Sorry, this movie sucks

Admirable film.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

...because this rather mute sluggish Saint seemed like he definitely needed a vacation! My spoiler warning is for the previous film "The Saint Takes Over", so if you've seen that one, read on without fear.This was the last Saint film in which George Sanders played the title role, and I liked all of the others a great deal. The previous entry, "The Saint Takes Over", would seem in retrospect a perfect exit point for Sanders as the Saint as he solves the crime in his normal efficient manner, partakes in an extra generous helping of very dark comedy, exonerates and seals his friendship with Inspector Henry Fernack (Jonathan Hale), and comes as close to truly becoming involved in an affair of the heart as he has in any of the prior films only to lose his lady fair to a criminal's bullet. After all of that, seeing a victorious but rather forlorn Saint wander off into the darkness whistling his trademark tune would seem like a perfect ending to the George Sanders era of the saga.The problem is, in this fifth and final entry for Sanders, he isn't forthcoming with his usual wit and wisdom and seems like he almost needs to be prodded to speak, the mystery isn't that intriguing, and Palm Springs is just too sunny a place for someone like Simon Templar who seems like he should be living in the shadows and climbing through windows in the dark. Not to mention he is knocked out cold multiple times by various assailants, only to be rescued by sidekick Pearly Gates.I'd recommend this one for George Sanders and Saint Film completists only. I'd rate it as very average B mystery fare.

The Saint is in charge of $200,000 worth of stamps in "The Saint in Palm Springs," a 1941 entry into the series starring George Sanders, Wendy Barrie, Paul Guilfoyle and Jonathan Hale. Simon needs to deliver the stamps, a young woman's inheritance, safely to Palm Springs and into her hands. The formula in this one is similar to the one used in "The Saint Takes Over," though it's not quite as effective: valuables in a safe, the hand holding a gun coming through the window and murder - in this case, three of them.Sanders is wonderful as usual and in this film, he wears some casual clothes and looks terrific, so tall and broad-shouldered. Paul Guilfoyle is funny as Pearly Gates, trying to keep his nose clean while on probation. Wendy Barrie again is the female interest and again playing a woman with an aura of sadness around her."The Saint in Palm Springs" is perhaps most notable for some of the worst-looking process shots on record - the obvious filmed background while the actors are in front of it riding bikes or horses. If you think the walking scene in "All About Eve" is obvious, catch these.Mildly entertaining.

This film is very typical of the Saint films starring George Sanders--offering few major surprises but also providing sold B-movie entertainment. As usual, the Saint is his dapper and entertaining self and he's assisted by Paul Guilfoyle as "Pearly Gates", his sidekick.The film concerns trying to get some super-valuable stamps which to their rightful owner in Palm Springs. It seems that the person with the stamps in New York was killed by someone wanting the stamps for themselves. Why the stamps were smuggled out of Europe in the first place is quite interesting, though it's sad that RKO didn't want to offend the Nazis by ever mentioning that the country in question must have either been Germany or one of the nations conquered by Germany. This is because Hitler refused to allow anyone to take anything of value out of the country. Jews and other "undesireables" were forced to choose to leave with nothing or remain behind with their possessions and hope for the best. The film ALLUDED to this but never mentioned Germany or the Nazis. And, when agents of this unnamed country come to America to try to recover these stamps at any cost, once again Germany is never mentioned--even when this included murder. You must remember that this film came out just before the US entered WWII and a few film makers were still hedging their bets--not wanting to offend the Nazis. Sad, indeed, but this should help explain why this aspect of the plot is so vague. After all, it wasn't like the British or Portuguese or Swiss would send agents to another country to kill in order to recover property! The only other objection I have to the script is that with $200,000 in stamps, you'd THINK they'd come up with a better way to get them to their rightful owner than just having Simon Templer carry them all the way from New York to Palm Springs! Maybe arrange to have a police escort, or leave them in a safe in New York and then wire the heir about them--something other than to rely on one person to make it safely to California AND prevent the heir from also being murdered.Now if you ignore all this, the film is entertaining. The dialog is the usual great dialog, the plot interesting and the conclusion very good indeed. While far from perfect, it's about what you'd expect from a B-movie of the era--watchable and exciting.

George Sanders again plays "The Saint" Simon Templar, in the murder mystery series, helping to solve some crime, while whistling and trying to avoid jail time himself. (Roger Moore would play the title character in the very successful TV Series in the 1960s). Sanders, with his quick, proper British accent, is probably best known for his roles in "All About Eve", or "Rebecca". Good story, but WHY do they keep taking the valuables that everyone is after out of the hotel safe ?? It gets a little confusing later in the story on who actually has the coveted valuables, but maybe that's part of the mystery. Also some competition over Templar on the parts of Elna Johnson (Wendy Barrie) and Margaret Forbes (Linda Hayes). It would be interesting to know if ANY of it were filmed in the Palm Springs area, as there is liberal use of stills and backdrops. Pretty good story, some clever scriptwriting, but the ending is a little silly. --- note that many of the actors in the background were also used in "The Falcon" films, another Sanders mystery murder series from RKO.