13 Frightened Girls (1963) User Reviews

Entertaining and enjoyable William Castle movie set in a Swiss boarding school and about an international intrigue

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 28 April 2022]

Typically humorous , intriguing , tongue-in-cheek William Castle opera with his usual ingredients . Set in Swiss boarding school catering to daughters of diplomats , after trading bits of info they picked up from daddy during the holidays . While attending a school for diplomats' daughters, the teen-aged daughter nicknamed "Kitten", "Candy" (the unknown but very likable Kathy Dunn) of the American ambassador (Hugh Marlowe) uses her access to USA and China embassies to engage in espionage. Candace has a special relationship with Wally Sanders (Murray Hamilton) , who Candy has known all her life and on who she now has a crush despite he being engaged to his colleague nicknamed Soldier (Joyce Taylor) , a code breaking specialist. Candy passes along the information to Wally only under the code name "Kitten". As meddled Candy decides to go off and do spy stuff . While visiting Mai-ling (Lynne Sue Moon) , niece of the Red Chinese ambassador she stumbles into a major political secret, involving a murder. 13 terrified teenagers on the run !. The big fright! The eerie sight!

One Castle's strangest movies , set in a Swiss boarding school and American , Chinese Ambassy , though actually shot in Big Bear Lake, Big Bear Valley, and Lake Arrowhead, San Bernardino National Forest, California . An amusing movie with thrills , tension , intrigue , chuckles , twists and turns . This is an Euro-spy and a teen movie more than a typical spook opera from Castle who often used a lot of gimmicks , this time , only one : spectators in the theater were given lottery cards for a chance to win a gift or a prize . Dealing with thirteen girls and particularly starred by Kathy Dunn as intrusive Candace Hull giving a very sympathetic acting as the meddling teen stirring up serious problem on her vacation as she messes with the diplomatic affairs of their elders and get into trouble when a Russian spy is discovered killed . Castle held a worlwide talent search to find his stars , this time Kathy Dunn , for whom this was first and no doubt last movie. Along other known actors as Murray Hamilton , Hugh Marlowe , with Khigh Dhiegh cleverly cast as a sinister Ambassador , as he played a similar and unforgettable role in The Manchurian candidate . Adding a group of charming adolescents , some of them to be continued a cinematic career as Judy Pace and Alexandra Bastedo .

This juvenile , cute motion picture was professionally directed by William Castle . He was an expert craftsman with some of the all-time great schlock names serving as the producer Sam Katzman and fondness for gimmicks as proved in his successful terror films such as : House of haunted hill , The Tingler , Mr Sardonicus , Strait-jacked , Homicidal , Macabre and 13 Ghosts . Castle emulated Alfred Hitchcock , this included the practice of appearing in the trailers, and even making cameo appearances in his films . Furthermore , he made several Westerns such as : 1955 Duel on the Mississippi , 1955 The Gun That Won the West ,1955 El Americano , 1954 Masterson of Kansas , 1954 The Law vs. Billy the Kid , 1954 Jesse James vs. The Daltons , 1954 Battle of Rogue River , 1953 Fort Ti , 1951 cave of outlaws. Rating : 6/10, acceptable and passable , being one of Castle's weirdest movies . A side-splitting vintage picture awaiting rediscovery.

Cute

[utgard14 · 5/10 · 19 June 2014]

Well this is a weird one. Interesting but weird. A mix of a Gidget type of teenage comedy with a spy spoof. Not sure why it's so hated. Leonard Maltin gave it a BOMB rating, for crying out loud. That's completely unfair. It's a cute and harmless little bit of fluff with some funny moments, especially early on. I liked Kathy Dunn and Lynne Sue Moon. Maybe people hate it because it's from William Castle and has a misleading title that makes it sound like a horror movie? I don't know. Admittedly the fun and cuteness of it wears off after awhile. When it seems to take its spy plot seriously is when things get a little dull. But it picks back up towards the end. I didn't think it was bad at all. Ignore the overly harsh criticisms and judge it for yourself.

