Matchless

Donald Pleasance (in a pre-Bond appearance), used ROBOTS to serve food in his castle. This was in 1967 and today we use them in serving positions and call it AI. The movie moves along well with a fabulous cast of international stars and many "familiar" Italian actors known in that era. A somewhat believable story from start to finish. However, the escape across the river in the Car that is ALSO a Boat was taken directly from Richard Harrison's 1965, SECRET AGENT FIREBALL. They even used the river tunnels in much the same fashion. However, watch it if you like Euro-Spy movies.

Wonderful mindless fun entertainment. Goofy plot, passable acting, clumsy dialog, but it is the kind of movie that doesn't ask much of the viewer, and viewers shouldn't ask much of it except for a bit of fun. I had fun. There is a wonderful bad guy, there are beautiful women like in the James Bond films, and there is a rather hapless quasi-Bond type who gets caught up in the intrigue. This is a film in the 1960s spoof genre, with its chase scenes, cars, planes, helicopters, parachutes, kites, boats, and on and on. It pokes fun at the James Bond type of movie, while at the same time having a bit of its own espionage action, just enough that the film could stand on its own (shakily) as a spy/seduction movie. This is worth renting if you can get it. It is too bad they don't make more of this fun entertainment these days.

Spy movie, not great but better than many others. Interesting and able to entertain as a worthy James Bond imitator.

The plot is not very clear but maybe it is I who was unable to follow it.

So: the Cold War meant that spies were terribly interesting people, and Ian Fleming -- who actually had been a spy -- wrote some potboiler novels full of sex and sadism about the sort of spy he would have liked to have been: able to run around, drink infinite amounts of booze, save the world and bed all the good-looking women. This, of course, led into the long-running series of James Bond movies and into imitators and spoofs, like GET SMART and this one, which is not particularly gallant and not particularly funny.

Patrick O'Neal is a newspaper reporter about to the shot by the Red Chinese, probably for being in this movie. Fortunately, he has just been given a dime-store ring by an Ancient Chinese man which will turn him invisible. He has to be naked for it to be effective, of course. He escapes and is promptly recruited by American General Howard St. John to get some vials full of red liquid from billionaire Donald Pleasance -- who looks like the only one enjoying this movie. In this he is aided by Ira von Fürstenberg, and opposed by Henry Silva, who is working for the Chinese. Pleasance has a number of beautiful women working for him, and some thugs. He also has a really weird expression on his face, a Rumanian name, a castle and an Italian accent.

I am pretty sure this is supposed to be funny, because Alberto Lattuada directs, as well as contributing to the script. Maybe it's funny in Italy. From this American's viewpoint, he did a lot better work when he was writing with Fellini.

Patrick O'Neal, of "The Kremlin Letter" (1970), here is some kind of skinny James Bond, who gets more punches than he gives, but, from time to time, he's invisible. Ira von Fürstenberg, who looks like a twin sister of Margaret Lee, is Arabella, kind of Bond girl. Donald Pleasence, post original Bond, makes a caricature of a villain. So does Henry Silva, a bad character parody. Nicoletta Machiavelli, who looks very good in this movie, is helping Henry Silva. All are spies and spies one another, American, Russian, Chinese, the whole planet etc. One half spies the other half... The music is signed by the great Ennio Morricone but it's not great. Director is master Alberto Lattuada, who has made many good films, including two absolute masterpieces: "Lights of Variety" (along with Fellini) and "Mafioso" with the great Alberto Sordi. Another interesting movie made by him is "Fraulein Doktor". This one is neither a masterpiece nor stupid. It's worth seeing if you like Bond parodies and for the sake of the stars.