My review was written in July 1987 after watching the film on Vestron video cassette.
"Gunpowder" is a destitute man's answer to James Bond. Actually, this low-budget British entry for the home video trade plays like a cheap version of Lindsay Shonteff's Bond spoofs and is made palatable by the efforts of a game cast.
Alarmingly implausible plot has Gordon Jackson tearing his hair out as a U. K. government official faced with news that lots of gold is being sold, undermining Western currencies and economics. He calls for Gunpowder, the special agent tem of Gunn (David Giliam, with an American accent) and his partner Powder (Martin Potter, swishily entertaining as an effete sidekick).
A mad scientist Dr Vacho (David Miller, wearing a gold bow tie and el) is in France, scheming to take over by virtue of his invention of causing gold to stay in liquid form without heating. He hasBritish scientist Penny Keynes (Susan Rutherford) kidnapped to help him, but the heroes rescue her and save the day. A subplot involving a pretty double agent improbably named Coffee Carradine (Debra Burton) is typically tongue-in-cheek.
Apart from a helicopter/speed boat chase, film is hurt by its inadequate budget, much of which appears to be in the form of donations or extensive product plugola such as shameless hawking of a dairy (that serves as a front fot the baddies' gold-smuggling operations). Rachel Lawrence portrays the Miss Moneypenny-styled character of this series, with the switch that she joins in he action in the final reel, commando-style.