Not all good, but not all bad either

[bensonmum2 · 5/10 · 1 October 2018]

The quick pitch: Candy, the daughter of a US diplomat, uses her position at an all-girls' school to spy on her friends' fathers and the goings on at their respective embassies. What at first seems like harmless fun goes horribly wrong when a Chinese assassin is sent in to put a stop to Candy's shenanigans.

I wouldn't call 13 Frightened Girls all that good, but I wouldn't call it all that bad either. The film kind of feels like Disney took a stab at making a Eurospy film. I could easily see someone like Hayley Mills in the title role. It's all harmless enough fun, but it does lack any real bite. Even when lead-girl Candy is in danger, you know it'll all turn out all right. Take the scene where the Chinese baddies are searching for Candy in the room full of suitcases. It's downright silly. However, I don't think the film is the disaster some reviews would have you believe. I think the movie gets a knock because of the marketing, the title, and the William Castle name. It's nowhere near as lurid or suspenseful as the trailer or poster art would have you believe.

A couple of other things: First, I got a kick out of seeing Alexandra Bastedo (who would later appear in The Champions) in the background as "England". Second, I'm really surprised to see that Kathy Dunn didn't have more of a career in acting. Whether you like the movie or not, I think Dunn did an outstanding job as Candy.

A would-be cult classic

[violet724 · 11 November 2004]

I'm amazed I've found this movie, and that others remember it! A great flick I saw when I was young. Even then it was over 20 years old and it was still intriguing. The dark nature of the film would not be allowed for children to view these days... a shame. The movie focuses on a boarding school with a group of teenage girls, each representing a different country. The girls encounter dangerous villains and uncover secrets while having to use their cleverness to stay alive (from what I remember). It's a fun, unique film that has brought together the genres of thriller, mystery, and "family," if one would ever think it possible.

I wish I could find it on DVD these days. It really brings me back.

weird

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 24 April 2021]

Miss Pittford's Academy for Young Ladies is a Swiss boarding school for the daughters of competing diplomats from various countries. American Candace Hull earns the right to drive the bus for a school trip. She has a desperate crush on secret agent Wally Sanders (Murray Hamilton) who is involved with his work partner Soldier (Joyce Taylor). She is in the Chinese embassy when she accidentally comes upon a murdered man. She becomes secret agent Kitten, a secret even to her father and Wally.

How old is this girl? She's 16 and driving the bus? Then she's chasing around forty year old Murray Hamilton. This is a weird premise of Gidget fights the Cold War. Kathy Dunn is a fine Gidget. It has the feel of a bad Disney movie with murder and suggested sexuality. It's intriguingly despite being weirdly bad. I am never sure if this is intended to be a silly comedy or a serious thriller. It's both and not quite successful in either.

The Odd Man Out in the William Castle Box Set

[gavin6942 · 6/10 · 24 February 2010]

At a European school for diplomats daughters, Candice Hull (Kathy Dunn) is the American among a wide assortment of nationalities (more than thirteen, none of whom are frightened, despite the title). To help her friend keep his job as a spy, she secretly begins feeding him intelligence.

I have this film as part of thew William Castle Collection, a series of his 1960s horror films. "13 Frightened Girls" is not horror, has no real stars to speak of, and as already mentioned does not have thirteen frightened girls. What it does have is a very juvenile approach to Cold War espionage.

From the beginning, there's commie humor - with the Russia and China girls calling each other "comrades". And we find out that Red China apparently kills people and hides bodies in the embassy's kitchen, with no consequences. In fact, despite all the threats, death and illegal action, no one ever seems to hold anyone at fault. In a sense, it turns espionage into a kind of joke -- the threat of death is played down, even after a foreign spy is murdered. Candy never fully realizes what danger she is in, even when it's really obvious.

There's other oddities. There's an old man seduced by 16-year old Candy, though she ultimately fails. And the film has colors "like a Fauvist threw up all over the place", in the words of another reviewer. I wouldn't have made that connection, but sure enough... Henri Matisse could very well have painted the film cels.

