I Deal In Danger (1966)

Too much of everything

Sorry, this movie sucks

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

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

This is really just an FYI that this 1966 American spy "film" is actually a compilation of the first four ~25' episodes of a total of seventeen of the on-season series, "Blue Light, that aired on ABC-TV from January 12 to May 18, 1966: 101, Jan. 12, 1966, The Last Man 102, Jan. 19, 1966 Target, David March 103, Jan. 26, 1966 The Fortress Below 104, Feb. 02, 1966 The Weapon Within The negative critics really offer no legitimate criticism in view of how FAR worse much of today's stuff is.

This film is based on a 1960s TV series (Blue Light), and it shows. The movie (and its music) had a real "TV" feel, meaning that at times it felt kind of cheesy. For example, the big props in the underground scene looked like they were slapped together with plastic and glue (because they were). Then the American kills a man by putting his neck in an arm-lock for five seconds. And the main characters spoke of their plans in loud voices with the enemy just a few feet away. However, the movie as a whole wasn't too bad - it's still worth a watch.The one thing missing was the hundreds of starving forced-laborers, who in reality would have been working in the subterranean facility.

I Deal in Danger is not really a movie, but a couple episodes of a television show called "Blue Light" that were edited together. The show told the story of an Allied secret agent named David March who has defected to the German side. March has, for the most part, been accepted by the Nazi high command. In reality, March is a double agent still working with the Allies in their fight against Hitler and Nazi Germany. Because of its multi-episode television origin, I Deal in Danger features two distinct plot lines. The first, and probably my favorite, finds a skeptical SS officer (Werner Peters) looking to test March's loyalty to the Third Reich. Another British agent who wants to switch sides and work for Germany gives the SS officer his opportunity. What the SS officer doesn't know is that the Englishman is also a double agent. The second plot thread sees March get reassigned to a secret underground German weapons facility. March must convenience a female scientist to help him destroy the facility.Overall, I quite enjoyed I Deal in Danger. The film is well paced (any boring bits from the television show were most likely edited out) and reasonably entertaining throughout. There are a few surprises along the way such as the scientist who helps March being allowed to die in the explosion. It's not your standard happy ending. I've never thought much of Robert Goulet, but off the top of my head, this is probably one of the better things I've ever seen him in. Goulet is just rugged and cool enough to pull it off. And I really appreciate the fact that Goulet was allowed to play March completely straight without a hint of irony or comedy. The supporting cast is surprisingly strong with actors like Peters providing Goulet with an excellent nemesis. My biggest compliant is that Goulet's character is allowed to be something of a superman. There's one instance in the movie where March single handedly breaks into a Nazi prison to free a scientist. He seems to know exactly where the scientist is being held, he knows exactly where the guards are, and he knows exactly where to place his explosives. Such a mission would have been impossible. Finally, although there was obviously a decent budget involved, I Deal in Danger never overcomes its television roots. I'm not sure I know how to put this, but I Deal in Danger has a look and feel to it that just screams 60s American television. Until I watched I Deal in Danger, I had never even heard of "Blue Light". It's not that odd considering I was only three years-old when it aired and there were only 17 episodes. Now, however, I would love to see someone bring the show to DVD. I know I'd buy it.

This newly released "compilation" of the 60's show "Blue Light" is well worth a look if you grew up on 60's TV like I did. Combat, Rat Patrol, 12 o'clock high, if you loved those shows you'll enjoy this film/series. Robert Goulet was a singer in the mold of Michael Bolton in the 60's (along with his annoying wife Carol Lawrence) when they put him in this show. Surprisingly he is the best part of it. He's suave, and tough, and believable,(think Pierce Brosnon in the Bond films) and it's hard to figure out why he didn't take off in TV/Movies after this short lived show. It's obvious the producers were trying to capitalize on the Bond craze at the time when they made this series and maybe it just got lost in the shuffle. The story is pretty good; the production values not bad for 60's TV; and if they made more episodes I'd want to see them. Check this film out. 50kmwalk