America’s answer to James Bond, and a notably lesser one, is Matt Helm. Dean Martin portrays an American intelligence operative who stages his own demise and travels to the French Riviera to pursue the inventor of a device harnessing concentrated sunlight for widespread destruction. A sinister organization has abducted the scientist with plans to use his creation to control the world. Karl Malden embodies the leader of BIG O. “Murderer’s Row” (1966) marked the second installment in a series of four Matt Helm movies released over three years, from 1966 to 1969. The franchise drew inspiration from the considerable success of the initial four James Bond films between 1962 and 1965. Unlike the source material (the books) and Bond himself, this series adopts a playful and humorous approach, with Martin employing his trademark knowing glances at the audience, reminiscent of the contemporary Derek Flint movies starring James Coburn and Raquel Welch’s “Fathom” (1967). The original tagline for "The Silencers," the first Matt Helm film, was “guns, gadgets, girls,” but a more fitting description would be “guns, gadgets, girls, and alcohol.” These are certainly enjoyable films to experience the vibrant, colorful atmosphere of the 1960s. However, because the spy adventures are treated as a casual joke, there’s no feeling of peril, and, significantly, the narrative simply isn’t engaging, particularly in “Murderer’s Row.” There is no shortage of attractive women present, with Ann-Margret standing out for her charisma and allure. However, they all appear somewhat underdeveloped; they lack curves. While Ann is undeniably beautiful—as seen in Elvis' "Viva Las Vegas" (1964)—it seems she had lost weight during the two years preceding this film. It’s unfortunate because it diminished her appealing figure. Those who prefer slender women won’t find that a problem, though. These lighthearted imitations of 007 from the 1960s came and went, largely forgotten, while the James Bond franchise continues to thrive decade after decade. There's an obvious reason for this difference. The film has a running time of 1 hour and 45 minutes. Although second-unit crews filmed sequences in Villefranche-sur-Mer (France), Monte Carlo (Monaco), and on the Isle of Wight for the hovercraft and helicopter scenes (England), Martin declined to travel to Europe, so all of his scenes were shot in Hollywood. GRADE: C

Source on TMDB