder and robbery drag the adventurous Drummond away from his wedding and he pursues the villains behind diamond counterfeiting, and finds himself in trouble.

    Slightly weaker entry to the ones I had seen, mainly because Phylis, Algy and Tenny aren't in the focus much, and also the plot can be confusing. It also meanders a little. Still it's entertaining; there's a good stunt Tenny does as he transfers himself from his bycycle to a van and a rousing scene of Drummond fencing with a man with a whip.
    6blanche-2

    early Moissanite

    Hugh Bulldog Drummond (John Howard) is about to marry his great love, Phyllis, when the wedding has to be delayed.

    One lovely wedding gift they received was a beautiful diamond, which turns out was created by the father of Phyllis' friend Gwen. He is very excited about presenting a paper at a conference and to be the first one who has created the gem. He's interested in credit, not money; in fact, he plans on giving the formula away.

    At the party to celebrate the upcoming nuptials is Sir Raymond Blantree, a jewel magnate. He wants the formula and Gwen's father, Professor Goodman to sink the invention before it wrecks the value of jewels everywhere. The oil companies have done this for years with alternate fuel patents.

    Professor Goodman isn't inclined to sell.

    Everybody wants this formula, and in fact, a detective at the party is found murdered as a result of the diamond itself being stolen.

    When Blantree finds out that Goodman is going to borrow equipment from a gemologist, Dr. Botulian, he devises a plan to steal the invention.Little does he know that Dr. Botulian has a plan of his own.

    Well, this is where the movie goes off the rails. Blantree is having someone impersonate Dr. Botulian and show up at 9 p.m. Botulian himself plans on showing up earlier. Unfortunately I just couldn't tell who was who and before you knew it, I was totally confused.

    John Howard is a dapper and charming Drummond, and Algy (Reginald Denny) and Tenney (E.E. Clive) are on hand to help him do what he can to catch the criminals.

    Not on board and mad as hell and not going to take it anymore is the Colonel (John Barrymore) who is sick of Drummond's machinations. He's great. Phyllis (Louise Campbell), who thought her future husband was retiring, at one point tells him she never wants to see him again. We know she doesn't mean it.

    Of course today we have all kinds of lab-created diamonds: Brilliant Earth, Moissanite, Affinity, etc. Brilliant Earth and Moissanite cost a fortune. I would have told Blantree, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
    5wes-connors

    Drummond and the Diamond

    British adventurer John Howard (as Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond) is all set to marry girlfriend Louise Campbell (as Phyllis Clavering), in Geneva, Switzerland. Back in Scotland Yard, ace investigator John Barrymore (as Colonel Nielson) sends the couple books as a wedding present. He couldn't make the wedding. While looking over their gifts, Drummond and Phyllis are amazed at the delivery of a stunning diamond. Supposedly artificial ("glass"), the jewel is actually a valuable new synthetic diamond. Almost immediately, the diamond is replaced by a dead body. Of course, Drummond must cancel his wedding to solve the crimes...

    This was the last appearance by Mr. Barrymore in the "Bulldog Drummond" series. Frequently shouting, "Don't call me inspector!" it's Barrymore's least successful characterization of Colonel Nielson. Reportedly, alcohol was taking a heavy toll on the acclaimed actor, although he would manage a few more effective roles before expiring. Mysterious guest star Porter Hall (as Max Botulian) picks up some of the slack. Generally, the story is an improvement over the previous episode, with capable direction by James Hogan and editing by Edward Dmytryk. Howard and the regulars are joined by Elizabeth Patterson (as Aunt Blanche), a fine addition.

    ***** Bulldog Drummond's Peril (1938-03-17) James Hogan ~ John Howard, John Barrymore, Porter Hall, E.E. Clive
    5planktonrules

    I give it an extra point for the penguin--but it's still not that great a film.

    While there have been a lot of Bulldog Drummond films, this one has something that none other has---a penguin wearing a top hat and bow-tie! For that reason alone, this one is worth seeing! Unfortunately, apart from the penguin, this is a very ordinary B-movie--no better or worse than the average Dulldog Drummond movie--and this isn't saying a lot because the series was far from inspired and is not even close in quality and entertainment of many of the better series from the era. I'm being very generous in giving this one a 5.

    The film finds Drummond about to get married. As a wedding present, he receives a huge artificial diamond that is gem quality. While crude industrial diamonds have been produced over the years artificially, this one was worth a fortune--and potentially would ruin the diamond industry. Not surprisingly, the diamond folks cannot ignore such a development, so they steal the diamond and head for the professor's home to shut him up permanently. The story consists of chase after chase and is rather low on dialog--with a premium on action.

    Overall, a decent time-passer but that is about all. I agree with another reviewer who felt that although John Barrymore was in the film, he was pretty much wasted. How can such a huge screen personality be nothing but a bit player who could have been played by practically anyone?
    6Mike-764

    His peril becomes my confusion.

    Capt. Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond is finally marrying his long standing fiancé Phyllis, while on a retreat in Geneva. During a reception party, Hugh and Phyllis receive a flawless man-made diamond from friend Gwen's scientist father. Sir Raymond Blantree, a guest at the party and jewel magnate, sees the diamond and plans to get both it and Prof. Goodman (Gwen's father) before the discovery decreases the value of all jewels around the world (smirk). Hugh, Algy, and Tenny chase Blantree, and his accomplice Greer, back to London, but being of position, Blantree is able to avoid police persecution by Col. Neilson, who is still fed up with Drummond's wild adventures. Blantree tries to buy the formula from Goodman, but he refuses to sell, saying he will give it away. Blantree learns that Goodman plans to borrow equipment from a rival gemologist Dr. Botulian and plans to have Greer impersonate Botulian to get the formula, but the doctor has plans of his own for obtaining the formula. Will one of their plans succeed despite the efforts of Drummond and company? Good entry in the series, but it didn't live up to its potential with plenty of setup and weak execution. Biggest problem was at first the audience was intended to left in mystery as to who the real Botualian was, but after two minutes of it, this reviewer was just confused. The first half of the film focused on the villainy of Blantree and then he was discarded in the second half for Botulian, and frankly both of them were limp adversaries. I had to laugh at Blantree's idea of the man made gems weakening the financial value of pure gems, apparently the executives at QVC would have given Bulldog more of a run for his money. Rating, 6.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      During the 6/5/15 TCM presentation, Ben Mankiewicz reported this was the last of the Bulldog Drummond series that John Barrymore would appear in. Mr. Barrymore's alcoholism had become so out of hand, that for this film Barrymore could no longer read lines. Even if they were written down and shown to him off camera. So he was quietly let go from the Drummond series and H.B. Warner would go on to play Colonel Neilson in the four remaining Drummond films at Paramount.
    • Goofs
      The sign at the Airport is incorrectly spelled "Aérodrome du Macon" in French, when it should read "Aérodrome de Mâcon".
    • Quotes

      Phyllis Clavering: And this was supposed to be our wedding day.

      Capt. Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond: Oh, I'm sorry, darling, but if there's a registery office still open...

      Col. Neilson: And if there isn't, you'll probably break into one!

    • Crazy credits
      Although it is John Howard who is playing Bulldog Drummond, it is John Barrymore who gets top billing for playing the supporting character of Colonel Neilson.
    • Connections
      Featured in Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police (1939)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 18, 1938 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Bulldog Drummond Interferes
    • Filming locations
      • Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA(Studio)
    • Production company
      • Paramount Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 6m(66 min)
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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