The vibrant London of the Swinging Sixties, a popular all-rounder and a director at the start of his influential career: the spy comedy ‘Salt and Pepper’ is not particularly well-known and nor is it one of the qualitative spearheads of its genre. Yet she is Worth a look, especially for fans of Bond satires like “Austin powers“. Also for fans of “Lethal weapon“!
It’s not just that the Bond parody, now sold in this country under its original title ‘Salt & Pepper’, comes from the later ‘Lethal Weapon’ director Richard Donner: Donner has gained a lot of experience with it in buddy cop humor . Now the comedy starring Sammy Davis Jr. received a home theater upgrade: This week “Salt & Pepper” celebrated its German Blu-ray premiere.
“Salt & Pepper”: from the nightclub to the nuclear submarine
US native Charles Salt (Sammy Davis Jr.) runs an immensely successful nightclub in London’s vibrantly trendy neighborhood with his best friend, Brit Christopher Pepper (Peter Lawford). However, the joy of their beloved establishment is marred by the suspicious Inspector Crabbe (Michael Bates), who is convinced that Salt and Pepper are criminals.
When a young woman is murdered in their nightclub, everyone is in desperate need: Salt and Pepper know that Crabbe will not let this stop him from labeling them as the perpetrators. And so begins a colorful chaos of hot music, British espionage, disastrous police work, celebrity impersonations, flashy ’60s fashion and evil machinations on a nuclear submarine…
Two main characters who are in deep trouble and sometimes blame each other, and then come together inseparably – always with quick sayings on their lips: Before Mel Gibson and Danny Glover romped through the “Lethal Weapon” series as buddy cops, Sammy Davis Jr. romped. and Peter Lawford by “Salt & Pepper”!
It is clear from the spy comedy that actor, singer and dancer Sammy Davis Jr., who also played many musical instruments, was also friends with his co-star in real life: they have a familiar, friendly, teasing relationship with each other. other. Screenwriter Michael Pertwee really tries to spice things up with lots of lighthearted verbal exchanges.
And The way the lively, silly spy story escalates into nonsense has ‘Austin Powers’ vibes – simply with an authentic, rather than caricatured, 60s atmosphere. However, due to the strenuous alternation between casual musical fun, spy satire, crazy humor and the attempt to portray some action scenes in a straightforward, hard way, ‘Salt & Pepper’ comes across as unpolished:
This early work from Donner is more of a snapshot of pop culture and career remarkable and less than self-contained brilliant entertainment. But “Salt & Pepper” has long since earned its Blu-ray premiere for its musical flair, its two leads and its fashion.