User Reviews

TOO HOT TO HANDLE was Jayne Mansfield's first film away from 20th Century-Fox after achieving stardom in the mid 1950's. This British drama is usually marked as the beginning of her descent into low-budget productions but actually despite being set almost entirely in a nightclub, it's clearly no cheapie with a large cast and somewhat lavish production numbers with solid direction from Terence Young who later did many James Bond films.

Jayne plays the lead in this ensemble picture as the headline attraction and longtime girlfriend of strip club owner Leo Genn who lately has been the recipient of several extortion attempts. Tough guy Genn is determined to fight back rather than give in much to Jayne's distress. Jayne sings two numbers including the title song performed in fairly transparent costume (reminscent of Marlene Dietrich's famous Las Vegas gown) that covers the basics but not much else. This number is badly shot with too many shots of the audience and not enough of Jayne although this may have been the work of the censors. The movie's American release was held up two years because of the racy numbers (finally released in 1962 as PLAYGIRL AFTER DARK) but today it could play on primetime TV and not raise an eyebrow although the numbers remain sexy.

Jayne generally looks gorgeous for the most but in a couple of scenes is not photographed well and in some scenes appears to be unusually plump (she may have been pregnant or had not yet lost post-baby weight, she was cranking out kiddies almost as often as movies during this period). She is appealing as always as the warm-hearted star of the show whose good love may all be for naught.

Give her credit too, for sharing the screen with a number of other lovelies among the showgirls and entertainers at the club. Beautiful brunette Danik Pattison gets almost as much screen time as Jayne as the loner, secretive showgirl and she has a sensational faux strip number set in a steamy train berth that still packs an erotic wallop. Barbara Windsor is cast as the "jailbait" showgirl, "Ponytail", who wants to grow up in the worst way. While Ms. Windsor is clearly not underage like her character, she effectively captures the simplistic foolishness of someone too young to understand the big picture. Ms. Pattison went on to have a career in the French film industry that lasted into the 1970's, Ms. Windsor later became quite well-known in England for her work in the "Carry on..." films and television programs and is still active today in the series "East Enders".

British star Leo Genn is very effective as the James Cagney-tough club owner while Christopher Lee does well as his right-hand man. The movie was filmed and released in Eastman Color but video and DVD prints are regrettably black and white. It was fairly common for B&W prints to be struck of color films to be shown on television during the 1960's and 1970's for local stations. Surely color prints of this movie must exist somewhere, hopefully eventually one will find it's way to DVD. This movie is a low-key effort but it still interesting and actually has a lot to offer with a fine performance by Genn, the warmth and glamour of Mansfield, and a number of other beautiful young women on parade in various stages of dress.

Low budget but decent crime drama. Jayne, approaching the end of her brief heyday, is pretty good as the sort of den mother to a group of strippers, she even performs a few mediocre numbers. This really shows how the vision of the desirable female form has changed over the years. Nowadays the lithe hard body look is the goal but Jayne is anything but that, very curvy and quite plump she is harshly lit as is the film but even with that at times she looks stunning. The plot takes a while to get going and really isn't focused sharply enough to make the film as involving as it should be but Leo Genn is good in the lead and he and Jayne hold your interest whenever they are on screen.

The large cast milling about Leo Genn's Soho burlesque joint The Pink Flamingo (including a poignant cameo by John Salew as a lonely German toy salesman) manages to include both Christopher Lee and Babs Windsor (the latter playing a minor, which shows how long ago this was made); although sadly they don't share any scenes.

Jayne Mansfield is the one billed above the title but she's offscreen much of the time, and the actual lead is Genn himself, cast well against type as a tough guy hero.

The film otherwise teams largely with busty fifties starlets in sweaters, slacks and leotards; and there's even a catfight between two of them. But sadly most of the available prints are in black & white, since the original embellishment of gaudy late fifties Eastman Color must have made Otto Heller's already vivid photography a real visual treat.

After the Hollywood successes of 'The Girl Can't Help It' and 'Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter', 20th Century Fox were at a loss as to what to do with the outlandish personality of Jayne Mansfield. So, as a way of making some quick cash out of their star without having to put her in a picture, they often loaned her out for cheapo European productions such as this B-movie pot-boiler filmed in England.

