Steve D
Dumb Action, Comedy that forgot both.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
03/24/23
Full Review
isla s
This is a somewhat entertaining film. I enjoyed the action and chase scenes in this film - its a bit like a James Bond film of the 60s I suppose. It seemed a little bland at first but further into it I thought there were some funny moments, both visual comedy and some word play and also the gadgets made me laugh. The 'bond girl/dolly bird' types made did make me cringe a bit though. Its cheesy, a bit silly and certainly not to be taken too seriously (the choreography is a little camp - the acting perhaps a bit overly exaggerated) but I felt it made it somewhat entertaining, perhaps moreso in a so bad its kind of good sort of a way. I liked the driving/chase scenes and there's the fact that Dean Martin is in it, so all in all it's not awful and certainly not great, this is distinctly an ok film. I'd cautiously recommend it, yes (oh and also, be warned there are one or two racist terms used).
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
christopher c. m
I am a fan of the Matt Helm movies. Are they perfect? Hardly. Transporting a billion dollars in gold was train-jacked a tad easily with not much security. And it must have been a special train to hold all that weight. There are some character issues and the gadgets are as cool this time. But it's always fun and it's a spoof of "James Bond". If you take any of this remotely seriously, not as the spoof that it. That's on you asshole.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Nobody takes these Matt Helm movies seriously, especially this one. As Dean Martin saunters his way from one (obvious) movie set to another, we see numerous Hollywood beauties in various modes of undress. Each scene is on a well-appointed set featuring flowing ceiling-to-floor curtains with color changes courtesy of soundstage lighting and funiture that's been moved around. They could easily, and probably were, borrowed from whatever Elvis movie was being shot across the hall.
There's a marked lack of gadgetry in this secret agent spoof, unlike the other Matt Helm features. Oddly, Martin is asked to perform more physical fight scenes in this last Helm picture, than in the other ones. Perhaps because of the film's Asian settings, there is an emphasis on martial arts, which Martin, at 51, pulls off about as well as you'd think he could. In some scenes, Martin, as a former boxer and avid golfer, does manage to make it look good courtesy of consultant Bruce Lee. His kicks have some "kick" to them, but in other scenes he has to wait for the right time to throw a punch and it looks hokily staged.
No matter, these Helm pictures were box office gold at a medium price, although this last features seems to have had a slightly bigger budget than the previous movie, "The Ambushers", which was the worst in the series. Director Karlson gets as much as he can with this one, but as a filmmaker, these pictures don't exactly offer much of a challenge. One cannot realy fault any in the Helm series because they were perfect for the time... the best of all the 60's spy spoofs, mostly because Martin - who could be a stellar actor at times - saw them for what they were: a fun, goofy outtake from "The Dean Martin Show". If you want to see Martin the actor, watch "Ada" or "Toys In the Attic". If you want to see Martin the movie star, look here.
"The Wrecking Crew" is a fun romp, full of booze jokes, explosions that make stuff fall straight down from the ceiling, a brief debut from Chuck Norris and a set of gorgeos female stars (Elke Sommer, Tina Louise, the ill-fated Sharon Tate and the always sexy Nancy Kwan). It is the swinging sixties in microcosm. One can imagine all the crew gathering for a mid-evening cocktail and barbecue at Dean's mansion on a Friday night after filming wrapped. See 'em all gathered 'round the pool as the evening turned into a starry Hollywood night, the sunsetting on all those fake tans. it all oncame to a crashing end six months later when the Manson clan carved Sharon up like a side of beef in those same canyon hills. The sixties were over. So were movies like "The Wrecking Crew".
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/19/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Bruce Lee is credited as "karate advisor" for this movie. 6/10
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/30/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Few redeeming qualities, even the Dean Martins songs are old first half 20th century standards. Sound track is distractedly irritating, sounds like a 1 1/2 hour long 60's Coke commercial. The lades look nice. The fight scenes are laughable with 3 feet of air between fists and jaws. The telephone bathing suit is far out! The James Bond movies of the era are so far superior to this drek. Can you imagine a fight between Sean Connery and Dean Martin? Dean should have stayed with Jerry.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
01/26/23
Full Review
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