User Reviews

Back in 1967, Raquel Welch's appearance (rather than performance) in "Fathom" helped jump-start the puberties of around 40 million baby-boomer boys. I never got the chance to see this picture back in '67, unfortunately, and had to have MY puberty jump-started the old-fashioned way: by watching James Bond in the movies and Honey West and Emma Peel on TV (not to mention Laurie R. in junior high!). But 40 years after the fact, I finally caught up with "Fathom" last night. And you know what? The picture really isn't half bad. It's got a good, twisty, intelligent script, tongue in cheek though it may be; beautiful Spanish location shooting; and some colorful characters. The picture also moves quickly and features some good action sequences (such as Racky dodging a maddened bull in a bullring and swimming away from a harpooner in a speedboat). Half the fun in the movie comes from trying to figure out who is lying and what the characters' various motivations are (nobody seems to be telling the truth about anything in this film, and poor Fathom is understandably confused throughout). I quite enjoyed the film, and must say that Raquel's acting is much better than she is given credit for, and that she does indeed look sensational in every scene. Now I can finally understand all those raised hormonal levels 40 years ago!

Welch looks good in this, to be sure. But she also carries across the oddball charm this movie is attempting to convey. She looked good in Bedazzled and Myra Breckinridge as well, but wasn't given much to do. Here she gets some good dialogue to parry the men with, and she comes across as an exciting heroine that unlike Flynt or Matt Helm, should have been given more than one movie to do her thing. This film is very reminiscent of the more whacked-out Modesty Blaise. Just a little funnier. One could also find the roots of the current Charlie's Angels flix in this movie, albeit without the battering music.

Leslie H. Martinson is a director who should be studied more closely. He did so many TV shows, it would be easy to dismiss him as style-free. But from what I've seen (Hot Rod Girl, PT 109, Batman) he uses simplicity in his favor, and makes good little movies that stick with you.

In 1965 a then little-known young actress named Raquel Welch auditioned for the part in "Thunderball" that eventually went to Claudine Auger. Raquel never achieved her ambition to become a Bond Girl, but two years later, and by then a rising starlet, she went one better. She became a female Bond.

"Fathom" is a typical example of the sort of spy comedy-thrillers that were popular in the sixties. It shares its continental European setting with the likes of "The Prize" and "Charade". Raquel plays Fathom Harvill, a member of the American national sky-diving team, who finds herself at the centre of an espionage drama while on a visit to Spain. (We are offered a number of contradictory, and increasingly surreal, explanations for the heroine's unusual Christian name, without it ever being established which one is correct).

The plot is a complex and confusing one; even Raquel's co-star Richard Briers punned that he could not fathom it. At the centre of the action is a mysterious object named the "Fire Dragon", which may be either a triggering device for atomic bombs or a stolen artwork. In search of the Fire Dragon are Colonel Campbell and his sidekick Timothy Webb who may be either members of the British secret services or international art thieves and Peter Merriwether and his attractive female assistant Jo-May, who may be either private detectives or agents for Red China. (Ignore the cast list which names Jo-May as a Major in the KGB, which was of course a Russian agency rather than a Chinese one). Somewhere in the middle is Sergei Serapkin, a villainous Russian tycoon who has designs both on the Fire Dragon and on the lovely Fathom.

Even though a few people end up dead, the mood is light-hearted, and even one of the corpses manages to rise, Lazarus-like, from the dead. The film's main asset is the presence of Raquel Welch herself, the most beautiful Hollywood sex symbol of the late sixties and seventies. (As most of her early films, she spends much of the time in a bikini). I cannot, however, agree with the reviewer who said that she was at the peak of her sexiness- Raquel's sexiness took the form of a plateau rather than a peak, as she remained as attractive throughout her thirties and forties as she was in her twenties. Her acting skills are never seriously tested, but she succeeds in making Fathom a likable heroine as well as a sexy one. The film does not make a great deal of sense, but then it was never intended to. It succeeds in being what it was intended to be- slick, glossy, glamorous and entertaining nonsense. 6/10

Aside from her prehistoric antics ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., this is the quintessential Raquel Welch movie from her heyday as the ultimate 60's sexpot. The tone is light 'n bright in this bouncy adventure flick with Raquel doin' her swinging sixties thing in a colorful assortment of very suitable costumes. It's nice to see the lighter side of Ms. Welch after falling for her as an atonal cavegal with nothing to smile about. British jazz musician Johnny Dankworth provides a breezy pop score that caps things off quite nicely. A great mid-century, midnight flick.