The rumor is that Castle launched a worldwide hunt for the prettiest girls from 13 different countries to cast in the film. Oddly, none of them, even star Kathy Dunn, went on to do anything in the movie business. I'm not sure what this says about the film... how does everyone get overlooked? Anyway, the film is interesting. Not Castle's best work, probably not his worst. But if you want to see something outside the realm of PG-rated horror from Castle, this is the one you want. Geared more towards young adults, but enjoyable for anyone who wants to see a very unique perspective on Cold War spying.

Gidget Goes C.I.A.

[mark.waltz · 2/10 · 8 February 2013]

Or "Secret Agent Miss" or even "The Spy Who Annoyed Me". The puns could just keep coming for this messy farce. If you are the type of person who avoids taking buses or subways during school rush hours, then find an alternative movie in addition to a way home, for this film will just grate on your nerves and possibly leave a ringing sensation in your ears of all this teen-aged girl chatter.

It all focuses on an American teenager (Kathy Dunn), the daughter of an American diplomat (Hugh Marlowe) in Paris who uncovers a murder and turns amateur spy. This 16 year old Jane Bond isn't as much annoying as she is nosy, and the storyline is simply absurd. Using the code name "Kitten", she sends pop Marlowe notes (cut out of course from magazines and newspapers) to assist him in breaking this spy ring. To make matters even worse, Marlowe discuses "Kitten" and other confidential in front of her.

There are some nice William Castle touches (the cat jumping out in a dumb waiter Dunn is maneuvering her way around in; The revelation of who one of the spies is and how Dunn manages to get away from him) but it is mixed with 90% absurdity. Then there is the mix of the other 12 girls, actually never presented as "frightened", just juvenile. Played by representatives of a dozen other countries, some of these actresses seem more late college age than high school boarding school age. Veteran character actress Norma Varden is totally wasted as the school proprietress.

Murray Hamilton plays Marlowe's assistant, the object of Dunn's affections and the only one in on "Kitten's" true identity. It really is embarrassing to watch Dunn throw herself at this 30-something man, even knowing that he's already in love with pretty Joyce Taylor.

I just pray that some current filmmaker doesn't see this film and decide to update it to today's technology obsessed teen crowd, giving these thirteen girls cellphones, I-Phones and I-Pads to be even more annoying (let alone reading spy instructor manuals on a kindle). Just wait until you see the ending (if you make it that far) which combines the conclusions of "Sister Act" and "Thoroughly Modern Millie", but minus the laughs of these classics.

Better movie under the title Candy's Web

[bbickley13-921-58664 · 6/10 · 22 May 2014]

I just discovered who William Castle is, and even though I've seen and loved Rosemary's Baby, which he produced, I wanted to see the B-movies he's famous for, and this turned out to be a good start.

The movie is about an American teenage girl who goes to a boarding school for the daughters of diplomats. When the spy who works for her father, and she has a crush on is in danger of losing his job, she decides to use her connection to the international students to gather Intel and secretly complete his missions, thus becoming a super spy called the kitten. It's an absolute great premise that was flushed out brilliantly by William Castle.

Interesting concept to the movie is the fact that a girl went to such great lengths for a man she has a crush on. Usually it's the other way around in these types of movies, but Castle was ahead of his time with this concept cause not even in today's film making do you see many stories like that. I feel like I'm almost insulting Castle by saying it's the greatest Disney movie they never made, but in all honesty, this is the movie that Disney should have made. Although they would have to change a few scenes as there are times when in her "missions" it looks like she's going to get raped or murdered and she also causes the death of another spy. So maybe it should not be a Disney movie because part of the charm is the fact that we are shown vividly what a dangerous game this little girl is playing, and Disney would screw that up.

Another interesting concept of the movie is that in a time when espionage was all about cool gadgets and cool dudes, the movie was more realistic of the concept. Wally Sanders, the spy Candy The kitten was crushing on is just a regular guy whose job was to gather Intel, though he did use microfilm, which feels outdated when you can take a picture on your cell phone, he was no James Bond by far, except in the eyes of a teenage girl.

