Mission Bloody Mary (1965)

Expected more

A Masterpiece!

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Sergio Grieco's 'Mission Bloody Mary' was the first of three Eurospy pictures to star the late Ken Clark ( no, not that Ken Clark! ) as C.I.A. agent 'Dick Molloy' a.k.a. agent 077. His first assignment is a carbon-copy of 'Thunderball' - a new type of atomic bomb ( codenamed 'The Bloody Mary' ) which can fit into a briefcase has been stolen, and Dick must recover it before it winds up in China. The Russians want it too, along with a criminal mastermind known only as 'Black Lily' ( I kid you not! ). Much running, fighting, shooting, and fornicating ensues. The chase takes Dick from Paris to Barcelona and then to Greece.Nice location filming and some of the action scenes - particularly a rooftop chase and a fight in a train clearly inspired by the one in 'From Russia With Love' - are well executed, but overall I found this a disappointment. Clark has all the charm of a battered and bruised nightclub bouncer. Worse, the script does not give him any good lines. Another reviewer wonders if he might have inspired the Leslie Nielsen character in 'Spy Hard'. I'm wondering whether or not Arthur Mullard based his performance as 'Wally Briggs' in 'Romany Jones' on him. Not much gadgetry either. Dick has a knife in his watch to help him cut through his bonds, and a device for reconstructing paper from ashes but that's about it. It never moves into first gear, playing on one level throughout. There is not even a decent villain - the 'Black Lily' turns out to be as menacing as 'Matthew Lilley' of 'Get Some In!'. As 'Dr.Elsa Freeman', Helga Line is smoking hot. The beautiful Mitsouko was seen in the opening moments of 'Thunderball' as 'Madame LaPorte'.The theme song was by Ennio Morricone, a busy chap in those days.Hard to believe but Dick returned in 'From The Orient With Fury' ( 1966 ) and 'Special Mission Lady Chaplin' ( 1967 ).

Virile blond stud Ken Clark slugs and shoots his way from Paris to Madrid and back in "Mission Bloody Mary." Directed with momentum by "Beast with a Gun" director Sergio Grieco, this fast-moving secret agent escapade qualifies as an above-average but low-budget knock-off of the fourth Sean Connery James Bond epic "Thunderball." The first installment in a three film franchise about tenacious CIA Agent Dick Molloy, who rates as quite the ladies man, puts him on the trail of a mysterious organization that calls itself the Black Lilly. They use a resourceful impostor to sneak aboard a Strategic Air Command bomber and snatch a top-secret American nuclear warhead which the Black Lilly plans to sell to the Red Chinese unless the Soviets can acquire it first in this melodramatic international Cold War saga of action and intrigue. Of course, the impostor demands a bigger pay-off after he risks his life to seize the bomb for his employers. Naturally, the villains are prepared for this treachery and they barbecue the turncoat for his perfidy. Grieco stages a nimble scramble of a chase across the rooftops in Paris, a fistfight in the hold of a freighter off the Spanish coast, and a savage knockdown drag-out brawl in a train compartment along with several surprises right up to the last five that make this a exciting as well as entertaining adventure opus. Incidentally, the film derives part of its title "Bloody Mary" from the code name for the explosive device. There is an interesting strip tease scene in Paris when a beautiful Asian circulates around a room and allows the gentlemen, usually seated with their women, to remove articles of her clothing. She lets Molloy unsnap her bra which contains a message about a future rendezvous.