I'd never seen or even heard of this offering in the 60's comedy spy genre until Film 4 padded out their evening schedule with it. How dated it all looked, understandably. But it was a jolly romp, great locations and with pretty good enthusiastically staged stunts. Ms Welch was very decorative as usual and the Britsh character actors excellent in support. Good to see Tom Adams in a solid supporting role, Clive Revill was always good value in this sort of movie too. Amazingly the two aircraft flown in this movie, a Cessna 172 and a Piper Cherokee 180, are still active and licenced in the UK, wearing their original registrations, forty years after the film was made.

MASTER PLAN: get the Fire Dragon. The spy / secret agent craze was in full swing by this time, with several James Bond movies already dominating the decade and a few imitators (Flint; Matt Helm) getting started. They also put out a "Modesty Blaise" film the year before this. So, why not place the newest sex symbol / bombshell into a similar vehicle? Why not? The main difference with this plot is that the title character is not really a secret agent; she works in a dentist's office and her key skill is being an able parachutist, an activity she partakes in while on vacation in Spain. She's also...Raquel Welch, the poster child for feminine perfection since her role in "One Million Years B.C." the year before. Frankly, I was surprised when I found out she wasn't really a spy or secret agent - she seems such a natural for that adventurous occupation on film - she's recruited or drafted by a couple of supposed government agents for a mission. The mission involves acquiring a mysterious Chinese object known as the Fire Dragon; or, it's the 'MacGuffin,' the term Hitchcock used to describe the object that drives the plot in a story. Welch is presented as the ideal female - not silly & stupid as we might expect, since she does regard her supposed allies with suspicion (though, the reveal that they represent an organization called HADES, another word for Hell, might have clued her in somewhat... but, oh well, she's pretty athletic to complement her 'easy on the eye' great figure). This doesn't have as much of a campy tone as many other spy movies of the sixties, so you're not sure how seriously you should take it in some scenes.

The story does keep you guessing as it moves along at a fairly good pace, or tries to. Poor Fathom (Welch) doesn't know who to trust, her recruiters or their enemy, an adventurer (Franciosa) who lives in a villa with some other compatriots - this is Fathom's initial destination as a secret agent, where she quickly finds a dead body. Her new acquaintance, Merriwether, claims to be a detective, but he could be a master criminal (he also refers to her as 'Poppet' in every other sentence, which drove me nuts after the first hour). Then there's Serapkin (Revill, hamming it up, as usual), some kind of Russian oddball villain and probable master criminal on a yacht whom Fathom is placed in the position of seducing. On top of that, there's a local café proprietor (Tom Adams, formerly "The 2nd Best Secret Agent in the Whole Wide World") who is not all he seems to be. Most of the story thrust has Fathom starting to trust a couple of these characters at some point and then getting a rude reality check. She escapes becoming a dead body herself once or twice only by luck; that, or her stunning good looks prevent the villains from taking that final step. The most memorable scene, and the one which stuck with me when I saw this as a kid and didn't understand what else was going on, is Fathom being chased by a bull. It's emblematic of the strenuous action she is put through during most of the movie. Most of it is fairly trivial and forgettable, and Welch could not win any acting awards, but yet, it's kind of entertaining, if just a bit on the dull side due to mostly bland characterizations. Heroine:6 Villains:6 Male Fatales:7 Henchmen:6 Fights:5 Stunts/Chases:6 Gadgets:4 Auto:5 Locations:7 Pace:7 overall:6

Lightweight spy yarn about the search for an atomic device or something. But nobody cares about that. You aren't going to watch this for the plot. If you're going to watch it, you'll be watching for sexy Raquel Welch in bikinis, jumpsuits, and dresses that show lots of cleavage. There's some nice support from Clive Revill and Richard Briers. Tony Franciosa I could do without. A particular plot twist with his character I predicted in his first scene, solely on the basis of his being the best looking man in the movie. It's a fun movie, for the most part, with lots of opportunities for Raquel to show off her sparkling personality and, of course, curvaceous body.

Probably the only place most of you have seen this film is in the discount DVD rack at Target, where it sells, depending on your timing, for anywhere from $9.44 to $14.99. Whether or not it's worth even those paltry sums is another story.

Fathom was spawned during the spy craze in the mid-60s, when making films and TV shows with inappropriate casting for spies was okay (Bill Cosby as a spy? Barbara Bain, who won the Emmy over Diana Rigg???). So Fathom was likely born of twin desires; first, to cash in on the spy genre wave, and secondly, to build a showcase for Raquel Welch. I'm not arguing that either was a particularly bad idea, though it sort of turned out that way. The problem with building a showcase around a pretty woman (or devastatingly beautiful, in Welch's case) is that few people ever put any thought into the framework. They get caught up in staring at the girl, and everything else pretty much goes to hell.