Don't let the title fool you. 13 Frighten Girls! Was a title given to cash in on William Castle's status as a Horror Icon. This is relevant with the trailer that makes it seem like a movie about 13 girls trapped in a school being terrorized by enemy agents. In fact, the only other girl with an actual role to play in this movie is Mai-Ling, Candy's friend whose uncle is a Chinese diplomat, which would automatically make her an enemy during the 1960s, but the two girls manage a friendship despite. See it was made for Disney.

My advice to you is to go see this movie before someone at Disney reads this and decides to remake it. This way, when it comes out and it sucks you'll be able to tell everyone it's not better than the original.

Sort of like Gidget or Hannah Montana fights Communism!

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 23 October 2009]

Unlike most of William Castle's films, this one is filmed in beautiful Eastman Color--and looks like a high quality 'A-Picture'. Well, despite the look of it and polish, it is anything but an A movie--unless A stands for 'asinine'.

This film starts off with a scene that really didn't make any sense and was poorly done. In a kooky start, the school lets one of the teenage girls from the finishing school drive the bus--and naturally, things go wrong. What sort of idiots would let a 16 year-old and very inexperienced driver drive a bus filled with their students? And, to make matters worse, the road appears to be in California (due to the geography). According to IMDb, the school is supposed to be in Switzerland, but it didn't look like that ever. But, then, how did they get from Switzerland to London? It just 'happens'! What gives?! Talk about sloppy film making.

From London, we see that this is supposed to be a kooky comedy about precocious teenage girls who are all daughters of diplomats of all nations--and it focuses in particular on the American teen. The problem is that the dialog is pretty awful and never sounds real. For example, when many of the girls from this multinational school talk, they do lengthy expositions--explaining their back stories in a manner that sounded really fake. People DON'T talk that way in real life. Also, each of the teenagers is a walking stereotype---there is nothing subtle about them in the least. Talk about sloppy. There is nothing particularly subtle or adult about this film. It's clearly aimed at the Gidget and Frankie/Annette crowd and probably was never intended for a wider audience. If it was, then that's pretty pathetic due to its amateurish dialog, plot and putting so much focus on a rather annoying little girl. Think about it--the fate of the free world depends on THIS girl! Boy, are we screwed!

By the way, note the tennis game. Neither girl ever moves more than a step or two and the Russian girl appears never to move at all as they bat the ball back and forth! Talk about a strange style of tennis! This and other odd mistakes (such as the ice that is mentioned in the revealing mistakes on IMDb and the obvious dummy that is thrown off the balcony) are surprising--usually William Castle directed smarter than this. This one is just sloppy.

For adults, I'd rate this movie a 2--it's hard to enjoy and you'll often find yourself rolling your eyes at the dumbness of the film; for kids and teens, I'd rate it a 6 and it's akin to a made-for-TV Disney movie.

Finally, this is on the same DVD as 13 GHOSTS from a set of Castle films. Despite 13 FRIGHTENED GIRLS being a rather dumb film, the DVD print is great and the special features are excellent. In fact, you might just want to see 13 GHOSTS and the special features and skip this film!

Ludicrous fun (contains spoilers)

[ejj1955 · 5/10 · 8 October 2009]

This is a fun movie for the reasons other reviewers note--the action and suspense, the silly idea of the diplomat's daughter becoming a spy, the bright colors. But the "action" scenes are beyond ridiculous; "Kitten" escapes from dangerous situations by the most unbelievable luck. In one scene, for example, she's drugged and wakes up supposedly paralyzed by the drug. But when the baddie tries to throw her off the balcony, with one feeble hand she manages to pull him up, over the balcony, and throw him below. Umm, how? In another scene, she's chased into a room by two baddies, screaming at the top of her lungs, but a moment later she's crawling around behind the furniture and they can't find her! It's completely absurd, but the movie gives no nod to how silly it is, just plunges forward.

