UnowPriceless hyped garbage

Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Hattie I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Josephina Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

BA_Harrison Silly '60s spy caper Fathom stars Raquel Welch as curvaceous skydiving dental assistant Fathom Harvill, who becomes involved in all manner of espionage shenanigans after she is approached by Colonel Campbell (Ronald Fraser), chief of H.A.D.E.S. (Headquarters Allied Defences, Espionage & Security), and his assistant Timothy (Richard Briers), who need her help in locating the Fire Dragon, a missing H-Bomb component that is also being sought by Red Chinese agent Peter Merriwether (Anthony Franciosa). All is not as it seems, however, and Fathom soon realises that she cannot take anyone at face value.From the opening sequence, in which the camera lingers lovingly on Welch's body as she carefully packs her parachute, it is abundantly clear that director Leslie H. Martinson's main priority is to exploit his sex symbol star's impressive physique; it certainly isn't telling a coherent tale, the twisting plot for Fathom requiring far too much concentration for a frivolous spy romp with the constant distraction of such a gorgeous lead. Still, with Welch slipping into a variety of sexy outfits for her undercover activities, including a dress that is like a red rag to a bull, and a green bikini guaranteed to impress, the film is never a chore, I suppose.

RavenGlamDVDCollector I am often dismayed when a movie starts with a title sequence showing a drab black background and then those white lettering that seems to last for hours. This one kicks off with a glorious establishing shot of its leading lady, instantly telling everybody that they are watching (arguably, but quite likely) the most beautiful girl in the world (at that time, at least) by showing us her lightly- clad body lying prone as she is busying herself... hammering that thing into the ground? Why??? Do I care??? Those long, long legs... barefoot... nice slinky hands, cute feet... the face that must have meant EVERYTHING to men's dreams back then...As RavenGlamDVDCollector, I have obtained several of her movies, most notable is HANNIE CAULDER, which isn't a good movie, not by a long shot really, but there are some highly memorable scenes in which she is just perfect, and MYRA BRECKENRIDGE, which is very unusual, with a shaky premise, and is mostly claptrap. But it featured the trailer* of this one, with that self-same leggy scene as its opening shot as well, and I took one look and quickly couldn't really care less about MYRA BRECKENRIDGE, had to, had to have FATHOM.I could of course quickly judge that FATHOM is equally far, far away from being a good movie. But Raquel's built-for- bikini figure makes up for any other on-screen shortcomings. Would I watch a 1967 movie with an unlikely plot had some serious actress of that time been featured? No of course not. But Raquel's got the kind of curves that are in considerable danger of becoming extinct. Nowadays girls with this kind of figure are invariably only surgically- "enhanced" and that is oh-so-creepy with the scars and everything to prove it. Raquel back then is representative of not only the phenomenon that she was, but of a whole bygone era, a time when purity still meant something, when there was more pride taken in one's person, instead of the sacrileges nowadays committed so flippantly without thought.*trailer has the very best glam shots in it, makes a fine little capsule, I had my doubts whether the movie could surpass it (of course that leggy scene at the beginning is far extended in the opening titles of the flick)So, I don't even pretend to care about this movie's story-line, hell, it's a mess that gets worse every second it meanders in its lopsided way, hoo boy... but all-natural Raquel is a feast for the eyes. And there is a lot of her on show, plenty of times... Guys, I don't have to say anymore, do I?

James Hitchcock In 1965 a then little-known young actress named Raquel Welch auditioned for the part in "Thunderball" that eventually went to Claudine Auger. Raquel never achieved her ambition to become a Bond Girl, but two years later, and by then a rising starlet, she went one better. She became a female Bond."Fathom" is a typical example of the sort of spy comedy-thrillers that were popular in the sixties. It shares its continental European setting with the likes of "The Prize" and "Charade". Raquel plays Fathom Harvill, a member of the American national sky-diving team, who finds herself at the centre of an espionage drama while on a visit to Spain. (We are offered a number of contradictory, and increasingly surreal, explanations for the heroine's unusual Christian name, without it ever being established which one is correct).The plot is a complex and confusing one; even Raquel's co-star Richard Briers punned that he could not fathom it. At the centre of the action is a mysterious object named the "Fire Dragon", which may be either a triggering device for atomic bombs or a stolen artwork. In search of the Fire Dragon are Colonel Campbell and his sidekick Timothy Webb who may be either members of the British secret services or international art thieves and Peter Merriwether and his attractive female assistant Jo-May, who may be either private detectives or agents for Red China. (Ignore the cast list which names Jo-May as a Major in the KGB, which was of course a Russian agency rather than a Chinese one). Somewhere in the middle is Sergei Serapkin, a villainous Russian tycoon who has designs both on the Fire Dragon and on the lovely Fathom.Even though a few people end up dead, the mood is light-hearted, and even one of the corpses manages to rise, Lazarus-like, from the dead. The film's main asset is the presence of Raquel Welch herself, the most beautiful Hollywood sex symbol of the late sixties and seventies. (As most of her early films, she spends much of the time in a bikini). I cannot, however, agree with the reviewer who said that she was at the peak of her sexiness- Raquel's sexiness took the form of a plateau rather than a peak, as she remained as attractive throughout her thirties and forties as she was in her twenties. Her acting skills are never seriously tested, but she succeeds in making Fathom a likable heroine as well as a sexy one. The film does not make a great deal of sense, but then it was never intended to. It succeeds in being what it was intended to be- slick, glossy, glamorous and entertaining nonsense. 6/10

23skidoo-4 Fathom was released in 1967 during a period when the James Bond films spawned a slew of ripoffs and spoofs. Some, like James Coburn's Derek Flint series, managed to gain some success while being entertaining. Many, like the very poor Modesty Blaise and even worse Casino Royale, bombed and rightfully so.Somewhere in the middle is Fathom, a lightweight caper comedy starring Raquel Welch that, for some reason, has remained undeservedly obscure for more than 30 years. Welch, who sadly never got a chance to be a true Bond girl (she lost out on the chance to co-star in Thunderball), demonstrates that 007 clearly got the worse end of the deal by letting her go. This could be the sexiest of her 1960s-era films and her performance, while hardly Oscar-worthy, is very appealing. More the pity that she wasn't cast as Modesty Blaise -- she might have made that other spoof worthwhile.I won't try to detail the plot. It's impossible to do so without spoilers and there are so many twists and turns that you won't know who is doing what to whom until literally the last 5 minutes. The plot is perhaps a little TOO complex, and indeed there are a number of characters who are lost in the shuffle. But everyone - including, most importantly, Welch - seems to be having a good time, and there is a refreshing minimum of violence which is somewhat rare for the time.Compared to the other muddled spoofs of the era, Fathom isn't that overly hard to ... fathom. If you get confused, just give your brain a rest and stare at Welch for a few minutes that you'll be right as rain in no time!