Hammerhead (1968)

Best movie ever!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

The other reviews are pretty spot-on in assessing this as utter drek, but oddly nobody has mentioned the ludicrous scene in which Judy Geeson - worst actress of 1968 without a doubt - suddenly bursts into song. After a good hour (which seems like a lifetime) of Geeson's high pitched, twelve year old schoolgirl voice, she appears in a nightclub 'singing', only her voice has been dubbed by a Madeline Bell soundalike (for those who aren't familiar with Miss Bell, she is a husky voiced jazz singer of the Shirley Bassey type). A more unsuitable voice double for Judy Geeson would be hard to imagine! The only plus in the entire film is the great Diana Dors, injecting interest and style into a project sadly lacking in both departments.

Made at the height of the spy movie craze, Hammerhead commits the worst sin of all in the movie trade - it's monotonous. I enjoy an entertaining bad movie as much as the next, but a boring bad movie is unforgivable and forgettable. So why am I writing this review, you may ask? Because I'm a nice guy and I'm doing this as a public service. If you're a hard-core James Bond/spy movie fanatic like me, you HAVE to see every release that came out during that period. It's inevitable that you're going to track this one down. Don't say I didn't warn you.Oh, I'm sorry-I forgot to mention the plot. Vince Edwards, who some of us remember. on TV as Dr. Ben Casey, doffs his O.R. scrubs and puts on his suit and tie to become... Well, that's the beauty of this incomprehensible film. When you watching you're not exactly sure what he's supposed to be. One minute he says he's an international jewel thief, the next minute, perky Brit flower child Judy Geeson accuses him of being a spy. Even though you never really find out what he is, by the end of the movie, you don't really care. From the beginning to the end, this piece of crap keeps going back and forth to scenes of "Flower power children", dancing in the streets, dancing on top of boats, dancing on top of cars, dancing up on stage...well you get the idea. Maybe if you take some hallucinogens, this movie will really be enjoyable for you. When I think of "dated" movies, I think some of the worst ones come from the "psychedelic age". This movie smells like stale pot. I recommend avoid at all costs.

'Hammerhead' was a late addition to the seemingly endless cycle of James Bond imitations that swamped cinemas in the mid-'60's. Based on a novel by James Mayo, it stars Vince Edwards as American agent 'Charles Hood', who is assigned by Colonel Condor ( Patrick Cargill ) of British Intelligence to investigate the activities of evil millionaire Mr.Hammerhead ( Peter Vaughan ). Hood travels to Lisbon with a crate of pornography ( Hammerhead is fascinated by the stuff ) which he hopes to sell to the arch-villain. Getting in his way at all times is lovely model Sue Trenton ( Judy Geeson ). Hammerhead has a palatial villa and a yacht called 'Triton'. One of his staff, Andreas ( Michael Bates ) is training to impersonate Sir Richard Calvert ( also played by Bates ) with a view to infiltrating a meeting of NATO chiefs of staff and photographing a top secret report into Western defense.What distinguishes it from the Bond series - and indeed so many other similar films - are the squirts of hippie atmosphere that book-end the movie. 'Hood' is a colourless character, but Edwards makes a decent fist of it. Peter Vaughan enjoys himself hugely as the titular villain ( 'Espiritu Lobar' in the book ), a sort of cross between 'Auric Goldfinger' and Howard Hughes. Michael Bates is especially good, and Diana Dors and Beverly Adams add to the glamour. Strangely, despite all the beautiful girls around, Hood does not get to bed any of them ( though its hinted he and Sue will be heading for bed as the end credits roll ). William Mervyn, known mainly for comedy roles ( such as in 'All Gas & Gaiters' ), plays one of Hammerhead's men, and Dave 'Darth Vader' Prowse is a super-strong henchman. Irving Allen, the producer, was also responsible for the 'Matt Helm' series starring Dean Martin. While I liked this movie better than the last three Helm pictures, it did not quite come up to the standard of the first - 'The Silencers'.In the action stakes the movie is okay but not particularly outstanding. The Triton yacht is so impressive I was looking forward to seeing it blown up at the end, but it does not happen. Neither does Hood get to fight the Prowse character. The villains have a few gadgets, such a lipstick radio and a tape recorder in a matchbox, but Hood has none! Some good fights though, and a couple of exciting chases through the back alleys of Lisbon. There is one hilarious moment when Hood and Sue, trapped in a coffin, try to summon help from a passing motorcyclist ( Kenneth Cope ). As soon as he sees them, he keels over from shock!Hood made no further appearances on the big screen, which is kind of a pity as the next two books in the series - 'Let Sleeping Girls Lie' and 'Shamelady' - would have in my view made good movies.

MASTER PLAN: obtain the info on some secret papers. By this point in the late sixties, some filmmakers were getting a little carried away with all the psychedelia and decadence of the decade, including a few who jumped on the James Bond bandwagon. The first scenes seem to say that the director & his crew were dropping acid during the filming, though it turns out to be some bizarre performance art depiction. We're also introduced to Mr. Hood here (Edwards), the secret agent of the story, looking on bemused. He fits the profile - an American but working well within the British & other European locales as a handsome man of adventure. He's not all that impressive, however: though able to handle himself well in a fight, he does get knocked out a couple of times quite easily (one of these fights, in a dark garage, recalls a similar scene in "Deadlier Than the Male" of the previous year). As the very British girl who keeps popping up unexpectedly throughout the movie, Judy Geeson is an acquired taste and can be a bit annoying; I didn't blame Hood for wincing the 3rd time she reappears. I also kept thinking, what is she doing in this movie? This sense didn't change much for me by the end of the film. Much of the action at the forefront of this film takes place against the backdrop of the youthful generation doing their thing during those swinging sixties.The plot involves the machinations of the very Bondian uber-villain Hammerhead (Vaughan), complete with peculiar eccentricities, such as white gloves to keep the germs away and especially sadistic tendencies towards females. The actress Adams plays the more interesting female character, in a brief role. Oh, and, to make sure we understand that this bad guy is a sleaze, he also has interests in pornography. His dastardly plans are hinted at during Hood's briefing in a train cabin; there will be a special meeting of top men from NATO nations and one of these men has papers that Hammerhead wants a gander at, involving defense plans. This offers a good dual role for versatile actor Bates, who plays the target and one of Hammerhead's key henchmen. The film meanders a bit in the first half, even with the intriguing scenes on the villain's huge yacht, with everything moving at an easygoing pace, as if the filmmakers were unsure of themselves or the story. But, it does all come together in the final half-hour, when the details of the villain's subterfuge are played out (though why Hood and his girl aren't simply shot instead of that protracted scene in the coffin...never mind). Watch for Dave Prowse, soon to be in "A Clockwork Orange" and future Darth Vader, as the huge henchman - the strongest man Hammerhead knows. The climactic action, especially the unexpected end of the villain, will either irritate or enthrall you, depending on how much you like darkly ironic, satirical endings. I thought it was a bit out of left field. Hero:5 Villains:5 Femme Fatales:5 Henchmen:6 Fights:6 Stunts/Chases:5 Gadgets:4 Auto:5 Locations:6 Pace:5 overall:5+