One young girl saves the day !!!

[GreyDiva · 8/10 · 13 June 1999]

This movie has gotten terrible reviews. Leonard Maltin called it "juvenile" and "pure camp" as did T.V. guide.

I saw it for the first time when I was about ten years old. I have never forgotten this movie, and it stands in my mind as one of my most beloved childhood movies. (So I supposed the "juvenile" is appros.)

This movie is fresh and fun. If you loved movies such as "The Trouble With Angels" or The "Tammy" series, for you this is a must see. Or if you're a Sandra Dee fan, you'll enjoy Kathy Dunn as Candy.

A young diplomat's daughter tries to play grown up as a spy. Of course she gets in over her head. And watching her get out of it is all the fun. Enjoy!!!!

loved the Trailer!

[huedez · 6/10 · 10 May 2006]

I have recently found it on video, probably a pirate copy but none the less.... I remember vividly sitting in a dark theatre with my folks and the theatrical trailer for this came on the screen. A bus full of SCREAMING girls goes careening around a mountain road and I believe the windshield gets smashed or something as shocking to my young mind. Thats all I remember and for the longest time i thought the title was 13 SCREAMING GIRLS! When I finally came across the pirate video, I was somewhat disappointed that it was more of a spy thing than a haunted house kind of thing. Check out the superior Castle film I SAW what you did (and i know who you are). Now, that 's a film that delivers what this should have.

Didn't anyone ever tell William Castle that "13" was an unlucky number?

[moonspinner55 · 2/10 · 9 October 2010]

Brainless teen shenanigans produced and directed by William Castle, who seems to miss the ghosts and goblins of yore! Daughters of the world's leading diplomats (all schoolmates at the same institution) converge on London for a getaway, but the American girl gets more than she bargained for after a party at the house of her Red Chinese comrade--she finds a dead body in the freezer, stabbed with a letter-opener from the desk of her own father. Wide-eyed nonsense won't fool anyone who has outgrown "Nancy Drew". The production isn't bad, but Castle's direction is leaden, and the adults in the cast look properly embarrassed. * from ****

Eye Candy with suspense!

[Randwulf · 9 July 2014]

I had a Friday afternoon off, so to relax I turned on the Turner Classic Movies channel and saw that a film called "13 Frightened Girls!" was about to come on. I had never heard of it, and from the title it sounded like it might be a cult-favorite B movie directed by somebody like Roger Corman. I was pleasantly surprised to find out it was a Cold War era spy flick with lots of hot girls from 1963. Innocent though, mind you; the film has a strong feel of the way live-action Disney movies like the original "That Darn Cat!" used to be, except this is a Disney-like movie where people actually get killed!

Our sixteen-year-old heroine, Candace "Candy" Hull, reminded me of what Nancy Drew would be like if she opted to be an amateur international spy instead of an amateur detective. The film seems aimed at the age group that would enjoy reading Nancy Drew books, but it has material that adults can enjoy too. As for the reference to thirteen girls and why they are frightened, the beginning of the movie takes them on a very dangerous bus ride, but an even greater reason for their fear is not revealed until near the end. Most of the plot deals with the exploits of Candy and her Chinese friend Mai-Ling as they probe the liquidation of a foreign agent, then attempt to prevent a revolution, and that's just for starters. Interestingly, the part of Mai-Ling's mysterious uncle is played by Khigh Dhiegh, later known for his recurring role as the archvillain Wo Fat in the original version of the television series "Hawaii 5-O".

The film seemed uneven in a few places, but not enough to interrupt my involvement in the story. I was just relaxing, wasn't trying to pick it apart and suspended disbelief, so I had lots of fun with this movie and I'm very glad I was given the opportunity to see it. It's from a different era and doesn't fit with today's jaded mind-set, but for those who appreciate values beyond those of our present culture, watching this film just might be eighty-nine minutes well spent.

They're Afraid!