However, the finished results are surprisingly good. Jayne Mansfield puts in an incredibly accomplished turn as jaded stripper Midnight Franklin. Jayne acts so well in this movie - she really gives a great impression of someone who can turn on the sexy, sleazy charm of a showgirl on stage whilst being disillusioned and fearful behind the scenes. Her pep-talk to a young Barbara Windsor is quite rightly often highlighted as the high-point of Jayne's dramatic career.

The story is at times a little muddled but is well acted by a solid supporting cast including Christopher Lee, Leo Genn and Karl Bohm and is presented in a seedy, gritty manner befitting the film's seedy setting of London strip joints. The only complaint I could make about the movie and its setting is that in basing the film around strip joints the limitations of what could be shown due to censorship laws (this was 1960 after all) are painfully obvious as all we are left with are several musical numbers of supposed strippers writing around more or less fully clothed. Although, it is not absolutely necessary to make this movie a sordid nude-fest I think it is obvious how strict censorship was in those days given what little nudity we actually get to see. And why feature so many 'strip' numbers anyway...?

All in all this is a pretty good movie and worth a look to see Jayne Mansfield flexing her acting muscles. The version I managed to track down on video is unfortunately in black and white and with a rather poor sound mix but catch it if you can!

The dance numbers with Jane Mansfield were the main draw of this show, and we don't get to see the bareness of her outfits in black and white. It's too bad foreign films where this was in color are still made without any English dialog on DVD. The subplots that made the backdrop of this story are interesting, but Mansfield's part wears out while she acts out as a mother figure to Johnny, the nightclub owner, warning him not to use his gun against a rival club across the street that's blackmailing him. Then she's mom to an underage girl, attempting to keep her from going to a fatal date with a villainous club investor. The supporting characters like Christopher Lee as the host and the various strippers help break up the monotony of her "don't do this" speeches. Koch Vision had a color version but I don't know why no one has it now.

It needed a two-year wait and a new title for this film to be licensed in American cinemas. Apparently the Soho scene was too much for them, even starring their very own Jayne Mansfield, though it's hard to comprehend the shock-value today.

The film is really just a cliché-mix of nightclub life. Everything is there: leggy showgirls, shady mobsters, spiked drinks, snake-charmer music, sad old men wanting to boast that they'd had their hair ruffled by a stripper. The plot is hard to follow, and the acting mostly very poor, with Leo Genn as the club-owner, utterly failing to carry conviction in the fight-scenes (even though Genn had been a decorated wartime colonel). Even Christopher Lee, as his minder, was stuck with routine dialogue that must have made him wince, though at least he had the right physical presence. In fact, nobody seems to have acted better than Jayne herself, especially as protector of the unknown Barbara Windsor, as the (unconvincing) 16-year old, too eager to work in this forbidden adult atmosphere. Jayne is urging her to quit the job, as she is also urging her lover Genn to do the same - to save his own skin and just nestle against hers, a tempting if lazy option.

Although the film was shot in colour (which I'm not sure it deserved), most available prints are in mono - to me, suitable enough for the essential dreariness of the product. And to think that director Terence Young would soon be identified with some of the most startling creative effects in cinema, in the form of the early Bond movies, even jarring the sensibilities of author Ian Fleming, on whose work they were based.

A perfect example of a film whose sum is far less than its parts, "Too Hot to Handle" (1960) proved to be a real letdown for me. On paper, the film would seem to have a lot going for it: Jayne Mansfield playing a stripper in a seedy London club; a moustachioed Christopher Lee as the club's manager, who is plotting against the owner/boss (Leo Genn) with the rival strip club owner across the street; Carl Boehm (so memorable in that same year's "Peeping Tom") as a French reporter doing a story on the club; AND direction by Terence Young, who in the next five years would go on to helm three out of the first four Bond films. Unfortunately, it doesn't work, although the multiple plot threads (rival strip joints, Jayne's infatuation with her boss, an underage dancer) keep things spinning along. Jayne does get to perform two sexy and amusing musical numbers, and acts decently enough, but even her assets aren't enough to float this picture. (In truth, she looks pretty matronly during most of the film.) Part of the problem, for me, is the level of tawdry sleaziness on display, with repeated shots of Brit businessmen ogling at the dancers, who have only stripped down to their skivvies. (No nudity at this club, it seems.) Worse for me was the quality of the DVD itself that I just watched. It would seem that the source for this DVD was a crummy 16mm print, and with lousy sound. Heavy British accents PLUS lousy sound make for an exasperating and difficult cinematic experience. (Potential viewers should also be aware that, despite the Maltin book's claim that this is a color film, it is in truth black & white.) Perhaps if the DVD had looked and sounded a bit better, I might have enjoyed the film more, sleazy and cheesy as it is. But I still wouldn't have thought it was, um, too hot.

