Private detective Mike Hammer (Mickey Spillane) has been in a drunken stupor ever since his beloved assistant Velda had gone missing seven years earlier. His estranged friend Police Captain Pat Chambers was also in love with Velda. Pat asks Mike to talk to dying Richie Cole who Pat sees as his own son but Richie is only willing to talk to Mike. The case is more complicated and connected to the murder of a Senator.
This starts out fine with a fine premise. Mike is not just down and out. He's self-destructive. Spillane may as well call himself Mike Hammer. He is this character. This movie does need more action scenes despite plenty of murders. There is one shootout which looks a bit laughable although I love the brutality of the hand to hand fight that follows. Nailing down Dragon is something I have never seen. It could have shown the backfire even if it's done from far away. This is pulpy goodness.
This starts out fine with a fine premise. Mike is not just down and out. He's self-destructive. Spillane may as well call himself Mike Hammer. He is this character. This movie does need more action scenes despite plenty of murders. There is one shootout which looks a bit laughable although I love the brutality of the hand to hand fight that follows. Nailing down Dragon is something I have never seen. It could have shown the backfire even if it's done from far away. This is pulpy goodness.