THE AMBUSHERS (1967)
Article #826 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 6-19-2003
Posting Date: 11-16-2003
Directed by Henry Levin
Featuring Dean Martin, Senta Berger, Janice Rule

Secret agent Matt Helm is forced to ogle many women in their underwear, and can only defend himself by an endless barage of double entendres.

Title check: I suppose the ambushers are the ones who captured the flying saucer in the opening scene. The title song would have you believe they are the many women lying in wait for Matt Helm.

Let’s face it; once I started covering James Bond movies, it was only a matter of time before the Matt Helm movies started popping up. These movies feature Dean Martin as Matt Helm. He meets women in various stages of undress. We get lots of closeups of their figures. Matt Helm then says double entendres. He has a fight with some vague bad guys. Then he meets more women in various stages of undress, and delivers more double entendres. When his female companion tries to come on to him at one point, he says “In broad daylight?”, and she says “What’s wrong with a broad in daylight?” (Warning: this is one of the BETTER jokes). Dean Martin drinks lots of beer, and blows smoke into the faces of a firing squad, the members of which then break out in fits of laughter. He then ogles more women in various states of undress and responds with more double entendres. Etc. Etc. Etc.

The Matt Helm series is for people who consider the James Bond series too arty, too pretentious, too subtle, too British, too witty and too action-packed. Either that, or they’re for people who are satisfied with hearing endless double entendres while looking at beautiful women in various states of undress. Personally, I can take that for about ten minutes before I’m ready to move on. The movie runs 102 minutes. You do the math.