Assassin

As this movie has never been released in any form, this has to be a review-by-distant-memory. A reluctant assassin (Ian Hendry from Get Carter) is hired to shoot a politician (Frank Windsor). Along the way he has a one-night stand with a young woman (Verna Harvey). It's not long, it's fairly cinematic and it hasn't been seen in public for near-on 40 years, which is a pity. Despite an explicit shooting at one point, I recall its mood being sombre (rather than Bourne-style action) but it's oddly affecting and I hope someday that it's rediscovered for a decent release. At which point I'll find if my long-distance memory was up to the job of reviewing it...

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this gritty thriller from 1973 starring the ever dependable Ian Hendry. He is the Assassin of the film, but he's haunted about his last case which didn't go well. Hendry is excellent as the loner assassin (they usually are) given the case of murdering a Government official who is suspected of passing on national secrets.

The film is set in a grey seventies type Britain, just like Get Carter from 71, and their's a kind of sadness about Hendry's character. You suspect this will not end happily for him.

British viewers will spot a few familiar faces in this enjoyable thriller, from Ray Brooks, Caroline John and Frank Windsor to Celia Imrie (probably most famous for UK comedy Dinnerladies made many years later).

With wide-angle lenses eerily framing massive buildings within a nearly vacant metropolis harboring phantom warehouses and hangars... along with sparsely furnished government offices befitting only the most uncompromising of heartless decision-making... much of the b-crime/neo-noir ASSASSIN seems equally futuristic science-fiction...

Starring GET CARTER villain Ian Hendry as the titular hired gunman, patiently awaiting his hit while really only sharing genuine dialogue and contact with Verna Harvey, so young, beautiful and easy there must be a backstabbing fatale twist under her sleeve: but ASSASSIN isn't espionage, playing thoroughly straight and efficiently offbeat as far as Hendry's gun-preparing, waiting-around-in-purgatory meantime goes...

Unfortunately there's a distracting and visually contrasting b-story involving his primary human target: a government worker who supposedly stole files harmful to mission-dispatching Control Chief Edward Judd, overall playing-out like a modern-1970's TV-episode (with TV-director Peter Crane at the helm): so there's almost equal time at a drunken convention leading to a mundane wedding party...

Overall making ASSASSIN a deliberately obscure cult-curio where Ian Hendry's central mission (that also includes two junior assassins prepping to possibly take HIM out) doesn't get enough of that intriguingly cold and meticulous, rogue and monotone anti-hero attention -- that both the title and title-character had initially promised.

This wasn't something I had heard of before but strangely enough ended up finding out about it after doing some digging on the lead's ex wife. Apparently some people rate this highly and I enjoy watching 1970's movies. I will admit to being a bit disappointed with this one however.

The story is quite straightforward, the main character is an assassin who is hired to bump off someone, however a mistake is made and instead of being told to abort the mission, another set of assassins are sent after him.

The main problem with this character study movie is there is no real character to study. Its unlikely he mutters 50 words in the entire movie and he just sort of exists and broods for the camera. We have little idea of who he is and what he is all about so you do not really care about him. Nor any other character for that matter. Its all a bit flat and boring. Even the scenes around the assassins target are boring, people seem to be perpetually drunk or hungover.

It is a well shot film and it does hook you into the end with a few twists but its actually fairly vacuous. Compared to either of The Sweeney movies this is a bore fest. Apparently the lead actors career tanked due to his alcohol problems. Little wonder.

I have the Blu-ray The Pemini Organisation box of Indicator and I had never before seen of any of the three, Hunted (1972), Assassin (1973) and Moments (1974). Watching the second one starring Ian Hendry who made a few movies but was really best known on TV but I alway liked him. Apparently he became of a bit of a drinker especially during this film. Ray Brooks was really good in the 60s especially with The Knack...and How to Get it (1965) but rather faded away. Verna Harvey was rather sweet and topless and had done a couple of films with Michael Winner in the 70s also Dixon of Dock Green (BBC TV 1955-76). Frank Windsor also did several films but again was most known on TV, especially with Z Cars (BBC TV 1962-76). As for this film there is really not too much I can say. The direction is rather arty and the story a bit clever but really not too good although everyone does their best.