Leo Genn runs a Soho strip club. He's not too particular about the age of the girls he hires, like 16-year-old Barbara Windsor (actually 22). He is a loner, as indicated by his character's name, "Johnny Solo" this doesn't stop Jayne Mansfield from loving him. The club is popular, but the authorities don't approve of such institutions, so when he gets veiled threats to pay up, he decides to handle it on his own.

It is, surprisingly, a well told, downbeat story about the seamier side of the entertainment industry, with Genn excellent, and Miss Mansfield surprisingly good. Like most people, I am used to her "poor man's Marilyn Monroe" screen personna, but here she plays it straight, and she's very effective. There are three or four well-choreographed stage numbers, none of them that would got anyone except the most prudish blue stocking upset, even if they seem rather elaborate for a night club, and an entertaining, if short, catfight. With Karlheinz Böhm, Christopher Lee, and a large number of very upholstered-looking young women.

"Playgirl After Dark" (also known as "Too Hot to Handle") is a movie that sure hints at healthy helpings of skin. However, if that's what you really want, you could sure find better flicks than this one. Despite the titles and despite the movie being set in a strip club, the strippers really just dance around in very little...but show no more than ladies do today at the beach. So, while you get to see the sizzling Jayne Mansfield in this one, she's rather chaste and sings a few forgettable songs.

In this den of iniquity(?) there are some minor stories. One involves a French reporter hanging about in order to get a story. But Karlheinz Böhm ("Peeping Tom" and the Sissi movies) is a German- Austrian....so why say he was French? He sounded about as French as Mantan Moreland! There's also a story involving some shakedown artist trying to extort money out of the guy who runs the place, Johnny (Leo Genn)...and Johnny's attempts to catch the guy. But mostly, it's just ladies gyrating and singing!

So is it any good? Well, no especially. It does give you a chance to see Mansfield as her career is beginning to tank. Her good films were behind her and ahead would be crap like Italian strong man movies and sex comedies ("The Loves of Hercules" and "Promises Promises") as well as one of the worst films of the 1960s, "The Fat Spy". But considering that the film doesn't give her a lot to do but sing (NOT one of her strong points), it's actually a bit of a disappointment. Overall, a somewhat dull film which should have been spicier and more interesting than it was.

For those who think that Jayne Mansfield's career was nothing more than an overblown publicity stunt I boldly state they should at least see this before making any final judgments. I too started watching this with a fair amount of skepticism, and yet I was blown right out of the water by both Jayne and the movie. Both are a lot better than I was anticipating. This is the best Mansfield performance I've ever seen. She is perfectly cast in the role of Midnight Franklin. She makes the character all too human, and all too believable. The movie itself is fast-paced, packing a lot into its 93 minutes. It's also well-acted by everyone involved, and very well-directed. It's intriguing and holds your interest. It has the air of a good Warner Brothers gangster film, as well as a definite film-noir feel to it. I don't know what happened to the color prints of this, but, in my opinion it's the sort of movie that actually plays better in black-and-white. And Jayne's musical numbers are always worth seeing. I definitely recommend this one.

According to the IMDb, apart from the delightful Jack Conway-Clark Gable-Myrna Loy screwball comedy from 1938, there are 5 more movies that go by the name of TOO HOT TO HANDLE. The film under review (retitled PLAYGIRL AFTER DARK in the U.S.) is the would-be steamy noir-ish Jayne Mansfield vehicle made in Britain and co-starring actors who normally are above this sort of thing – Leo Genn, Carl Boehm and Christopher Lee – but which decidedly help in raising it above the rut of contemporaneous quota-quickie gangland thrillers; indeed, Patrick Holt – whom I recently watched in a film from that very ilk, SERENA (1962) – even plays the Police Inspector here!

