Furia à Bahia pour OSS 117

For a while, "OSS 117: Mission For A Killer" looks like it could be one of the very best of the 1960's Eurospy thrillers: Frederic Stafford actually makes a better James Bond-ish hero than either George Lazenby or Timothy Dalton, Mylène Demongeot is lovely, the fight scenes are often surprisingly technical (the one in a surgery room is the standout), and the production seems to be a bit more expensive than usual for the genre. Unfortunately, the film fizzles out in its last third, when the action moves from Rio to the Amazon jungle and the main villain's headquarters. The villain himself is one of the problems: everything about him is too vague, from his ultimate plan to his ultimate fate (the ending is unsatisfying). The print I saw was worn-out to the point of dis-coloration; this film needs a remastered DVD to do justice to its extensive on-location Brazilian shooting. **1/2 out of 4.

What atmosphere! What lovely girl (Mylène D)! 4,7 as an average? I must protest!! This is pure magic, the stuff that dreams are made of. Who cares about the story! This is for boys! Pure adventure, a fairy-tale! Will it ever occur on DVD? In France? This is just one film of still many, which has not reached the DVD-format yet although there are thousands of films which are so much badder than this one, which we had to endure on DVD. Probably this is due to the fact, that the people who know about these good films are becoming an extinct race.

This was director Andre Hunebelle's third crack at OSS 117, the hero of Jean Bruce's novels, and we consider it probably his best effort. OSS 117 Mission For a Killer has a lot going for it. Among them is Frederick Stafford. He's just right as the smart and tough Hubert Bonnisseur de la Bath. He has an easy air of capability about him and we were surprised to learn that this was his first film credit. Stafford, who died in a plane crash in 1979, played the same role in OSS 117 From Tokyo With Love and he made one other spy flick in the sixties; Agent 505 - Death Trap Beirut.

After four political assassinations occur inside a month, all perpetrated by drug-induced innocents, Stafford is sent to Rio to track down the source of the narcotic. Since it's Rio, we are treated to the prerequisite Carnival footage but it doesn't take up too much time. The Latin-inflected score by Michel Magne is just fine and in fact, blends well with the Rio and Bahia area locations. The film has plenty of action, good fights and intentional humor. Overall this is a superior example of the genre and well worth seeking out.

The third entry in the French OSS 117 movie series in the 1960s should have worked a lot better than it actually does. It had what looks like a decent budget, and much of the movie was shot on location in Brazil. But this attempt to emulate the world wide popular British James Bond movies falls flat for the most part. The biggest reason the movie fails is that it is really boring. The movie's story moves at a snail's pace, and you never get the feeling that lives are at stake. There is also very little action, and while there are a couple of okay hand to hand combat sequences, otherwise the action is flatly staged and directed. Even the climatic sequence feels slow and unexciting. Another reason why the movie fails to engage the viewer is the casting of Frederick Stafford as the secret agent. While some of the blame has to do with how the director told him to act, he has to share some of the blame for coming across as annoyingly smug. This is the weakest OSS 117 movie so far in the series, but I have two more entries to watch, and I won't be surprised if the quality continues to weaken as it goes along further.

Wow, so much to like here! Frederick Stafford (a Slovakian by birth, came late to acting) is lean and handsome. I count three gorgeous ladies in the cast. I watched it on the recent dvd release--print looks very good. Our story begins in Europe, but almost immediately shifts to an assignment in Brazil for OSS-117. Fine use of the Brazilian locations is made by the director. We see the famous beaches and the mountains. The movie has a very good look--nothing cheap or low-budget about it. 117 tools around in a cool burgundy rental car, a model I don't know. The film has a number of crazy, wild action scenes that are very entertaining! Two, in particular, are as good as anything in a James Bond movie. There is a big, no-holds barred finale. This is just a kick-ass good movie! I've seen a lot of Euro-spy films; I've never seen one better than this.