Ipcress, archivo confidencial

Intriguing espionage drama, based on the Len Deighton novel.

Decent, reasonably complex, plot. Not 100% watertight, but the holes aren't big.

Solid direction by Sidney J Furie. Movie moves along at a decent pace and he builds the tension well. Does miss a few beats though. Some scenes are quite flat and almost pointless.

Good final few scenes which make it all worthwhile and bring everything together.

Good performance by Michael Caine in the lead role. Not your average spy - he is almost the anti-James Bond. Resourceful, but slovenly and, well, human. Seemed much more like a real agent would be than James Bond.

Good support from Nigel Green and Guy Doleman.

Although conceived and produced by Harry Salzman and scored by John Barry, this is a film which deliberately positions itself miles away from the up until this time familiar James Bond espionage ethos. Palmer is a short sighted, class-ridden, form-signing petty criminal, co-opted into the spy service to avoid a year in jail. He lives in a bedsit and wakes up with an alarm call and not a stunning sexual conquest. Unlike Bond too, he operates in an environment which is recognisable and totally believable: big echoing offices ruled by "passed over Majors", where filling out forms is as important as tedious leg work and the idea of a Aston Martin as a company car would be ridiculous. The glamorous stereotypes of 007 have been replaced by the grinding, self effacing reality of the civil service, with its believable day to day grind. In short Ipcress has roots in the contemporary wave of 60's kitchen-sink drama, and not garish Bond fantasies.

This is a film taking a fresh look at what has passed for a spy film before. It's fitting then that a lot of the imagery revolves around sight and seeing. Palmer's glasses are an obvious symbol of imperfect vision (exemplified by a couple of 'blurred vision' special effects in the film). The camera in turn plays avant garde tricks, shooting alternately through the crowded window of a phone booth, through glasses, ornaments and other objects and so on. This is a film in which vision, or *comprehension* - deciphering 'Ipcress' or identifying 'Albania' as really London, for instance - is finally of paramount importance. Palmer has to both see, then understand, the web that surrounds him before he identifies the traitor. At the most basic level this 'knowing' extends to his own self, through the psychological trauma he undergoes.

Class, too, is an important element. Whereas the public school educated Bond would be at home conversing with Palmer's superiors, Palmer is the working class staff man, insubordinate perhaps and cocky, but one who ultimately knows his place. Even the main villain is fairly aristocratic. This makes Palmer's final choice of shot all the more relishable. In the class-ridden snobbery of the secret service it proves to be one of the elite who is suspect and must be killed. Palmer is the better man - and not just morally either: his appreciation of Mozart ('proper' Mozart, too, not the appalling bandstand variety pushed on him by Daulby) and fine cooking, marks him out as a man of taste, in contrast to the surrounding snobbery and elitism.

This theme of class, as well as the locations chosen for 'The Ipcress File' mark it out as a very British spy film - possibly the best one ever in contrast to the Bond cycle, which represented an attempt to create a deliberate trans-Atlantic product. One parallel serves to illustrate this difference: Bond has an American agent friend (Felix Leiter), an occasional minor character in the series. In contrast Palmer shoots an American agent dead by mistake and they tail him in revenge, while another dies in his flat. There is no camaraderie here, and the snug special relationship is nowhere in sight.

Over the years 'The Ipcress File' has lost none of its edge (with the possible exception of the dated 60's psychedelia which confronts Palmer in his torture chair) or punch. Utterly compulsive as a spy drama, it remains one of Caine and Furie's best films, an example of a contemporary fresh approach that still remains a classic.

THE IPCRESS FILE covers familiar territory of a Cold War spy thriller; it contains an incomprehensible plot, a fair share of untrustworthy characters, and a subject (The Ipcress File) which is never satisfactorily explained. Suffice to say that Harry Palmer (Michael Caine) discovers the cause of all the trouble, but only after a considerable degree of suffering at the hands of a torturer (Frank Gatliff).

What makes Sidney J. Furie's film so memorable is its shooting-style (photography by Otto Heller). It makes use of the basic shot- reverse shot sequence, but every frame is partially obscured by an object, or person placed close to the camera; we seldom see the characters' faces in full profile. This strategy helps to create an atmosphere of menace, where nothing is quite as it seems, and every mission suggested to Harry by his two bosses Dalby (Nigel Green) and Ross (Guy Doleman) appears to have ulterior motives behind it that Palmer remains blissfully unaware of. Palmer himself retains his integrity throughout, even if he perceives himself as something of a rebel within the Secret Service.