Fathom doesn't try to take itself seriously, which is good, because it couldn't if it wanted to. Welch gives it a decent try to play a hapless adventurer who gets pushed in over her head, but it's obvious she's there to model the outfits as opposed to really act. Tony Franciosa plays Merriwether, her chief rival/love interest, and frankly, he's awful. Most of the rest of the cast is forgettable too, with the exception of a very eccentric performance by Clive Revill as the oddball Russian ex-pat Serapkin.

But mostly as expected the movie centers on Welch – which again isn't a bad idea, and it's certainly giving viewers what they want. In a scene where she parades down a street in France in a green bikini, the film almost literally stops while everyone catches their breath. Raquel, as they would say in modern parlance, really had it goin' on (though I was more than a little disturbed by a vague resemblance here to Carmen Electra, and hoping like hell no one in Hollywood thought that, because this is NOT a movie that needs to be updated. Even with Ben Stiller playing the Franciosa part).

Fathom is a stupid but harmless movie. Welch always seemed to me to be her generation's Sharon Stone; someone more famous for being famous than for any discernible talent (other than the patently obvious). But Welch did make at least a few good films (the Musketeer movies, in which she was very good) and a few ‘interesting' ones (the ill-fated Myra Breckenridge). She's not particularly good here, but then, she's not asked to be. Fathom never tries to pass itself off as anything more than a cheeky B film, and it's certainly more watchable than comparable drek like Our Man Flynt (which I turned off after about seven minutes). Fathom's obvious falseness – shots of Welch skydiving are ludricrously naïve – is partially a product of its time, but I suspect it would actually appeal to people who enjoy that sort of camp (you know, Batman fans and the like). And, frankly, it's worth sitting through to have the rather obvious talents of Welch displayed, even though her hair is picture-perfect a second after removing her skydiving helmet (and she wears makeup in bed, too. Always prepared, that girl). I can't really recommend this film for anyone other than Welch fans, or extremely obsessive fans of 60s spy films, but I would bet that to a generation of men only a few years older than I am, this is a film they remember extremely fondly. And I guess there's nothing wrong with that.

There is enough intriguer in here to upkeep entertainment, and not be overtaken just by the ogling of the main female's physique, instead much of who's good and who's bad to a capable containment.

Silly '60s spy caper Fathom stars Raquel Welch as curvaceous skydiving dental assistant Fathom Harvill, who becomes involved in all manner of espionage shenanigans after she is approached by Colonel Campbell (Ronald Fraser), chief of H.A.D.E.S. (Headquarters Allied Defences, Espionage & Security), and his assistant Timothy (Richard Briers), who need her help in locating the Fire Dragon, a missing H-Bomb component that is also being sought by Red Chinese agent Peter Merriwether (Anthony Franciosa). All is not as it seems, however, and Fathom soon realises that she cannot take anyone at face value.

From the opening sequence, in which the camera lingers lovingly on Welch's body as she carefully packs her parachute, it is abundantly clear that director Leslie H. Martinson's main priority is to exploit his sex symbol star's impressive physique; it certainly isn't telling a coherent tale, the twisting plot for Fathom requiring far too much concentration for a frivolous spy romp with the constant distraction of such a gorgeous lead. Still, with Welch slipping into a variety of sexy outfits for her undercover activities, including a dress that is like a red rag to a bull, and a green bikini guaranteed to impress, the film is never a chore, I suppose.

Raquel Welch shines in arguably her finest '60s comedy, a cheeky spy-romp about a sky-diving dental assistant who gets involved in intrigue while touring Spain, tangling with thieves and detectives over the acquisition of a treasure from the Ming Dynasty: the elusive Fire Dragon! The opening sequence, with Fathom Harvill folding and packing her parachute, is such a welcoming montage, it sets a warm, frisky tone for the rest of the picture. A high-flying adventure with Rocky in and out of trouble--and bikinis (the lime-green one is the most tantalizing, as is Welch's entrance wearing it while coming down the steps). The running joke with different characters asking Fathom how she got her name is very amusing ("As a child you were very...deep?"), as is Clive Revill's fabulous comic performance as an eccentric collector who is allergic to cold weather. Beautiful locales, a wonderful score, terrific airplane-chase finale, and sunny, breezy Welch looking and acting great. Good show. ***1/2 from ****

