John Howard's first entry as Bulldog Drummond, taking over from Ray Milland and Ronald Coleman quite comfortably. Howard was engaging but had less charisma than those two other actors, but this meant the series felt more like an ensemble - the feeling of a close-knit high-spirited family that made the series enjoyable. It seems the studio was a bit worried about Howard's drawing power, though - so we also have John Barrymore as Colonel Nielsen. (Barrymore is top billed but is more of a second lead.)We meet Drummond at home composing a poem to his fiancee Phyllis - he only just got engaged during the previous film so butler Tenny is a bit suspicious of Phyllis. Then the brother and widow of someone Drummond sent to the gallows turns up and wants revenge - instead of just killing Drummond they kidnap Phyllis and set off Drummond on a trail of various clues... it's the same plot as Die Hard: with a Vengeance sixty years earlier! There is some fun when Barrymore decides to put on a disguise and trail Drummond - Barrymore wears two disguises and there are some delightful scenes of him putting on make up and reminiscing about his days on stage (there's even a gag about his profile. J Carrol Naish, who plays a villain here, later reappeared in Bulldog Drummond in Africa.
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