If you say the name Lloyd Bridges to most people today, they instantly think of the guy who said "looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue" in 1980's Airplane!. But 35 years before that movie redefined his carreer, Bridges headlined this WWII serial as the title character.
Secret Agent X-9 was based on a comic strip created by mystery writer Dashiell Hammett (The Maltese Falcon) and comic strip artist Alex Raymond (Flash Gordon). It was the last serial Universal based off a comic strip and one of their last serials. It was also the second such serial Universal did based on the strip. It's quite different from it's predecessor, but also as good as it.
Japanese agents discover that formula 722, when mixed with distilled water, becomes a perfect substitute for aviation gasoline. The problem is, the secret to the formula is in America, in the papers of a scientist who was trying to develop it for use as an explosive. The Japanese and Nazi agents determine to steal the formula from America, using a supposedly neutral island known as Shadow Island as their base of operations. Shadow Island is run by Lucky Kamber (Cy Kendall), a self-serving profiteer who collects a protection tax from fugitives on the island. When an American agent is murdered on Shadow Island, Secret Agent X-9 (Bridges) shows up to route out the Axis agents and put a stop to their mad plan. X-9 is aided by a Chinese agent named Ah Fong (Keye Luke) and a beautiful Australian agent (Jan Wiley) posing as a Quisling.
B-Movie and serial fans will find a lot of amusement in seeing who shows up in this. Samuel S Hinds, better remembered today for the Bela Lugosi version of The Raven, plays the mysterious Solo, who sits at the bar Kamber owns playing tiddlywinks constantly, except for when he shoots one would-be killer and draws a gun on another. Of course, as soon as the excitement is over, he goes back to playing tiddlywinks. The serial also has two of Charlie Chan's sons in it, though on opposite sides of the law. As mentioned, Keye Luke (No.1 Son) is Bridge's sidekick. No 3 Son, Benson Fong, plays Japanese scientist Dr. Hakihima. Serial regular Eddie Cobb gets big billing on the poster, but only shows up in a couple of scenes as a bartender. Another frequent serial baddie, I. Stanford Jolley (best remembered as the voice of The Crimson Ghost), plays a short-lived thug. Other frequent serials players in the serial include John Merton and Stanley Price, who gets the funniest death scene in the serial.
Victoria Horne plays the lead Japanese agent. Naruba. She does this by basically looking like a somnambulist, with her eyes mostly shut and her arms folded and in her dress sleeves for most of the serial. Politically correct-minded people will howl at this portrayal as racist, as well as Bridges referring to the enemy as "Japs" and "Nips" in the serial. But I think a little historical context is in order when watching this, or almost any WWII serial for that matter. The film was released in 1945 and we were still at war with Japan, which meant that they were the enemy. This was also just over three years after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Now, I know that it's not fashionable to demonize your enemies anymore, but back then it was. More to the point, it was a release valve for audiences. Secret Agent X-9 and its ilk were meant to be patriotic flag waving films, much the same as Top Gun and Red Dawn were in the 1980s. The worst thing we can do to a serial like this is try to apply our present-minded thinking to it. X-9 had a time and a place and, in some respects, represents a snapshot of America at that time. It's propaganda people, something that still goes on today, just a little differently than back then.
I'm not necessarily excusing the portrayal, I'm just savvy enough to understand where it was coming from and so not get so worked up about it. Besides, there are far worse portrayals of Japanese agents in other serials like 1943's Batman and the Popeye cartoon You're A Sap Mr. Jap. Let's not even bring Bugs Bunny Nips The Nips into this, either.
As for Bridges, he makes a fine serial hero. It's actually a shame this is his only serial since he does so good in it. This serial was done when Bridges was apparently cutting his teeth in acting, doing a lot of B-Westerns. It gives a glimpse of the actor to come, and only 6 years after this would he be playing Gary Cooper's deputy in the classic High Noon. Jan Wiley's Lynn Moore (great last name) gets to stand around and look pretty most of the time, leaving the heavy lifting to Bridges and Luke, but she does well with the sneakier aspects of her character. Three Stooges (and serial) buffs will also recognize Gene Roth as an incompetent Nazi henchman.
Every serial producing studio took a different tact when it came to the form. Republic favored constant action and set destroying fistfights, sometimes to their detriment. Columbia relied on silly, over the top humor. Universal took a more plot oriented approach, however, with a lot of dialogue. Some serials this worked for while others it just slowed down to a crawl. Fortunately, in Secret Agent X-9, it works. All the spy vs. spy and double dealing routines help keep the serial moving. One is never completely sure who's on whose side in this and that's a large part of the fun.
This is Universal's last truly great serial as the last few that squeaked out after it weren't quite up to par. But it's a fun and entertaining early glimpse at an actor that most would later know for comedy, back when he was a straight leading man. For that alone, it's worth watching.
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