Impossible didn't cherish Raquel Welch in it's best days as sex symbol, this hoax picture has so many twists whom let the audience undoubtedly lost in a confuse plot, on purpose of course, but Raquel Welch fits the lack of endless inconsistencies with her charm and sexy appeal, Franciosa played an ambiguous character, therefore Clive Revill doesn't remain any doubt, he is really a crook, Ronald Fraser seems enough trustworthy on first sight, the chinese treasure stolen called "Fire Dragon" was the target to all them, the plot doesn't excite too much, Welch does, in several sexy appearance she overcomes herself, the lavish British production on an amazing landscape on Spain and on shore improves a lot, first class entertainment for all ages, no dated until now!!!

Resume:

First watch: 1998 / How many: 3 / Source: TV-DVD / Rating: 7

This is little more than a cookie-cutter sexy spy farce that was a common genre in the 1960s. Like the Matt Helm series, In Like Flint series, and others, all trying to be less classy versions of James Bond, which, when deconstructed, weren't dramatically better.

As for Welch, sigh. She never could act adequately beyond light comedy written for her, and in this, she's almost painful to watch when she's wearing more than a bikini. She was very much a product of the 1960s hollywood sensibility of reproducing starlets; when Marilyn dropped abruptly from the scene in the early 60s, hollywood scoured the model world to try to invent the next sex kitten sensation. Hollywood never again succeeded, for times had changed. And except for Bond, the spy farce genre died a slow but decisive death too.

This is not a movie featuring Welch. Rather, this is a movie built around promoting Welch. She wasn't up to the task. And other than Franciosa, she lacked the supporting cast to highlight her talents, which didn't exceed looking good in a bikini.

Raquel Welch in her sex symbol prime makes this picture worth seeing. I kind of wish the script had made her character a little more intelligent, but the film is an entertaining, breezy diversion. Clive Revill also delivers a very funny performance.

I never saw "Fathom" until just now and I am impressed. It is an entertaining and enjoyable film. It is a semi-serious spy caper in the same vein as "Charade" and "Arabesque". I am a big fan of these sorts of films so I am happy to have discovered another one. Raquel Welch is terrific and beautiful and carries the movie well. However I thought that the ending could have been a little stronger. So my rating: 7/10.

This movie starts with it's strongest part, Raqual Welch in her prime at every possible camera angle packing her parachute. They even use what was still rare in 1967, a classic shot of her back side. I doubt that anyone complained about that.

Once this opening sequence is over, the film settles into a light plot involving a stolen Chinese Artifact which everyone is after though the good people versus the bads ones are very hard to sort out.

Tony Franciosa is the other name actor in the cast but this movie is mostly Raquel. The rest of the supporting cast makes out alright but the action is slight and the style of photography is much in evidence in this film. Welch gets a 10 for effort but the script is a little lame so over all the movie is not that good. Still, there are worse ways to spend a couple of hours.

Raquel & Tony face down a bull in one sequence. There are times when everyone around her seem to be part of a load of bull. Raquel is Fathom, the lead character who gets involved with a lot of people but manages somehow to come out whole.

I can't fathom any other reason Fathom was was made unless it was to show Raquel Welch off in various stages of undress, in bikinis, or in tight fitting outfits. There've been worse reasons to lure the public to the big screen.

Raquel is Fathom Harvill, a professional skydiver who gets talked into working for Ronald Fraser, complete with Scottish burr as a member of British Intelligence. It seems as though Tony Franciosa, international adventurer might have something called the Chinese Dragon, a triggering device for a nuclear weapon. He's got a Chinese woman, Greta Chi, who is a member of their secret police.

Fraser wants Welch to ascertain whether they have the item or not, by pretending to be blown off course by prevailing winds and just dropping in on his villa on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. AFter she gets into the game, she's not sure who really is on the up and up, or if anyone is. There's a third player in the game, international playboy Clive Revill whose source of money makes him a man of mystery.

Fathom is a spoof on those James Bond stories with the Bond girl taking the lead and being the center of the action. Raquel worked hard and she's certainly something to see, but the satire falls flatter than she would have had her parachute failed to open.

FATHOM is a frothy, silly spy adventure clearly taking advantage of the spy craze of the 1960s. It follows the misadventures of Raquel Welch's Fathom, a female agent sent in to recover a secret atomic device that has the power to destroy the world in the wrong hands. Treachery, adventure and battle ensue. Sadly, it's all a bit of a bore, and not a patch on the two Bulldog Drummond movies that Richard Johnson knocked out at around the same time.