The American "Blonde Bombshell" plays Midnight Franklin, the star attraction of a Soho strip club called "The Pink Flamingo"; suave Genn is her boss whom he affectionately calls "12 O'Clock" and she has feelings for; Boehm (in his second British film) plays an inquisitive journalist reporting on the sordid London nightlife – typically he falls for one of the girls but, surprisingly, it is not the leading lady but gloomy Danik Patisson; and Lee is Novak, Genn's double-faced right-hand man/MC. Another well-known figure (pun intended) that is featured further down in the cast list but whose violent demise plays a pivotal role in the film's climax with respect to the major characters' fate is future "Carry On" star Barbara Windsor.

Indeed, the film's unhappy ending – in which most characters show their true (and uglier) colours – is its real trump card…more so than the much-touted "hot" numbers of Miss Mansfield; speaking of which, unfortunately, not only is the print I watched shorn of colour (which is how it is widely available today – probably a disservice to the great Otto Heller's original lensing – and which, arguably, also enhances its ties with the aforementioned sub-genre)…but her two songs are bereft of sound, too!! Luckily enough, the sequences are intact – if still just as monochromatic and chaste – when looked up individually on "You Tube" (which is where I came across the film in the first place) and, apparently, TOO HOT TO HANDLE is available in colour on a German DVD.

Incidentally, while the film may have been intended as a dramatic showcase for its shapely star, she had fared much better in Paul Wendkos' debut, the superior noir THE BURGLAR (1957), which I have caught up with just the other day; besides, while it may seem odd that a film originally shot in colour would "exist" solely in a black-and-white print, this is the 10th such instance I have come across in my film collection alone

My first film with Jayne Mansfield, a copy of Marilyn Monroe but not so charming as the original. In this one, Jayne is not bad, she moves well, she sings well enough, with the acting there is a small problem. Marilyn was a much better actress and much more beautiful. And what great body had Marilyn, Jayne is a lot too big, too much in all: thighs, bust, ass, lips, etc. Unfortunately, both of them with a similar destiny and a very sad final. Leo Genn is very good as Johnny Solo. Good role by Christopher Lee. Karlheinz Böhm is from another film, totally inappropriate and insipid. There is also a very young Barbara Windsor in it and a guy called Ian Fleming, but it's not the famous father of James Bond. But, Mr.Terence Young, the director, after this film, he had to screen three novels from the famous Ian Fleming: "Dr. No", "From Russia with Love", "Thunderball", the first three of the series and, in my opinion, the best.

The plot concerns the owner of the "Pink Flamingo" club and his battles with rival club owners and the police. Christopher Lee has a small role, but the main attraction for most viewers would probably be Jayne Mansfield, who surprisingly, is very good in her role as the club owners girlfriend. She has a big musical number and you'll wonder how they squeezed her into some of the tightest costumes you'll ever see.

Jayne is at her loveliest and most voluptuous and demonstrates great acting in this fast paced, suspenseful drama. Her costumes are great and she acts incredible. We are even given 2 great musical numbers. Don't believe those rumours that she couldn't act, she demonstrates great ability far surpassing Marilyn Monroe's in this thriller. My only complaint is that it is in black and white. I recently got a big screen TV and this was the first film I viewed on it and Jayne looks sensational! You can really appreciate all of her ASSETS in this pic! Highly recommended to NEW Jayne fans. Will also be of interest to those curiosity seekers of Jayne. Much more fun than THE GIRL CAN'T HELP IT in my opinion.

If you've seen Jayne in her two most successful movies ("Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter" and "The Girl Can't Help It"), it might be easy to dismiss her as a one-trick pony. However, she's startlingly good in her best dramatic role as a clubowner's girlfriend in "Too Hot To Handle". I'm still looking for the plot in this movie (if there even is one), but Jayne steals the show (her motherly talk to mixed-up, ambitious Ponytail played by Barbara Windsor is one of the best moments in Jayne's career). She also demonstrates her singing and dancing skills in a couple of cute musical numbers (watch for her ridiculously long cigarette holder, her see-through gown with strategically placed beaded fringe, and a baffling feathered swimsuit). After seeing this movie, it's hard to believe anyone ever called Jayne Mansfield "the poor man's Marilyn Monroe".