Un certain Monsieur Bingo

After another one of their secret agents is killed in Morocco, the American government contracts the services of a highly skilled mercenary by the name of "Jimmy Merrill" (Stewart Granger) to find out the identity of the people behind it. To that end, upon arriving at the airport in Tangier, Merrill meets with an inexperienced Norwegian agent named "Erik" (Giulio Bosetti) who has been assigned to help him gather some leads with the deceased agent's mistress named "Betty Lou" (Manolita Barraso) being of particular interest. Not only that, but during the course of their investigation, the deceased agent's wife "Evelyn" (Daniela Bianchi) also becomes involved. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was a fairly interesting cloak-and-dagger Eurospy film which benefited from a solid performance by Stewart Granger. Additionally, having several attractive actresses like Giorgia Moll (as Erik's assistant named "Edith") along with both Manolita Barraso and Daniela Bianchi definitely helped the scenery as well. On that note, however, I must say that I was somewhat disappointed with the lack of screen time given to Daniela Bianchi who, I believe, should have had a much more prominent role. But that's just my opinion. Be that as it may, although this film pales in comparison to the James Bond films made during this time, I suppose it was adequate for the time spent, and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

There is nothing good about this film. The catalogue of all its sordid B-class shortcomings would be endless. Even the music fails completely in desperately trying to add some romantic feeling in this cold-blooded orgy of superficial gangster nonsense. Stewart Granger is fairly good, he always is, but it is sad to see him in such an almost humiliating performance in comparison with all his splendid earlier films. Daniela Bianchi was the Bond bride in "From Russia with Love", and here, like most Bond brides in most of those films, she does not survive, but she is the only comfort in the film for sore eyes, that find no other beauty in Tangiers, which should be an exotíc enough magnet, but here you see nothing of it, just hoodlums and murders and an intrigue growing the more boring the more complicated it gets. Sorry, I never gave much for all those Bond movies, with some exceptions, but to make a travesty of all the worst and cheapest of them just isn't worth while.

In 1960s , Tangier , Morocco, an international crime syndicate is hired to eliminate Western secret agents. When a U. S. agent is killed by the syndicate, the U. S. government decides to send-in secret agent named Jimmy Merrill (Stewart Granger) . He's a veteran US Secret Service agent must thwart the covert conspiracy of an enemy spy network that threatens the world's safety. The government doesn't know who's running the syndicate but a certain Oscar Rubeck (Peter van Eyck) is on their radar. Rubeck is a former Nazi intelligence officer who missed after WW2 and surfaced later, during the Cold War, as an assassin-for-hire. The U. S. government fears that Communist interests hired Rubeck to take down all Western agents in Morocco, thus paving the way for a Communist takeover. Freelance agent Jimmy Merrill arrives in Morocco, under the code-name Bingo, and he's instructed to work with two Norwegian intelligence officers, Erik (Giulio Bosetti) and Edith (Giorgia Moll) . The turning point in the film is Norwegian agent Erick Olafsson becoming the catalyst for Merrill's moral epiphany. Granger is actually looking in the mirror as Olafsson forces him realise he is not the free spirited rule breaker he imagines but a cheap hired hand willing to do anything for cash. Merrill's task is to locate and capture Rubeck (Peter Van Eyck) , interrogate him and hand him over to the Norwegians who want Rubeck in Oslo to criminal court for war crimes. The Norwegian government suspects that Rubeck is responsible for the 1956 bombing of a U. N. airplane that was carrying the Norwegian mediators to the peace negotiations regarding the Suez Crisis. The most dangerous of all is Rubeck's trusted underling Alexej (Wolf Hillinger) who was found and adopted as a young boy by Rubeck during the war in Poland . Next we cut to Betty Lou (Maria Granada), who is a strip tease artist and who has a bullfight projected over her body during her erotic night club dance. Then things go wrong and the happenings result in fateful consequences. In a world of heartless espionage, the need for redemption is crucial !.

An acceptable Eurospy production, which stars Stewart Granger as John "Bingo" Merrill, a roguish agent for hire. The film is passable, but it won't be everybody's cup of tea. Here stands out the peculiar role Bingo well played by Stewart Granger , he is a cold-hearted agent, and as such it's hard to cheer for a character you don't like. But he is human and does make mistakes. It's one of these mistakes, involving Evelyn Bressart performed by Bond girl Daniela Bianchi that will turn some people off his character and ultimately off the film. An explosive spy thriller stars veteran Stewart Granger , he's a rogue secret agent , a freelance mercenary and a dangerous man in a dangerous assignment . Some of the opening scenes appeared to be very similar to scenes in a few Bond movies. The spy film genre is a strange sub-genre that seems at times to feed upon it self. Routine setup shows us the adventures of the secret agent Jimmy Merrill going after a megalomaniac enemy , including a lot of action , crossfire and silly fights with no much sense. Jimmy Merrill reluctantly teams up with two Norwegian allies , all of them are fighting against the odds. The fact that Merrill's epiphany happens late in the film maybe considered a problem in maintaining the allegiance of the audience but the moral shift is more dramatic and a huge relief when it comes. His nemesis is nicely acted by Peter Van Eyck as a well trained , financed and prepared spy killer who uses all kinds of nasty means to deal with enemies. Requiem For A Secret Agent is a decent Euro-spy movie and I think it is well worth seeking out, but only if you are prepared to watch a spy film, where the hero is not suave and sophisticated, and on occasion treats the female characters quite disrespectfully, that can be a reflection on real life, I am sure you have met people who don't treat women right, and this starring doesn't relation well to the women , including slapping and hitting. Strangely enough, the script often resembles more of a straight cold war thriller than a 'Bond' knock-off, with the starring suffering crosses and double-crosses and cat and mouse chases , solely for the reason of hiding their real purports. Adding to the decent and elegant look there's a lot of charming actors tailoring their roles : the always excellent Peter Van Eyck , Wolfgang Hillinger and Granger all look terrific. The female leads also are super stylish : spy queen Daniela Bianchi as gorgeous as ever and sultry María Granada who is performing in front of a projected image of a bullfight. And being a Spain/Italian/German co-production appearing ordinary secondaries from Spain : Beni Deus, Manolita Barroso as María Granada, Luis Induni , Enrique Navarro ; Italy : Giulio Bosetti , Mirella Pamphili , Gianni Rizzo. Mention should also be made of Giorgia Moll and Giulio Bosetti who play Edith and Erick, the only innocents in the tale. They are the counterpoint to Merrill's cynical bravado and domineering attractive.

