La lettre du Kremlin

When this film was released it used what I thought was a new technique to convey a foreign language spoken by the characters. The film is part suspense, part thriller. Far better than any James Bond flick and by far better than the Spy Who Came in from the Cold. It keeps moving with twists to keep the viewer on his/her seat edge wondering who is who and who can be trusted. Why this hasn't been released on video is a complete mystery to me. All this time I've been thinking that every print must have been destroyed in one of the many studio archive fires a few years back.

Loosely adapted from the novel by Noel Behn, based upon his experiences in the Army Counter-Intelligence Corps, this is a complex, some might say convoluted, chilling and low key espionage drama which fared badly at the box office due no doubt to its being far too grim for those who had spent the 1960's lapping up James Bond movies and their numerous spin-offs.

Despite a few individually powerful scenes and excellent performances all round, notably those of Richard Boone, Orson Welles, Max von Sydow and Bibi Andersson, the film lacks, for this viewer at any rate, the elusive, magic alchemy by which everything comes together.

Director John Huston was drawn to the story by its depravity, finding it 'shocking, immoral, vicious and cynical.' He was absolutely right of course but he failed to realise that there is only so much of that sort of thing the average filmgoer can take in the space of two hours.

The Kremlin Letter is the most intense spy drama, with the tightest script and the very best characterizations ever to appear in this peculiarly appealing genre.

John Huston (who plays one scene himself, masterfully) somehow assembled the incredible cast, which reads like a who's who of its time. This was one of the great Nigel Green's last roles, and his performance is typical of all the others in the cast, smooth and riveting.

Barbara Parkins is at her peak, and is more alluring than you would believe. Much hotter than you've ever seen her. Wow.

Critics say this movie is slow and hard to follow. Perhaps they watched it at a cocktail party. It keeps you on your toes and you do have to pay attention, but that's how a good spy movie should be. This ain't James Bond Spoofs A Bad Guy!

If you like a good story filled with intrigue, double-crossing, revenge, sudden deadly action, plot twists and just plain evil bad guys, watch The Kremlin Letter.

The film concerns an ex-official called Charles Ron (Patrick O'Neal) is recruited in an underground spies ring . They must retrieve at whatever cost a letter that a Cia agent signed by error in a document which promises American assistance to Russia and attack to China if this nation gets nuclear weapon . The group is formed by a priest (Dean Jagger) , a beautiful girl (Barbara Parkins) with ability as safe-cracker , an unscrupulous man called ¨the Whore¨ (Nigel Green) , an uncanny and astute spy (Richard Boone) and even an old drag (George Sanders) . They go inside Russia to find the mysterious letter . They'll confront a cunning head of Soviet Politburó (Orson Welles) and an evil KGB agent (Max Von Sidow) whose wife (Bibbi Andersson) falls in love with the protagonist Ron .

The film has suspense , tension , emotion , mystery and specially in its final a little bit of violence . Although the picture has various ingredients for entertainment , the screenplay is confused and complex , the plot has gaps and results to be sometimes embarrassing and absurd . This movie was made and released about four years after its source novel of the same name by Noel Behn was first published in 1966 and this was the first ever adaptation for cinema of a work by Behn . This exciting picture was filmed in four countries: Finland, Italy, Mexico, and the USA ; the scenes set in Moscow were shot in Helsinki, Finland . A number of characters in this movie are known by code-names , these include "The Highwayman" (Dean Jagger); "The Whore" (Nigel Green); "The Warlock" (George Sanders); "Erector Set" (Niall MacGinnis) ; "The Negress" (Vonetta McGee); "The Priest" (Marc Lawrence); "The Dentist" (Victor Beaumont) and "The Puppet Maker" (Raf Vallone) . The film belongs to spy sub-genre developed during the cold war and its maxim representation are John LeCarre's novels adapted to cinema in various films such as: ¨The spy who came in from the cold¨ (by Martin Ritt with Richard Burton), ¨Deadly Affair¨(Sidney Lumet with Maximilian Schell) and Russia House (Fred Schepisi with Sean Connery) . The star studded casting is important with known international actors but with a blurred writing they appear acting with no sense . The film was regularly directed by John Huston (who acts in a very secondary role) . Rating : Mediocre , though entertaining .

I can't believe anyone would not think this is a 4 star movie, great performances, complex plot and no "James Bond" gadgetry, this is really good stuff. The film has a grainy quality that's perfect for the time and subject matter. The characters are real, human, flawed and believable. In a time where most "thrillers" insult our basic reasoning, this presents a picture of all the human foibles that allow people to be manipulated in various fashions. Similar in feel and texture to " The Spy Who Came in From The Cold " this movie offers some unique performances from some "big names" in unusual roles. The ending is filled with some twists and turns that make this movie well worth seeing.