Simon Templar (Louis Hayward) a.k.a. the Saint is summoned back to London by a close friend - but upon arrival he learns she has died in a car accident. Now that's too much of a coincidence to not suspect foul play, so Templar investigates her current lifestyle and learns she has been gambling and losing a ton of money. Now gambling's illegal in the UK, so Templar hits the bars and sees where he can get a connection to a gambling ring, and ultimately comes across lovely Carol (Naomi Chance) who hooks him up with a gambling club aboard a barge - where he plays and loses a lot of money (than will turn out to be forged) before he's recognized by showrunner Lennar (Sydney Tafler) and escorted off the barge. But he has seen enough, and eventually manages to break into Lennar's home to bump into a beautiful blonde (Diana Dors) but also find the lay-out of Lord Merton's (Ian Fleming) mansion - and since he has seen Merton's son (Russell Enoch) at the gambling club, he figures the young man must have lost a fortune gambling and handed over the lay-out to Lennar to pay his debt. So he invites himself to Lord Merton's home and foils a break-in by Lennar's men. Eventually Lennar and company take Carol, whom Templar has since grown fond of, captive, but by that time Templar has long found their hide-out, unmasks his own informer (Fred Johnson) as the mastermind of the gang, and ultimately everything comes to a happy ending ...

The first The Saint movie in 12 years, and the first and only produced by future horror powerhouse Hammer, The Saint's Return certainly profits from bringing Louis Hayward back to the lead role 15 years after The Saint in New York, and he still proves to be agile and charming enough to make a good impression in what's ultimately a rather one-dimensional role. And as a whole The Saint's Return, isn't anything to get too excited about, it's routine crime entertainment of the B variety, entertaining while it lasts, but forgotten before too long.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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