Director: Robert Parrish
Writer: Judd Bernard
Composer: Roy Budd
Starring: Michael Caine, Anthony Quinn, James Mason, Maruice Ronet, Alexandra Stewart, Maureen Kerwin, Catherine Rouvel, Marcel Bozzuffi, Patrick Floersheim
More info: IMDb
Tagline: They Live the Sweet Life But They Play a Game of Sudden Death!
Plot: When a US intelligence agent is unable to bring a ruthless drug baron to justice, he resorts to hiring a contract killer. But the man he is put in contact with turns out to be an old friend.
My rating: 6.5/10
Will I watch it again? No.
Hmmmm. Sometimes you watch movies only for the cast regardless of the quality. This one has a great leading cast and they're fun to watch (especially Caine) but it's a flawed film. The pacing is good as are the location, chases and the overall plot but none of these aspects are very good. It's entertaining. I like how close Deray (Caine) gets to his target, Brizard (Mason), and how he's playing the long game. The thing I thought that could've been improved upon was having Caine hold back a little. He plays the character so care-free and free of consequence in killing folks, plus his charismatic gleeful demeanor, that he comes across more of a James Bond-lite figure which, while kind of fun to watch, it seemed like the picture called for someone that's a bit more gritty. He also gets away with a lot of deaths and it's shocking that he's not accountable for any of them. Then there's the finale with how easily and impossible it was for Ventura (Quinn) to do what he did and slip away without anyone the wiser. Other than that it was a pretty fun time and it's certainly worth a look for fans of these cats. You might feel a little hungry for something edgier at the end but you wouldn't have wasted your time.
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