Hopscotch (1980)

Miles Kendig (Walter Matthau) has just busted up a spy ring in Munich that was providing information to the Mikhail Yaskov (Herbert Lom) of the KGB.  Though he had Yaskov in his custody, he let the Russian go.  Called back to Washington, he was reprimanded by Director Myerson (Ned Beatty) for letting Yaskov loose.  His field agent status is summarily ended, and he is assigned to a desk job.  Kendig doesn't take this sitting down.  He destroys his file, returns to Europe to hook up with an old flame - Isobel von Schonenberg (Glenda Jackson), and meet with Yaskov.  Though Yaskov offers him a path back into the spy game, Kendig chose a different course: he would write his memoirs, a tell-all that exposed the dirty secrets of espionage.  The first chapter provoked a manhunt by Myerson and Kendig's protege, Joe Cutter (Sam Waterston).  Can Kendig finish the book before the CIA or the KGB hunt him down?

Despite being a spy movie, there are virtually no action scenes.  This isn't James Bond or Jason Bourne.  Kendig is a professional spy who knows how to stay one or more steps ahead of his pursuers.  In fact, he is so good at the job that he teases his opponents and arranges encounters.  While this is deadly serious national security to Myerson, it's an entertaining game for Kendig.

Ned Beatty is terrific as the boss you love to hate.  Each time Kendig tweaks him, it brings a smile or a laugh.  That Kendig rented Myerson's summer house as a hideout and then triggered an FBI assault was the funniest part of the movie.

Good popcorn fun!  Recommended.

North West Frontier (1959)

It is 1905 in the northwestern region of India where Prince Kishan is heir to rulership.  However, he is only 5 years old.  Captain Scott (Kenneth More) and a small detachment of Indian Soldiers escort him to Hyderbad, where the plan was to take him by train to Delhi.  The last train has already left and now Muslim troops have circled the city.  Governor Sir John Windham does not believe the city will be able to hold out against the impeding siege and plans a daring escape for the young prince.  There is an older train engine - Empress of India - that could breakthrough the siege lines and race to safety.  Captain Scott is placed in command of the effort.  In addition to Gupta the engineer (I. S. Johar) and two Indian soldiers, there is Catherine Wyatt (Lauren Bacall) the prince's governess, Lady Windham the governor's wife, Mr. Bridie (Wilfrid Hyde-White) the ex-patriot, Peter van Layden (Herbert Lom) the reporter, and Mr. Peters the arms dealer.  The train trip is not without its dangers, from attacks by mounted horsemen, damaged railways, and an unstable bridge.  Can this aging train and ragtag crew take the prince to safety?

I.S. Johar is the most entertaining character of the bunch.  His broken - but entirely intelligible - English always brings a smile and his constant good cheer despite the stresses of the trip and his responsibility for the train makes him the standout.  Kenneth More, who was a top British actor at the time, is fine as the lead.  He plays the never-say-die heroic type quite well.  It's a solid performance but not particularly memorable.  Bacall likewise makes for a good leading lady and love interest for Capt. Scott.  Wilfrid Hyde-White felt very out of place.  Though I liked Gupta's upbeat attitude, it was odd to have a second sunny face on this grim adventure.  Hyde-White is such a genial and gentlemanly fellow, hardly the kind of man to take on this journey.  He was more concerned with teatime than the rebel bullets.  By contrast, Herbert Lom provides most of the acerbic attitude on the train.  He wheedled his way onto the train against the governor's wishes and clashes with many of the passengers.

It is noteworthy that Pakistan did not yet exist in 1905; it was the northwestern frontier of India until it claimed independence in 1947.  Of course, this is a fictional story, not even a based on real events type of movie.  It has been described as a British Western and even an adaptation of Stagecoach (1939).  In any case, it is good popcorn fun.  Recommended.

Gambit (1966)

Harry Dean (Michael Caine) follows a woman through the streets of Hong Kong.  She goes into a club.  There, Dean and another man watch as she performs with other dancers in a floor show.  Both agree that the woman is perfect for their plan.  Dean offers Nicole Chang (Shirley MacLaine) $5000 and a British passport if she will pose as his wife.  When Sir Harold and Lady Nicole arrive in a middle eastern country, she is now a brunette who bares an uncanny resemblance to the dead wife of Ahmad Shahbandar (Herbert Lom).  Shahbandar, reportedly the richest man in the world, invites them to dinner and marvels at Nicole.  In Shahbandar's apartment, there is a priceless sculpture of an ancient Chinese empress; the resemblance to Nicole is startling.  This is what Harry intends to steal.

