13 Lead Soldiers (1948) User Reviews

The Treasure of the Saxons

[robert-temple-1 · 6/10 · 5 April 2008]

This is the twentieth Bulldog Drummond film, as well as the second and last starring Tom Conway as Drummond. (He played Drummond twice in 1948.) There is little difference between Tom Conway as Hugh Drummond and Tom Conway as the Falcon. He is perfectly adequate in either role, with his usual charm and ease. This film is interesting because of a genuinely intriguing plot premise of a historical/archaeological nature. The 'thirteen lead soldiers' of the title, and the parchment palimpsest manuscript associated with them, record the whereabouts of and access to the 'treasure of the Saxons', concealed just before the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It is necessary to collect all the soldiers, hence the temptation to murder various owners of them. Sapper wrote the story containing this idea, and it is a pity that it was not given a better treatment. It is potentially very much in the genre of 'Lara Croft, Tomb Raider', and could form the basis for a modern film along those lines. Someone ought to give this consideration. This version is entertaining in a typically B picture way, never rising higher than that, but not sinking lower either. Algy Longworth, played here by John Newland, is not an ass as played by Reginald Denny, but is a pathetically inept sidekick who longs to be able to emulate his hero, Hugh. In this film, much fun is had by Algy pretending to be Hugh and Hugh pretending to be Algy, to confuse some of the people they meet in the course of the story. Even as 'Bulldog Drummond', however, the limp Algy cannot make headway with the gals, he finds, and he despairs with the realization that he never will. It is all done in typical comedic style. The Inspector this time is Gordon Richards, who shouts a lot and is boring and tedious. Terry Kilburn is colourless as Drummond's young male secretary, which is a thankless part with almost no lines or point. (There is no actual butler this time.) Helen Westcott is rather interesting as one of the young women in the story, and we could have done with more of her. Maria Palmer is more histrionic and obvious in her role as a potential villainess. This film is neither inferior nor superior, it is what it is.

Good B Mystery

[nova-63 · 7/10 · 11 September 2014]

This film was believed lost by mystery film addicts when a 16mm print turned up on ebay in the early 2000's. The buyer kindly transferred the film to VHS so the rest of us could enjoy it. Now some people may complain about the lack of quality or production values but when your master is a beat up 16mm print I tend to be a little forgiving. Also the fact that it was long lost makes me grateful a print exists at all.

The film itself didn't disappoint this old mystery buff. Conway is great as the suave detective. The rest of the cast is very solid and the plot is a neat little twister about locating a hidden treasure. Not to be missed by mystery buffs and please forgive the quality as we are lucky to have it available to us.

A very gripping finale

[greenbudgie · 7/10 · 7 February 2021]

This is the second of the two Tom Conway Bulldog Drummond mysteries. He is assisted by John Newland as Algy and also a second sidekick character called Seymour. It's good to see the 'One Step Beyond' presenter Newland in an early acting role. Here Algy changes identities with Drummond but he is still out charmed by the real Drummond for the attention of the ladies. So I suppose it was obvious that Newland was never going to seen as a leading man through his characterization in this film.

The action begins at Stedman Manor where an intruder breaks in and steals two lead soldiers and an ancient map. Dr Steadman is murdered during the break-in. He had been treating the figures with chemicals. It turns out that the soldiers were of modest value so the mystery is why are the figures and map worth stealing and murdering for?

There came a point when I did guess the identity of the murderer. But it didn't mar the mystery for me as there were other layers that still needed to be sorted. The relationship of the suspects to each other does continue to drive the intrigue. And of course why exactly is the completion of the set of lead soldiers important? There is a very gripping finale which should satisfy any mystery fan.

Enjoyable romp with Tom Conway as Bulldog Drummond

[dbborroughs · 7/10 · 30 May 2009]

Tom Conway in the second of two outings as Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond. here he's brought into the case of the murder of the owner of two antique lead soldiers. Someone who has similar soldiers is frightened he maybe next and he calls in Drummond to help. Along the way Drummond switches places with Algy and more people turn up dead. Its atypical outing for the captain. Good but not great film some how doesn't completely work. I'm not sure why. Perhaps its meandering script which seems to wander all over the place a bit too much. Certainly its all to do with the plot but it doesn't always feel that way. I did enjoy it and I will watch it again, since any time with Tom Conway in a mystery is time well spent, but at the same time I think this is probably my least favorite Drummond film. That shouldn't put you off since it is still a good mystery. Worth a look, preferably with a second Drummond film.

Mildly entertaining Drummond entry

[coltras35 · 6/10 · 18 April 2021]

Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond is called in to solve the murder of a man from whom two lead soldiers were stolen. Drummond learns that the two soldiers were part of a set of thirteen which formed the key to a hidden vault of treasure. Following some clever sleuthing and set-up on Drummond's part, the guilty man is trapped in the vault,which is hidden behind the fireplace.

Atmospheric entry that starts really well, but rambles on a little in the middle but ends sharply with a riveting finale where you find out the significance of the toy soldiers. That's the hook of the film: what is so important about these little things?

The debonair Tom Conway plays Drummond, and does a good job. Unfortunately, Reginald Denny, who played Algy, isn't here, as he makes me laugh and adds some enjoyment- the leading ladies, especially Helen Westcott, are ravishing ( just comes to show that, unlike the actresses today, you don't need to wear next to nothing to be alluring.) The villain of the piece didn't come as a surprise, but that didn't spoil the light intrigue.