It's Bond, and its active impact. This movie traces back the formula of the super spy who, at the moment, used to deliver one movie per year since the first explosion in (Dr. No - 1962).Actually, 1965 witnessed a blowup of many many Bonds : The American Bond (Our Man Flint), the Italian one (Berlino - Appuntamento per le spieanother) who was propagandized as (Better than Bond!), the old French one (Furia à Bahia pour OSS 117), an European one "Agent 077" with 2 movies already (Agente 077 missione Bloody Mary), (Agente 077 dall'oriente con furore), a Japanese one (Kokusai himitsu keisatsu: Kagi no kagi) which Woody Allen spoofed one year later through (What's Up, Tiger Lily?), another British one (The Liquidator), even an Egyptian one (Jassus, El). Not to mention the cinematic spoof (Two Mafiosi Against Goldfinger), the TV spoof (Get Smart), and TV shows with clear affection (I Spy), (The Wild Wild West). And I almost forgot The original Bond himself in (Thunderball)! WAW, remember ALL OF THAT was in 1965 alone !Some years huh ?! Who can hate some of action, international tours, Jazz music, spying gadgets, and – most of all – sexy chicks ?! And when it comes to the 1960s; they were The chicks! Ken Clark is great as a walking wall (who can smile occasionally!). He plays (Dick Malloy). (Leslie Nielsen) will make a Bond spoof 30 years later in (Spy Hard) under the name of (Dick) also. It makes you asking; maybe Agent 077 was a spoof itself ?!It's fluff. Nice for what it is. And despite all the fanatic lovers of James Bond's movies, I see that (Bloody Mary) isn't less good. Maybe not "as polished" but sure "as idiot" ! The problem with the clones is that they're always come secondly. And this movie is part poor and part traditional as well. However, I kind of enjoyed it. And maybe more than many of the original Bonds. But if you want to talk about the thing that I enjoyed more then let's talk about the one who played the immortal role of "a girl on the bed" (who I couldn't find her name anywhere!). This chick is marvelous. I'm definitely in love. She's the first thing comes to my mind whenever I remember such a movie, being its highest elements at all. She looks like Elke Sommer's twin. In fact the similarity is fabulous. Well, most of the 1960s' sexy bimbos were derived from (MM), or (BB), or both. This one being coquettish voluptuous with the short blond hair and the tipsy moves is no exception.Although her position in the scene seems similar to Sylvia Trench's attitude with Bond in (Dr. No) and the bed dalliance of Jill Masterson in (Goldfinger), but sorry.. this beauty wins. Frankly, the real similarity that must be found is the similarity between The sexy and The sixties ?!The second thing I loved is the title song. (Bloody Mary), written by Ennio Morricone and Maurizio Graf, is one of the best songs of Bond-era. Its music is really sticky yet in a good way. Believe it or not it still echoes in my mind after 12 years of the only watching, exactly like (Maurizio Graf)'s so serious voice and theatrical pronouncing while performing it. Sometimes I cool down myself with it, hence you can say that it's one of my happy songs. Na.. Naa..Naaaa. Na.. Naa..Naaaa.. Bloody MaRRRRYYYYYY. Sorry, but the tune is just haunting !With the light plot it's diverting. I got a place for it in my heart since it was the second movie I rented in my life (the first one was Hot Shots). FYI, I rented it before the whole collection of Mr. Bond. Ahh, the 1960s… Where I can find you again ?! Except on the video stores' shelves, the internet, and the TV. The real sad matter is : where to find the 1960s's chicks else these sources ?!!!!

I'm relatively new to the whole Euro-Spy movie scene and, as a result, I may have misjudged some movies in the past (i.e. I may have to go back and re-do some user comments). I've been looking at these movies as poor James Bond imitations that could never possibly live up to the real thing. But you know, I've come to realize there is a certain charm to be found in many of these movies. The Euro-Spy movies I've seen so far generally feature plenty of fight scenes, car chases, handsome leading men, beautiful women, often breathtaking locations, interesting villains, catchy music, and some real creative and original ideas. These movies were most often made on shoestring budgets with tight shooting schedules and fuzzy plots and very often featuring actors that no one would call Oscar caliber. But the most important thing about Euro-Spy movies that I've come to realize is what an absolute blast many of them are. This has got to be the most fun and entertaining overlooked genre of films out there.On to the movie at hand – Mission Bloody Mary. I've seen some Euro-Spy movies that I enjoyed more, but this is a good one. Ken Clark plays CIA Agent Dick Malloy. He's a no nonsense kind of agent who uses his fists with the best of them. In Mission Bloody Mary, Malloy is hot on the trail of a stolen nuclear device. But he's not alone. It seems that every one from the Chinese to the Russians to a mysterious character known only as the Black Lily is also after the device. Complicating matters (or at least making things more interesting) is Malloy's would-be partner Elsa Freeman (Helga Line). Malloy spends a good part of the movie and a good deal of energy trying to determine just which side she's on – his or theirs.Mission Bloody Mary may not be as over-the-top as other Euro-Spy movies, but it's still very entertaining. Clark makes an excellent lead. He's a rough and tumble kind of guy with a winning smile and a good screen presence. Like a lot of these Euro movies from the 60s, the biggest downside of Clark's character comes from the spotty dubbing. Any movie with Helga Line is better just because she's in it. Mission Bloody Mary may be one of my more favorite performances I've seen from her. The plot is solid and never gets in the way of the action. The movie moves at a good pace with very few dull spots. My biggest complaint is the Black Lily. The actual menace provided by this master criminal is disappointing to say the least. The budget was obviously tight on the film but Sergio Grieco does the best with what he's got. One of the "special effects" I really got a kick out of is the nuclear device itself. It reminds me of a 1950s era chrome juicer that kind of wiggles every time the case it's in is opened. It's silly looking alright, but for me it only adds to the movie's charm I mentioned previously.Overall, I'd call Mission Bloody Mary a solid, fun movie. I've got very few reservations in my 7/10 rating.