THE IPCRESS FILE is a direct antithesis of the Bond canon of films, also popular at the time of release. It is set in a grimy, rain- sodden London full of gray buildings and dark interior; no exotic locations for this spy. The most colorful aspect of the mise-en- scene are the big old-fashioned Routemaster buses that drive up and down familiar streets - Piccadilly, Whitehall, Oxford Street. Palmer himself lives in a shabby apartment; his one concession to the so-called 'Swinging Sixties' spirit is an ability to cook, but no one, not least his colleague Jean (Sue Lloyd) seems especially interested.

The film inevitably incorporates some of the sexist attitudes of the time - for Palmer all women are "birds," and they do not become actively involved in any espionage activity. The film is a very masculinist piece, with legions of actors dressed in long coats, trilby hats and dark suits. Palmer himself has a good sartorial sense, but even he adopts the same uniform, especially when in pursuit of the enemy.

Michael Caine, in a pre-ALFIE role, shows all the cockiness characteristic of his youthful period, when he really believed he could challenge the status quo. Whether he succeeds or not is very much open to debate.

London, in the early 60s, was captured by Sidney Furie in all its splendor. One of the best things in the movie is the fantastic camera work by its cinematographer, Otto Heller. The director and his cameraman place the camera as a sort of "peeping Tom" device. Mr. Furie and Mr. Heller takes us along to spy on Harry Palmer in this satisfying adaptation of Len Deighton's novel. The musical score by John Barry is another element that works well with one is witnessing.

Harry Palmer came alive the way Michael Caine played him. Palmer is a man from humble origins, in sharp contrast with the rest of the people he works for, who are clearly highly educated and who look down on this man because he is different. Mr. Caine is versatile actor whose take on Harry was right on the money. We can't do anything but admire him for making this man so approachable and believable.

The film was blessed with an excellent cast. Nigel Green, who plays Major Dalby makes his character come true with little effort. So does Guy Doleman as Col. Ross. Sue Lloyd, Gordon Jackson, and the rest of the actors give amazing performances.

"The Ipcress File" shows us what London looked like in the sixties. It hasn't changed that much, but all the exteriors used in the film is a joy to watch. That speaks volumes of Otto Heller who had an eye for what to photograph, as everything fit nicely into the context of the film.

When eminent British scientist Dr Radcliffe is kidnapped off a train in broad daylight, the Secret Service make the super spy known only as 'Bluejay' their number one priority with Radcliffe being the 17th scientist to go missing. With the boost in manpower, Harry Palmer finds himself taken off surveillance duties and put into a new unit under Major Dalby to find Radcliffe and capture Bluejay. Never one for following the rules, Palmer struggles to keep up to date with his paperwork while trying to make progress in the mission – the bureaucracy making his job as hard as the opposite side. However soon he makes progress and finds himself drawn into a deadly web involving treachery, American agents and a plan to 'brain drain' the UK and weaken its powers.

Although it has dated in some regards, The Ipcress File stands up well as a sort of answer to the Bond ideal of the British Secret Service. While it is much more fun to have a series of slick action moves and fantasy plots, this film's focus on structure and managers is much more realistic (one assumes) and also allows for a solid, if unspectacular, story but also some amusing digs at the civil service. The plot moves slowly but is still an engaging thriller even if it slowly unfolds rather than explodes along – while this may put off many who prefer things to go 'bang' every few minutes I found it to be enjoyable and quite engaging. On top of this the film pokes fun at the UK civil service with a great deal of relish (but not sticking out as doing so). I have worked in a council and a Government funded charity and can confirm that this aspect of the film has not dated – the UK still is very much to do with paperwork and having all the forms filled in correctly, for example – tried to fill in any tax forms lately?! The film makes good sport of this aspect of Palmer's job and shows the fussy management structure of his department as being almost as much of a threat to national security as Bluejay himself is!

The cast is pretty good but it is Michael Caine's film all the way. He is suitably acerbic in his wit and has the browbeaten look many of us get when we feel we are being stopped from 'doing our jobs' by having to spend too much time filling in forms! However, while also still making this point, Caine still makes Palmer effective enough for the audience to get behind him and still see him as a spy and the fact that Caine always brings his own screen presence to the role helps as well. Support is also good from Green, Doleman, Gatliff and Jackson but Caine is the one you'll remember.

Overall this is not a great film but it is a good one. When viewed alongside other spy thrillers this one will appear very slow but I still found the story to be enjoyable if low key. The portrayal of the civil service as one of paperwork and managers adds a nice layer to a story that is already pretty good in its own right. Not to everyone's taste and it helps if you can appreciate Palmer's situation but it is a good espionage tale that rewards patience with a good story that is happily lacking in Hollywood excesses and empty spectacle.