Conway Plays Drummond Playing Algy Like He's Playing The Saint

[boblipton · 5/10 · 27 September 2019]

This Bernard Small production stars Tom Conway as Bulldog Drummond -- why not? He'd already played the Saint and the Falcon, and if he'd played Sexton Blake, it wouldn't surprise me -- in a movie based on one of Sapper's novels. An acquaintance comes to Conway, explaining he has two old lead soldiers, and someone who owned two others had been killed. Would he hold onto them and look into it? To complicate the plot, John Newland is playing Algy, and they decide to switch names for the term of this adventure.

It's a nicely complicated movie because everyone seems to be operating under a false identity. In fact, it's so complicated that I had no idea of what was going on until Conway playing Drummond playing Algy started his explanation of the very complicated mystery behind all the goings-on. Conway saunters through the role and is clearly amused by the deadly situation, like Roger Moore playing Bond.

It's directed by Frank MacDonald, one of those B specialists who could handle just about any subject, spent most of his career directing westerns, but actually had a nice talent for comedy. He wound up directing episodes of GET SMART.

13 Lead Soldiers

[CinemaSerf · 6/10 · 5 January 2023]

Well I have to thank this film for one thing: I now know what a palimpsest is! John Newland ("Algy") get a chance to step up a bit more in this engaging crime drama based around some mysterious lead soldiers - each depicting different figures from history. He, and his boss "Drummond" (Tom Conway) temporarily swap identities before being brought into the mystery when a man is murdered, and his two wee sculptures are pinched. What gives? Well it doesn't take our dynamic duo long before they discover that there are actually eleven more of these metal blighters, and together with an accompanying parchment they could reveal a hidden treasure. Maria Palmer ("Estelle") brings a little intrigue to the proceedings and Harry Cording reprises his oft-visited role as the man with the menace. I think this is one of the better "Bulldog Drummond" adventures. It's well enough paced and Newland and Conway work well together with a gentle humour and bit of help from their disdainful Scotland Yard ally "Insp. McIver" (Gordon Richards) to create quite an enjoyable treasure hunt with quite a strong (if terribly lit) denouement.

Staid mystery requires better pacing and lighting.

[mark.waltz · 4/10 · 24 July 2019]

When one of the supporting characters makes a complaint that they need more light, I had to shout at the screen, "Me too!" This is at a key scene in the film and it would be nice if the viewer could see what exactly is happening. Certainly, that seeing is supposed to be dark because the characters investigating the murder of a collector of rare antique soldiers are in a dangerous predicament which as Bulldog Drummond (Tom Conway) tells us here could have them locked in a vault for nine hundred years. Drummond has been through a lot in his nearly 20 years on screen, from the two A grade films starring Ronald Colman to a series of being movies in the late thirties and a return in the mid-1940's. Basically the British version of the popular Philo Vance, it takes on another comparison by hiring "The Falcon" (Conway) to play the part.

An intriguing opening shows the victim playing with two of the soldiers, remanence of a century old battle. It turns out that there are eleven more, and it comes up to Conway how to find who has been making threats against others interested in the soldiers as well as discovering why they want these teeny lead statues. Two beautiful women, Maria Palmer and Helen Westcott, also become involved in the mystery, with Conway suspicious of their involvement. not as intriguing as it sounds, I was hoping for a "Maltese Falcon" like mystery, from what I ended up with was a B programmer that tries too hard to be complex and ends up being a bit of a mess.

Looks like it was made for ten dollars, but otherwise it's not bad

[gridoon2024 · 5/10 · 13 July 2012]

Abysmal production values and deteriorated surviving prints make "13 Lead Soldiers" a chore to watch (and try to listen to, to catch all the dialogue), but otherwise it's not a bad entry in the long-running Bulldog Drummond series. The mystery is complicated enough, though a bit too similar to the previous one ("The Challenge"); it's another treasure hunt-double murder. The gimmick of Algy impersonating Hugh but still failing to impress the ladies makes for some amusing comedy. Speaking of the ladies, shapely blonde Maria Palmer easily steals the show from sweet brunette Helen Wescott. Overall, the film is worth a watch or two, but only if you don't have a problem with very, very low-budget 1940s filmmaking. ** out of 4.

Why is he so insistent to see some old lead soldiers?!

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 2 December 2015]

This installment of Bulldog Drummond obviously was inspired by Conan Doyle's story "The Adventure of the Six Napoleons". In other words, the film ripped the idea off! In addition to lacking originality, the film is also amazingly talky and slow...something you wouldn't expect in a film like this.

Drummond's friend, Algy, collects lead soldiers from the Middle Ages. According to the story, they are still relatively cheap to buy (?) and aren't worth very much. Why, then are folks so incredibly anxious to buy them from him? And, why has someone apparently been murdered to get one of them?! The solution to this mystery is right from the "Six Napoleons"...or at least it's a variation on it.

The problem is that even if the story had been more original, the film was so bereft of life that it would have been boring...which it really was. Unlike the wonderful old Falcon films, the filmmakers do little with Tom Conway and his charm just isn't enough to recommend the film.

Had potential to be better

[Byrdz · 20 November 2021]

Interesting idea for a story - including the Algy/ Drummond switch - but somehow it doesn't work all that well and has confused several of the user reviewers. Algy is NOT the original collector of the figures and Seymour is not Drummond's "young male secretary" despite what has been stated elsewhere.

It was interesting to learn that the abysmal and near unwatchable quality of the film was the result of it being a copy of a 16mm print of this formerly lost film (If that reviewer has their facts straight.)

This one is better than some and not as good as others in the series;