[AaronCapenBanner · 3/10 · 14 October 2013]

Director William Castle supposedly held an international talent search to find the 13 talented actresses to play the 13 Swiss boarding school students which caters to the children of diplomats. All 13 girls(led by Candance 'Candy' Hull, played by Kathy Dunn) get involved with spies who are after their parents. They also are from various countries, and have their own way of doing things. Can they help their important parents and escape certain death? Strange film doesn't seem to know what it wants be, or what tone to carry. Is most definitely a curio, if little more. Not as bad as Castle's previous two pictures, and not quite the BOMB Leonard Maltin claimed, this is still pretty poor.

13 FRIGHTENED GIRLS (William Castle, 1963) **1/2

[Bunuel1976 · 6/10 · 25 April 2014]

The third successive effort in the William Castle canon to veer from his successful gimmicky Horror formula was, despite the catchpenny title (incidentally, this being especially evocative of the director's popular but disappointing 13 GHOSTS {1960} and the film under review itself having received the dreaded BOMB rating from Leonard Maltin, I was quite wary of it to begin with!), the most drastic one since, unlike its predecessors – the two Tom Poston vehicles ZOTZ! (1962) and THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1963) – it did not feature fantasy elements at all. Indeed, it disparately combines the then-prevalent Cold War espionage sagas and "Beach Party"-type youth movies in a fairly enjoyable concoction with a decent, second-tier cast: leading man Murray Hamilton(!) as a secret agent, Hugh Marlowe as the U.S.' ambassador for Great Britain and Khigh Dhiegh as his "Red China" counterpart.

Marlowe's teenage daughter (Kathy Dunn) is the heroine of the piece, a student at a Swiss girls' college expressly reserved for the offsprings of international diplomats. However, these just want to hang out with boys – and only the protagonist and the Chinese girl within the group, curiously chummy (even if the latter is shunned by most of the others) seem to have other interests. Still, Dunn herself is besotted with Hamilton, her father's top agent but whose 'performance' has slackened of late and is being threatened with outright sacking! This actually sets the main plot in motion, as the girl determines to help him from behind the scenes in tracking down a defecting foreigner – who, as it turns out, she runs into just being eliminated at Dhiegh's house (the latter being uncle to Dunn's Chinese friend). Further romantic complications abound: Hamilton is in love with his closest associate, dubbed "Soldier" (Joyce Taylor) – while, for plot purposes, Dunn romances a succession of teenage boys away from a 'nymphomaniac' colleague…though one of them, whom she realizes is a spy, turns the tables on her and almost offs her from a balcony! Dunn's swift and successful undercover work earns her the name "Kitten" and the anonymous agent is thus sought by all sides – with the oblivious Marlowe urging Hamilton, now back in his superior's good books, to reveal his identity to him…and, when ultimately exposed, even the Reds decide to keep it quiet as they would not want it known that they were given a hard time by a mere child!

The film, then, has much of the fun quotient one associates even with Castle's "frightfests" – though, in this case and as with his other comedies, it descends more readily (if perhaps too often) into silliness! The director had obviously channeled Hitchcock before; here, he was unashamedly imitating his durable (and highly influential) comedy-thriller formula. Tellingly, having embraced monochrome for his first clutch of horror efforts, with this and the afore-mentioned THE OLD DARK HOUSE, Castle turned to colour – hoping, perhaps, for a more mainstream appeal – only to revert back to type for his next three straight genre outings and, then, stick to colour for his sparse remaining output!

No. This is not as advertised.

[cdale-41392 · 1/10 · 25 April 2019]

Rip-Off Alert:

This film was included in the 2-Disc / 5-Movie William Castle "Horror Collection" ... but this is NOT a Horror Film. This is a golly-G rated syrupy sweet YA spy "thriller".

The poster art is -very- misleading, and the story actually involves 15 girls, not 13.

And no, I didn't suffer through the entire thing once I realized what it was. I watched the first 10 minutes then fast-forwarded through the rest out of morbid curiosity.

Perhaps the "horror" aspect came into play during the very uncomfortable scene where 16 year old Candy / Kitten (Kathy Dunn) crawls all over a much older man in an attempt to seduce him.

