What makes it different from others?

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Although it stars George Sanders rather than Louis Hayward in the title role (as in the previous "The Saint In New York"), this light-hearted romp through the imaginary underworld of 1930s London is equally silly. Unfortunately, the wisecracks and cameos are no substitute for the poor script, bland plot and unbelievable characters. It appears too to have been made on a shoestring budget.Three things should stand out for the 21st Century viewer: the obvious back projection in the car scenes, the paucity of telephones, and the ubiquity of cigarette smoke. David Burns plays Simon Templar's unlikely sidekick, and the love interest is provided by Sally Gray as flibbertigibbet Penny Parker.

Saint in London, The (1939) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Third film in RKO's series has George Sanders returning as The Saint. This time out The Saint travels to London where he gets involved with a counterfeiting ring and gets some help from a beautiful socialite (Sally Gray). This third film is a slight improvement over the second but I still wouldn't call the film very good or entertaining. Sanders seems more comfortable in his role but I still think he's rather miscast. I'm really not sure what issues I'm having with him because I thought he was much better in the similar The Falcon series, which would start up a few years after this movie. The film has a little bit more action, which keeps the film moving better and it also has some rather nice humor. It's strange that a mystery film would leave the viewer with no mystery to figure out because we meet the bad guys early in the movie so there's no guessing for us to do. Instead, a lot of the film has childish flirting between Sanders and Gray. Gray comes across very good in the film and actually manages to steal it from the classic Sanders. The bad guys are all rather stiff, which also doesn't help things. In the end, the 72-minute running time was just a tad bit too much for me as the film eventually ran out of gas. The IMDb lists an alternate running time of 79-minutes and there does appear to be some editing during the film and that includes a scene where Gray is held hostage by the bad guys.

Though the plot of "The Saint in London" does lack the elements of a true mystery, the players find the right sense of whimsy needed for this sort of light caper movie. The interplay between Sanders as Simon Templar and Sally Gray as his new-found female helper reminds me a little of the wonderful back-and-forth between John Steed and Emma Peel in the original Avengers series. This movie won't keep you on the edge of your seat, but it might cause you to sit back in the chair and just enjoy yourself for a while.

This film is more of an adventure than a mystery, since The Saint is tipped off at the start that Henry Oscar is up to no good, and he quickly learns he's involved in a plot to print £1,000,000 in counterfeit banknotes. The baddies are pointed out early and there are no twists that would have made it more interesting. Even when a murder is committed, you know one of the baddies did it, so it doesn't matter much who it was. George Sanders is excellent in the title role and has a good rapport with his leading lady, Sally Gray, a socialite who helps him for the thrill of it. He also gets considerable help from a pickpocket, David Burns, who is hired by Sanders when he promises to go straight, and of all people, his nemesis from Scotland Yard, Gordon McLeod. I guess I prefer a true mystery, one where clues are given and you can deduce "who done it" if you're clever enough. But even a crime drama such as this, where you simply watch it unfold, could be enjoyable if it were scripted better.