The Saint's Double Trouble [DVD]

Another installment of RKO's Saint series here with George Sanders in his 3rd of 5 outings as Leslie Charteris' smooth crime fighter. The usual atmospheric elements are in place an it's always good to see Johnathan Hale's ever brilliant Inspector Fernack...

Great entertainment.

As usual an excellent adventure by the saint , it was packaged well and arrived on time. Would use again.

The Saint first appeared in print in 1928 in the book The Saint Meets The Tiger. Author Leslie Charteris remained prolific throughout the 30's with his stories of an independently wealthy, well-bred super-sleuth tackling smugglers, gangsters and criminals. Hollywood eventually took notice and in 1939 Louis Hayward starred in the first of the series - The Saint In New York. Taking over from Louis Hayward, George Sanders' Saint was less ruthless but more charming and debonair. Beginning with The Saint Strikes Back (1939) Sanders began a run of five Saint pictures of which this is the third. As the title suggests The Saint has a double (called Duke Bates) orchestrating a diamond smuggling racket using an Egyptian mummy to conceal the gems. Cue lots of confusion by hoods, detectives, the charming Anne Bitts (Helene Whitney) and her Egyptologist father (Thomas W Ross). Naturally, Inspector Fernack (Jonathan Hale) is prepared to think the worst of The Saint when Professor Bitts is murdered. Directed by Jack Hively who began a run of three Saint films it is the weakest of Sanders' Saint films but better than the Hugh Sinclair quickies. Although benefitting from Hales' Fernack (in his second appearance) and Sanders' Saint, the story of a double isn't anything new and probably wasn't new in 1940 either. Whereas the other films have cutting and often very funny dialogue this film's script is decidedly average. The cast is average too, there's no Paul Guilfoyle or Wendy Barrie (they'd appear in the next two) but it does have a slumming Bela Lugosi now reduced to supporting parts in b-features. Not the worst film to watch on a wet Sunday afternoon but there are better Saint films out there.