Yikes!

13 Frightened girls in the candy web.

[morrison-dylan-fan · 7/10 · 1 August 2020]

Seeing a directors viewing challenge taking place on another site,one of the first things which came to mind was to finish the William Castle box set I had got for my birthday. Interested that despite the title this was not a Horror flick,I got set to find out how frightened these girls are.

View on the film:

Presenting multiple alternative versions to the opening, Indicator present a winning transfer of a crisp picture and soundtrack being backed by detailed extras.

Later calling the title "An international holiday" and displaying his trademark showman side by falsely claiming he had filmed 15 different versions of the movie (!) with a different actress in each one, director William Castle reunites with cinematographer Gordon Avil in continuing to depart from his Horror roots with a delightfully kitsch atmosphere.

Winning the role in a talent show contest run by Castle,Kathy Dunn gives a charming performance as Candy, whose sleuth spying skills Dunn twangs with a flirty quick-witted edge, keeping all unaware of Candy untangling the candy web.

Taking to heart the spirit of the spy genre by working under the cover of a cute teen flick, the screenplay by Robert Dillon originally called The Candy Web, wonderfully continues in the direction of Castle's Zotz! (1962-also reviewed) by being a playfully sly Cold War Comedy, heated up with satirical dialogue between Candy and student Mai-Ling on the frosty relation between both countries.

Jumping on the post-007 spy bandwagon early, Castle uses his eye for a gimmick in shimmering gold knives dripping with blood red paint placed in the bodies by agents stabbing for a jump-scare. Following Candy and her classmates leaving a idealistic boarding school in Switzerland for espionage deeds in London, Castle uniquely crosses the spy antics with the stylisation of teen Comedy flicks of the era,with hip kitsch splashes of glossy pink, yellow and red keeping Candy and her fellow students groovy with each take down.

Campy and Fun Comedy

[Shoshobe · 5/10 · 9 October 2010]

This is a fun, tongue-in-check espionage movie, similar to the campy Disney flicks "That Darn Cat" and "The Moon Spinners". Even the production style and cinematography are similar. The main difference is that the Disney movies have more polished story-lines with better actors.

The protagonist is Candy Hall, a teenager who attends an all-girls school for daughters of diplomats around the globe (hence the frightened girls). While visiting the embassy of one of her girlfriends, Candy witnesses a murder and so her life of a spy begins under the assumed name of "Kitten"...

Because the movie does not take itself seriously, the horrible acting and outrageous antics provide non-stop comedy. Clearly, this movie was not intended to depict genuine political intrigue or high drama, and if this is what you are looking for, then stick with movies like the "Bourne" franchise. It's the random scenes (the careening bus, the pouncing cat, the tennis match, etc.) that provide unexpected comical elements. So if you want entertaining 60's style fun and camp, this movie is perfect.

Shocking - For All The Wrong Reasons

[ags123 · 1/10 · 25 November 2019]

I'm still scratching my head over this one. This is a William Castle movie? I expected a hokey horror film along the lines of his entertaining cheesefests like "The Tingler" or "Homicidal." Instead what we have here is a third-rate children's Disney adventure with cast and soundtrack to match. None of Castle's reliable stable of writers and musicians seem to have participated. Castle somehow managed to attract decent character actors - Murray Hamilton ("The Graduate"), Hugh Marlowe ("All About Eve"), Norma Varden ("Strangers On a Train"), but they all look like they're taking part in Amateur Night In Dixie. You have to see this movie to believe how awful it is.

Saw this movie when I was 11 or 12, love it!

[juanita · 8/10 · 1 September 2001]

Several decades later, I still remember it, and wish it were on video or dvd. William Castle had a unique ability when it came to putting children in dangerous adult situations. His other film that comes to mind here is "Let's Kill Uncle," about a 12 year boy whose life is in dangered by his charming, cunning, financially challenged, ex-spy uncle. I think the bad reviews are a reflection of the fact that the film is hard to catagorize. As a pre-teen I found the idea of a group of young girls from different nations and cultures saving the world very appealing. Kinda fit in with my devotion to the Man From UNCLE.

