verbusen I'm a Saint fan so when I saw this on TCM I jumped at the chance to watch it. I'm really only used to the Roger Moore Saint and I never read the books but I also watched one or two earlier Saint films, so that's where I am now. So, my best guess is The Saint came to New York to kill off the entire underworld here. Not sure why. Did they say bad things about the King? Queen? Who knows, but he sure did have a grudge against these guys. The New York police don't know either but welcome him since you know, the system is crooked. So off we go and along the way Simon gets shot and kisses a hot woman who dies (I think), oh whats the point, you know you are intrigued. The Saint is a one man Lee Marvin killing machine. Totally out of character from the rest of the series even to this day, this Saint deserves a watch. A good stiff drink is in order as well or two or three, or however many you wish. Enjoy. 7 out of 10. I have no idea looking back why he was there but he killed a lot of the mob on his way out.

classicsoncall For my first encounter with The Saint, I'm glad it was with the original film in the series, this one featuring Louis Hayward in the role of Simon Templar, though continued in subsequent pictures by the likes of George Sanders and Hugh Sinclair. Hayward refers to himself as a 'lone wolf' later on in the story, describing the way he operates. Which is interesting in light of the fact he went on to portray that character in 'The Lone Wolf' TV series of the mid-Fifties.I was somewhat struck by the idea that The Saint was called on to deliver a brand of vigilante justice way back in 1930's New York. Operating under the auspices of the NYC Police Department, Templar was hired to dispatch mob big-wigs who always managed to avert prosecution with the help of shady lawyers. The concept of revolving door justice seems a product of more recent times, but obviously that wasn't the case at all as we see here.Clever repartee and offbeat disguise help The Saint make his rounds in New York as he gets closer and closer to the identity of The Big Fellow, one of the men on The Saint's hit list. In the midst of it all, he manages to get involved with gun moll Kay Sutton (Fay Edwards), who's motivation to help Templar isn't adequately enough explored. Sure he was good looking, charming and mysterious, but why trade that for her connections?On the flip side, I thought Templar walked into too many situations that surely should have cost him his skin, but hey, the guy was a genius according to henchman Hymie (Paul Guilfoyle). Apparently The Saint thought so too - "I'm such a hero I hardly recognize myself". Which was a curious thing for him to say, since every now and then I thought he resembled a young Desi Arnaz.

vollenhoven Simon Templar aka the Saint started his long and illustrious career in 1929 with the release of Meet the Tiger as written by the brilliant Leslie Charteris. By the time this movie came along The Saint was already a very popular book character. And while most people know of Roger Moore, Ian Ogylvie, Simon Dutton or George Sanders playing the Saint this first one is played by Louis Hayward (he played in the first movie and the last one of the b/w series) and he does it very well. This Saint is light years away from the later suave performance of Sanders or Moore. This is a straight "revenge" story in which the Saint takes care of the organized crime in New York, by means that are not available to the police. In the book he has stay clear of both parties but in the movie, a knee fall to morality of those days, he is more or less asked by the police. The Saint does so in a whirlwind 48 hours. The 60 odd minutes the movie lasts fly by and leaves you with the feeling to see more.In a recent movie by Tarantino (Inglorious Basterds) he kinda gives a wink to the Saint by letting his heroine read a novel "Le Saint a New York", which proves that the Saint is still out there. With a new TV-pilot just behind the horizon. Now if the powers that be only released a full DVD-boxset of all b/w Saintmovies I for one would be a very pleased person.

MartinHafer While the movie lacks the charm and sophistication of George Sanders (who most associate with the leading role), it makes up for it in a big way by being so very different. Instead of a crime fighter who always wraps everything together neatly for the police by the end of the film, this version of the Saint just kills the bad guys or gets them to kill each other!! I really liked this, as the typical role played by Boston Blackie, the Falcon or Charlie Chan is way too predictable--they NEVER would plug a bad guy who isn't even resisting arrest or making an attempt on the hero's life! Here, we find a supremely practical crime fighter who doesn't bother with courts and evidence! In many ways, it's like taking a movie such as THE STAR CHAMBER or MAGNUM FORCE and fusing it with a traditional 1930s and 40s B-detective film. Simon Templer's methods are sure a lot more practical and fun to watch than other crime fighters! Apart from the way he dispatches criminals, the film is a rather standard film about bad guys and a mystery--in this case WHO is responsible for leading a crime syndicate in New York City. Generally good pacing (though it DOES sag a bit in the middle), decent but not so sophisticated acting and a good script all work together to make one of the best examples of the genre. This is an excellent film for all--particularly lovers of old B-movies.