A Netflix viewing while on a trip from Baltimore to Chicago on August 14th. As a kid I was familiar with the Roger Moore tv series from the sixties and since I was looking for a short film to watch on a short flight, I took a chance.
Simon Templar has a history that dates back to 1928. The character has been in every form of entertainment since then. After Roger Moore played the character on television from 1962-69, there was a revival of the character in 1978 with a series called Return of the Saint that starred Ian Oglivy as the title character. It lasted one season. Val Kilmer played Templar in the 1997 film version but it was awful and the character went back to the shelf.
Which brings us to now. Adam Rayner plays the title character as an international Robin Hood type, stealing from bad people and doing something good with it. Luckily there's a backstory of him coming from a very wealthy English family, so he doesn't need to take a cut of the score. Eliza Dushku, plays Patricia Holm, an ex-spy who is Templar's partner and helps with all the technical stuff like getting IDs and disabling electrical alarms with a laptop from a poolside location.
The plot premise is that a crooked banker is stealing money set for relief of a fictional African nation. The banker has a change of heart and decides to hide the funds and go to the FBI. The main villain finds out and decides to pull the old daughter kidnap ploy to get his ill gotten booty back. The banker gets a message to Templar so he can save his daughter. Templar and Patricia embark to save the girl while being chased by the main henchman and the FBI. Basically, the case is solved in under 90 minutes.
The film is very tongue and cheek and never takes itself seriously. It seems more like a pilot for a series than anything else. Rayner plays Templar more like Roger Moore's James Bond. It's not a very good film per se but it was better than the 1997 film version. You can skip this film and not miss out on anything. There are better ways to kill 90 minutes but if you do watch this, you won't regret it. I only watched this film because I am familiar with the brand. If it had a different title, I would've passed it over.
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