Here is a heist/comedy/romance.  Like many movies of this type, there is the idealized heist as planned which looks foolproof and then the actual heist that sees a variety of comical setbacks.  This comes off quite well and is entertaining.  The romance is not only secondary, but something of a surprise.  The scenes between Harry and Nicole are mostly him being annoyed at her chattiness.  When he professes his love for her, it comes as a surprise.  Really, I thought it was just as likely that he would abandon her to be caught.

Fun and light.  A must for fans of either Michael Caine or Shirley MacLaine.  Good popcorn fun.

Hell Drivers (1957)

Tom Yately (Stanley Baker) is recently out of prison and seeking a job.  He finds a position as a truck driver for a company that delivers gravel to building sites.  His fellow drivers are a rough crew led by C. "Red" Redman (Patrick McGoohan).  Red takes an immediate dislike to Tom and most of the drivers join in that attitude, except Gino (Herbert Lom).  Gino plans to earn enough to travel back to Italy with the company secretary, Lucy (Peggy Cummins).  However, Lucy suddenly has eyes for Tom.  When Tom refuses to fight in a brawl with the rest of the crew, the general dislike grows to hate.  Talk about a hostile work environment.

The noteworthy thing about the movie is the number of stars who appear before their big break in show business:

1. Sean Connery - future James Bond - has a small role as truck driver Johnny Kates.  He doesn't have a lot of lines but his charisma shows.

2. Herbert Lom - Chief Inspector Dreyfus of the Pink Panther Series - is truck driver Gino Rossi.  Lom was an established actor by now and received second billing.

3. Patrick McGoohan - Danger Man/Secret Agent/The Prisoner - is the prime villain, Red.  I have long liked McGoohan but here he is a one-dimensional villain.  Constant hostility with a cigarette clamped between clenched teeth and an angry glower on his face.  He's got less depth than a comic book villain.  Of course, the moment Tom stops taking his guff and proves that Red's bark is worse than his bite, Red makes dastardly plans to kill Tom.

4. William Hartnell - the original Doctor Who - is Administrator Cartley.  He has the commanding gruff demeanor that is familiar to his later fans but it isn't counterbalanced with his Doctorly charm.

5. Jill Ireland - frequent co-star of future husband Charles Bronson - is the landlady's daughter.

6. David McCallum - the Russian Man from UNCLE - plays Tom Yately's younger brother.  Also of note, he was Jill Ireland's first husband and they met on this movie.  When McCallum was working on The Great Escape (1963), he introduced his wife to Charles Bronson.

The movie is just okay but it is worth seeing for the cast.

King Solomon's Mines (1985)

Allan Quatermain (Richard Chamberlain) has been hired by Jesse Houston (Sharon Stone) to locate her father in deepest Africa.  Not until he rescues her from being kidnapped by Dogati the Turk (John Rhys-Davies) and Colonel Bockner of the German Army (Herbert Lom) does he learn that her father is searching for King Solomon's Mines.  Of course, that is a myth so her father must be some crackpot.  However, he is now committed and zany adventures ensue.

Made in the mold of the Indiana Jones movies, this is non-stop action.  There is a chase through an African city that goes through crowds, on rooftops, on a horse-drawn cart, and even in a truck.  Later, we have the fight on the train.  Sneaking under the train, across the train roof, on the side of the train, and so on.  Then there is the biplane with Quatermain dangling from a wing while Jesse attempts to fly.  Of course, it is mostly campy action.  Sometimes the silliness just goes over the top, such as when Quatermain bluffs his way through a train car full of Germans by acting the fool with a cheap horn.  While John Rhys-Davies mostly plays it straight as a villain, Herbert Lom is a comic relief villain.  Sharon Stone is dressed in exactly the way a woman in the 1910s wouldn't dress.  This is early in her career and she isn't given much to do.  She is no Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen).  Chamberlain wasn't the right man for this role.  The beard doesn't look right on him and he is too cheery and upbeat.  What sort of big game hunter is armed with a sawed-off shotgun and a revolver?  Though meant to be campy fun, he is the butt of too many jokes and is more often portrayed as an incompetent bumpkin who gets lucky rather than a skilled adventurer.

Cheesy fun.