Coldwar Gidget

[jamesrupert2014 · 5/10 · 7 March 2021]

'Candy' Hall (a toothy Kathy Dunn), the teen-age daughter of an American diplomat, becomes embroiled in espionage when she overhears details of an international plot while visiting her friend Mai-Ling (a cute Lynne Sue Moon), the niece of a diplomat from 'Red China' (Khigh Dhiegh). Candy is one of a cohort of diplomats' daughters (the titular "Girls") and when she starts feeding information gleaned from her friends' gossip-sessions to an American spy, she promptly becomes 'Kitten', an anonymous intelligence-asset sought by agents from both sides of the 'Bamboo Curtain'. Produced and directed by William Castle, well known for gimmicky promotions, the film's publicity campaign claimed that the "13" girls (oddly, there are actually 15) were recruited from the various countries they represented, including countries on the 'other side' in the Cold War (although this was not always true, Moon was a born in England). Other than Candy and Mai-ling, the girls have few to no lines and are never "Frightened". The cast is fine for what is expected of them in a light-weight teeny-bopper comedy-thriller but the plot is simplistic and full of implausibilities (even by the forgiving standards of a fluffy farce). The 13 (15) girls' big moment is a silly scene in which, all dressed in their identical school-uniforms, they gigglingly confuse, then swarm, a pair of Chinese assassins (comedic shtick at odds with the preceding scene, the knife-murder the school's avuncular bus driver). Lacking the appealing other-worldly silliness of Castle's canon of gimmick-laden horror-lite flicks, '13 Frightened Girls' is really only of interest as a pop-culture flashback to the cold-war or to dedicated fans of the 'guru of gimmicks'.

No So Good

[TheMightyEye · 31 December 2009]

As a producer William Castle was known for his outlandish gimmickry. In this the film delivers, although anemically, compared with Castle's best gimmicks, like Illusion-o, and Percepto. In this film he first put together an international search contest for the girls who would play the titular characters, and even made a different opening scene for each girl, all of whom represented their home country, with the exception of the Chinese and Soviet girls who had to be cast, (for you young people, in those days there was this thing called the Iron Curtain) as well as the seemingly well-groomed lead. Those alternate openings were presumably shown in their home countries only, as Americans only saw the one in which our girl was featured. The gimmickry continues with the addition of the Danger Card, with its scratch and win scenario. As this was a spy movie I am sure better concepts could have been developed. I think Castle was just busy on too many projects and this one got less gray matter devoted to it.

As a director, even by the standards we use to judge other Castle films, this one is not so good. As in Ed Wood's classics bad script writing, bad dialog, poor acting do nothing to sell the drawn out and preposterous plot line. It's 007 (with the inherent sexual innuendo)meets Nancy Drew (with its fresh-faced accidental intrigue). I guess it could have worked somehow, but it just doesn't in this case. Come to think of it the whole spy kid genre has been a bit of an underachiever.

See it for the strangeness of it. 3 of 10.

a movie for kids and teens

[writtenbymkm-583-902097 · 4/10 · 29 April 2018]

I cannot believe people actually reviewed this movie as an adult movie. William Castle really put one over on anyone who thought this was for grownups. It is obviously aimed at kids and teenagers. Castle appears on screen in the theatrical opening and tells you to keep the little card you were handed as you entered the theater. After the movie ends, Castle appears on screen again, tells you to moisten the card, and if the word "danger" appears, hand your card to the manager, who will give you a prize. This gimmick alone screams "kids." The young girl actresses, the absurd story, the "cute" factor, everything about this movie is obviously directed (pun intended) at kids. If this were an adult movie I would give it one star (actually, zero, but there is no zero). As a kids and teens movie, I've seen much better, but I suppose it at least deserves four stars. The only thing that really amazes me is the fact that William Castle would make such a movie at all. To win a bet?