Ffolkes
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Movie Reviews of Ffolkes
Movie Review: Great action, great fun
Summary: 5 Stars
Recently, we read Roger Moore's book "My Word is my Bond" and thanks to this excellent biography of all the work accomplished by Roger Moore, we became familiar with movies we had never seen by our favorite... Bond, James Bond. So, we are trying to see all his films.
In Ffolkes, Roger Moore stars with Anthony Perkins and James Mason in an action filled espionage thriller filmed in 1980 and yet, it already surfaces the dangers of terrorism.
Anthony Perkins plays the role of a mad man who holds Great Britain's North Sea oil rig ransom, asking for a huge fortune in British Pounds or he blows up several of the British assets.
Roger Moore plays the central role of Rufus Excalibur Ffolkes, a rather reclusive expert in putting a stop to terrorists, and the film opens with him training his elite commando team, composed of men who can overcome pain and train for hours on end, in underwater games designed to fight a terrorist attack on an oil rig. Ffolkes has anticipated what has actually taken place, so Lloyds of London and security experts select him to save the day. The terrorists have only given the British government 24 hours to produce the money or the terrorists will blow up the oil rig. The scene where the British Admiral meets Ffolkes is simply superb acting!
The character played by Moore dislikes women and some of the lines he delivers are just great. Roger Moore tells in his book that he had great fun filming Ffolkes, who is a cat lover because the cats featured in many of the sequences, had never been on camera before and "had not even gone to drama school." James Mason is a true cat lover and he was concerned about doing anything to the feline actors to keep them under control.
If you like action with a fun twist, this is the movie for you! Don't miss it!
Movie Review: A True Gem!!!! A fine performance by Roger Moore!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
"ffolkes" is an under appreciated and little known film starring, then current James Bond, Roger Moore. For those critics that always felt that Moore was only a "tailor's dummy" standing in for Sean Connery, this script proved that Moore could indeed give a convincing performance as someone other than James Bond or Simon Templer.Just as much as the "Tailor of Panama" was a departure from Bond for Pierce Brosnan, "ffolkes" provided just such a vehicle for Moore. While the distributing company advertised the movie as a 007-style, action adventure piece, it really is more of a hostage drama and showcase for the remarkable character that is Rufus Excaliber ffolkes. To say that Moore makes a believable misogynist and all-around grump is an understatement, yet Moore fashions a very likable and sympathetic character who is entertaining to watch in action. Whether ffolkes demands to speak directly with the Prime Minister (stating that ..."she seems to have some grasp of the situation") or comments that he has never taken "10 minutes" to complete a Sunday Times crossword puzzle, the movie offers some great moments. It is a shame that "ffolkes" (also known as "Assault Force" and "North Sea Hijack") did not really find an audience and offer Moore a chance to reprise this role. Anthony Perkins makes nasty villain, who has some good lines of his own (such as stating to the chief British Government negotiator that the admiral makes it sound as though the "ransom is coming from his and the Queen's joint bank account.").
I am grateful that this movie, one of my favorites, is finally available on DVD and hope that people will find it enjoyable and discover that Roger Moore can really act.
Movie Review: The Anti-Bond
Summary: 5 Stars
When I was a teenager I used to go to the movies religiously at least once a week. I anxiously awaited Siskel and Ebert's "Sneak Previews" on PBS for their reviews of current movies on release. I remember "ffolkes" coming out the Spring of 1980 the same weekend as Bill Murray's "Where the Buffalo Roam". The studio did a lousy job marketing this flick. On the poster art it showed Roger Moore holding a cat surrounded by some luscious beauties. If "ffolkes" lasted at the bijous beyond a week I'd be surprised. I didn't see it at the time. A couple years later a film was shown in the summer on ABC's "Sunday Night Movie" called "North Sea Attack" or some such nonsense. I recognized at once that this was "ffolkes". Viewing it I was instantly riveted. To me Roger Moore was somewhat lacking as James Bond, either because he was a shadow of Sean Connery or the vehicles were inherently weak. I thought Moore's best work was here and in "The Wild Geese". "ffolkes" allows Moore to portray a character not only of action but interesting quirks. The plot concerning the hijacking of a North Sea oil rig is exciting. I would characterize "ffolkes" more as a suspense film because it's more of a cat-and-mouse game than an action film per-se. It also helps that Anthony Hopkins is a compelling baddie even if you don't believe for a moment that he is a worthy adversary to Rufus Excalibur ffolkes, then, who is. I think the highest recommendation you can give a film is that some thirty years on it remains in your subconscience and loses none of it's appeal.Movie Review: It's about time!
Summary: 5 Stars
Ffolkes is one of my all-time favorite movies. A while back, I purchased the VHS version and it looked like it was an old bootleg! The picture and audio quality was the worst I had ever seen on an official release! Needless to say, I was very happy to hear that it was going to be released on DVD, and I can imagine that the picture and audio quality will be up to DVD standard. As far as the film goes, it has a great cast and a great mix of drama, action, and humor! In a role which is very different from his James Bond persona, Moore pulls off the grumpy, cat-loving action hero perfectly! Also watch for outstanding performances from the late Anthony Perkins and James Mason. The story revolves around a group terrorists (headed by Anthony Perkins) who hijack a boat in the North sea, and threaten to blow up a couple of oil rigs if the British government do not meet their demands. Ffolkes (played by Roger Moore) is brought in to thwart the hijackers' plans. The story is a unique twist on the terrorist/hostage theme which has become so commonplace in recent years, and being made in 1980, this movie can only be viewed as a true original which should not be missed!Movie Review: Truly spectacular.
Summary: 5 Stars
There's very little I can say about "ffolkes" that hasn't been said before (and better) by others, but I'll try my best.In a complete departure from Bond, Moore portrays Lord ffolkes, an arrogant, eccentric, chauvenistic diver who leads a crack mercenary commando diving team in the employment of Lloyd's of London. Opposite him is Anthony Perkins as Kramer, one of the most dementedly amoral villains I've ever seen on film. Both actors give spectacular, over-the-top performances, which may seem corny and unbelievable if not for the larger-than-life aspect of the film.
People who grew up reading Action Force in Marvel's "Battle" magazine will find a lot of similar qualities among the plot and dialog of "ffolkes." It's hard for me to pin down a word to describe that styling, unfortunately..
Overall, this is a classic suspense-thriller, not too tense but not too predictable, with satisfyingly intense (yet relatively bloodless) action sequences.
The only downside is that "ffolkes" never spun off into a post-Bond franchise for Mr. Moore..