This is definitely one for the Haunted Wing of IMDb! Only two comments. One, as I write this, is four years old - the other from a decade ago! So how long will it be before THIS comment is read - by ANYBODY?! Ever? Never mind, I'll carry on regardless (did you see what I did there?)
Why am I chatting about this mediocre film? Well, a movie stands by how much of it you can remember years later. And I suspect I will have forgotten the latest Bond (Quantum Of Solace) by next week, yet although I saw this movie only once, MANY years ago, I STILL remember it.
So does that make it a better film than Quantum? Not necessarily! For although it'll last longer in my memory than the AWFUL "2nd prequel" to the Bond Saga (with Dame Judi Dench STILL playing "M" - even though she played the part in Pierces' outings - which makes NO sense) it is FAR worse.
Granted, production values have advanced a tad during the half-century twixt this rubbish and Bond 23 (or 24 or whatever) and the Bond had a somewhat bigger budget (even allowing for inflation) but this mess had two things Bond lacked.
Kenneth Williams acting BUTCH - and Laya Raki's BOOBS!
Somehow, the Fifties censor managed to MISS Ms Raki's over-exposure, whilst she was in that pool. It was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, but when UK TV showed this turkey (as an afternoon filler) I'd TAPED it (for Kenneth Williams) and took a slow photographic exposure direct off a frozen frame from the sequence. I still have it.
I'm old enough to remember the vivacious Ms Raki from a TV series called "Crane", which starred Patrick Allen (later more famous for his ad voice-overs) and I recall the screen seeming to brighten every time she appeared.
Then there's a pre-stardom Kenneth Williams playing STRAIGHT. A MAJOR rarity. In his early days, he strove to be a serious actor and this execrable garbage is one of the very FEW examples of his efforts.
So forget the plot, acting, production values, score, etc. Just watch it for Laya and Ken! THEY are why I gave this twaddle a FIVE!
Why am I chatting about this mediocre film? Well, a movie stands by how much of it you can remember years later. And I suspect I will have forgotten the latest Bond (Quantum Of Solace) by next week, yet although I saw this movie only once, MANY years ago, I STILL remember it.
So does that make it a better film than Quantum? Not necessarily! For although it'll last longer in my memory than the AWFUL "2nd prequel" to the Bond Saga (with Dame Judi Dench STILL playing "M" - even though she played the part in Pierces' outings - which makes NO sense) it is FAR worse.
Granted, production values have advanced a tad during the half-century twixt this rubbish and Bond 23 (or 24 or whatever) and the Bond had a somewhat bigger budget (even allowing for inflation) but this mess had two things Bond lacked.
Kenneth Williams acting BUTCH - and Laya Raki's BOOBS!
Somehow, the Fifties censor managed to MISS Ms Raki's over-exposure, whilst she was in that pool. It was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, but when UK TV showed this turkey (as an afternoon filler) I'd TAPED it (for Kenneth Williams) and took a slow photographic exposure direct off a frozen frame from the sequence. I still have it.
I'm old enough to remember the vivacious Ms Raki from a TV series called "Crane", which starred Patrick Allen (later more famous for his ad voice-overs) and I recall the screen seeming to brighten every time she appeared.
Then there's a pre-stardom Kenneth Williams playing STRAIGHT. A MAJOR rarity. In his early days, he strove to be a serious actor and this execrable garbage is one of the very FEW examples of his efforts.
So forget the plot, acting, production values, score, etc. Just watch it for Laya and Ken! THEY are why I gave this twaddle a FIVE!