Special mention for the enjoyable musical score composed and arranged by maestros Antonio Pérez Olea and Piero Umiliani at their best with the jangling guitar spy jazz that perfected for this movie . As the film progresses the strutting groovy score becomes more out of control much like the characters on screen. Colorful cinematography by Carlo Carlini , using the bright light of the Moroccan locations and the full width of the 2:35 aspect ratio, though a perfect remastering being necessary . Including various filming locations in Marrakech, Morocco , Tangier, Morocco , Incir De Paolis, Rome, Lazio, Italy . The motion picture was compellingly directed by recently deceased Sergio Sollima , he often choreographed the fight scenes and shootouts himself because he wanted each character to have a fighting style tailored to their personality .Sergio Sollima directs with an assured hand. Nothing is rushed but when the action comes it is realistic and dramatic. He later refined this style in his classic Eurocrime films "Città violenta" and "Revolver". Sergio Sollima's direction is well crafted, here he's less cynical and more inclined toward violence and action enough . Sergio wrote and directed all kinds of genres such as Pirate films as ¨ Sandokan ¨ and the ¨ Black Corsario ¨ ; Peplum : ¨Rocha¨ , "Spartacus and the Ten Gladiators" , "Triumph of the Ten Gladiators" , ¨Ursus¨ "Goliath Against the Giants" ; Euro-spy : "Requiem for a Secret Agent" , "Agent 3S3: Hunter from the Unknown" , ¨Tanger 67¨ ; being especially known for his ¨Cuchillo trilogy¨ : ¨Run Cuchillo run¨, ¨Face to Face¨ , ¨The big Gundown¨. And this ¨Revolver¨ is essential and indispensable watching for Oliver Reed fans . This is a satisfyingly and thrilling Euro-spy flick that avid fans of the genre will love .

While this movie can't be considered a classic due to its low-budget and uneven acting, it does have an appeal for me, in some strange way. Stewart Granger is all smiles and morally corrupt in his actions, but there's something about his character that makes you wonder where he originated from and what set him on the path to being the bastard that he is at an older age, compared to his younger compatriots. When he does unleash that smile upon hearing about an offer of more money to do a job, you can't help but laugh at his smarmy style.

He's like the dark side of espionage...something the genre of spy films rarely recognizes as a possibility, in that any man in such a world doesn't need any morals, he just needs finances to get the job done, whatever it may be. This is also something verbally acknowledged by those who hire him for the job early in the film. They don't want an upstanding citizen or agent...his actually being a bastard is what makes him right for the task, because those he faces are just as bad!

The title, while connected to events in the film, is also saying something about the whole genre of spy films at that time; that these men, being a Bourne, a Bond or whomever, can't always be doing the right thing for the right reasons, and that such films as a whole are more often about assassins and men of violence than those of noble and misunderstood heroes. (and yet, there is a touch of nobility and honor to his character in the film, too)

Maybe that's reading more into what is essentially a low-budget take on the popular espionage films of the 60's, but I think the film has a better script, and some decent enough dialogue, to make it hard to ignore completely. And Stewart Granger is a delight to watch as a gray-haired, older anti-hero spy-for-hire.

Stewart Granger's last foray into the spy genre opens with a stripper act where a bullfight film is projected onto a girl's body as she seductively removes her clothing. I can't help but see this as a metaphor for the general attitude of the film in treating women as appliances, or worse. Of Granger's three spy films made in the 60's (the other two being Red Dragon and Target For Killing), this is the most violent and misogynist.

The film wants to be a morality play but the lack of conviction for such things shows through too often to be taken seriously. It's a pretty tight little espionage thriller but the hidden agendas of the filmmakers make it clear we're in the hands of the less capable. What could have been a cynical look at the meaninglessness of politics at this level, and it certainly tries to be that, the film instead reveals itself as a showcase of redneck attitudes and poor judgment. Adding insult to injury is the fact the score by no less than Piero Umiliani is not up to the standard we have come to expect.