The problem with this film is the script. It's listless and inconsequential, focusing on unengaging characters and throwing in enough twists, turns and betrayals to bore even the most ardent viewer of thrillers. It's a succession of sunny locales and overacting characters, with bizarre scientists and outlandish fellow agents.

Raquel Welch, bless her, is extremely limited as the main attraction and simply required to parade a series of form-fitting outfits on her admittedly impressive frame. For the most part I found her airhead character to be vacuous and irritating, almost unwatchable in places. There's a stalwart cast of British dependables, including, bizarrely, Richard Briers as a key ally, but that doesn't save this from being a pointless and plodding movie.

Terrific spy spoof with tongue-in-cheek dialogue. Breezy in every sense of the word. Everyone's timing is wonderfully in-synch. Cleo Laine's husband, Johnny Dankworth provides just the right kind of smirky jazzy score. The entire supporting cast is well-cast and delivers wonderfully. Tony Franciosa makes a perfect leading man for her in his own breezy style.

But, Raquel, her array of fun-loving smiles, her bikinis, her attitude, her sparkling eyes, and poppet-like expressions are what makes this movie a guilty-pleasure classic for me. She wiggles, jiggles, plays dumb, acts smart, empathises, exercises, sky-dives, and always but always, smiles.

And, dare I say it? What a magnificent body!!!

I am often dismayed when a movie starts with a title sequence showing a drab black background and then those white lettering that seems to last for hours. This one kicks off with a glorious establishing shot of its leading lady, instantly telling everybody that they are watching (arguably, but quite likely) the most beautiful girl in the world (at that time, at least) by showing us her lightly- clad body lying prone as she is busying herself... hammering that thing into the ground? Why??? Do I care??? Those long, long legs... barefoot... nice slinky hands, cute feet... the face that must have meant EVERYTHING to men's dreams back then...

As RavenGlamDVDCollector, I have obtained several of her movies, most notable is HANNIE CAULDER, which isn't a good movie, not by a long shot really, but there are some highly memorable scenes in which she is just perfect, and MYRA BRECKENRIDGE, which is very unusual, with a shaky premise, and is mostly claptrap. But it featured the trailer* of this one, with that self-same leggy scene as its opening shot as well, and I took one look and quickly couldn't really care less about MYRA BRECKENRIDGE, had to, had to have FATHOM.

I could of course quickly judge that FATHOM is equally far, far away from being a good movie. But Raquel's built-for- bikini figure makes up for any other on-screen shortcomings. Would I watch a 1967 movie with an unlikely plot had some serious actress of that time been featured? No of course not. But Raquel's got the kind of curves that are in considerable danger of becoming extinct. Nowadays girls with this kind of figure are invariably only surgically- "enhanced" and that is oh-so-creepy with the scars and everything to prove it. Raquel back then is representative of not only the phenomenon that she was, but of a whole bygone era, a time when purity still meant something, when there was more pride taken in one's person, instead of the sacrileges nowadays committed so flippantly without thought.

*trailer has the very best glam shots in it, makes a fine little capsule, I had my doubts whether the movie could surpass it (of course that leggy scene at the beginning is far extended in the opening titles of the flick)

So, I don't even pretend to care about this movie's story-line, hell, it's a mess that gets worse every second it meanders in its lopsided way, hoo boy... but all-natural Raquel is a feast for the eyes. And there is a lot of her on show, plenty of times...

Guys, I don't have to say anymore, do I?

A California skydiver competing in Spain (Raquel Welch) is enlisted by a secret organization to spy on a war defector (Tony Franciosa) in search of a vital H-bomb detonator. The peripheral cast includes Ronald Fraser, Richard Briers, Greta Chi and Clive Revill.

"Fathom" (1967) is a spy send-up in the vein of "Kiss Me Monster" (1969) and "The Girl from Rio" (1969) that came into vogue after the success of the first five James Bond films from 1962-1967.

Welch was in her prime here (26 years-old during shooting), looking best in the opening with a red bikini. Moreover, the southern Spain locations are exceptional, Franciosa brims with charisma and it's always good to see Revill. Unfortunately, the flick's burdened by a too-twisty script with stilted rapid-fire dialogue. It's fun, but it's not natural or compelling. Still, there are several worthwhile scenes, like the skydiving and bullfighting.

The film runs 1 hour, 39 minutes and was shot in Andalucía, Spain, with some stuff done in Shepperton Studios, England.

GRADE: C