Il cobra

1967
1h 38min

VALUTAZIONE IMDb

LA TUA VALUTAZIONE

Aggiungi una trama nella tua linguaPeter Martell stars as a disgraced treasury agent Mike Rand, who teams with his boss to halt a Red Chinese plot to destroy the free world by flooding the market opium and turning everyone in... Leggi tuttoPeter Martell stars as a disgraced treasury agent Mike Rand, who teams with his boss to halt a Red Chinese plot to destroy the free world by flooding the market opium and turning everyone into addicts.Peter Martell stars as a disgraced treasury agent Mike Rand, who teams with his boss to halt a Red Chinese plot to destroy the free world by flooding the market opium and turning everyone into addicts.

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VALUTAZIONE IMDb

4,4/10

132

LA TUA VALUTAZIONE

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Recensioni degli utenti6

4,4132

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Euro-Spy Entry Fumbles with Amateurish Execution and Predictable Plot

This Italian spy film is ludicrous yet amusingly preposterous. The plot kicks off with the US Government calling back Mike Rand, described as "their best Middle East agent," to hunt down "The Cobra." Initially, G-man Dana Andrews mistakenly believes The Cobra to be either a drug cartel or a crime lord. Rand's mission weaves through a maze involving oil magnates, drug enforcement bodies, and even the United Nations, all in a bid by the US Treasury to halt opium trafficking to America. As Rand edges closer to his goal, the body count rises alarmingly.

THE COBRA is a peculiar Euro-spy flick that struggles with the motions of a thriller. The film suffers from occasionally amateurish editing and staging. While Istanbul's scenery adds interest, the film overall offers little in terms of engagement. The narrative is predictable with minimal twists and lacks ingenuity. The excessively prolonged finale, featuring endless sneaking around with minimal action, further detracts from its appeal.

Pietro Martellanza (Peter Martell), portraying Rand, displays a limited range of emotions, primarily looking gloomy, which undermines the film's impact from the start. Anita Ekberg manages to shine in a limited role, whereas Dana Andrews, in a significant part, delivers a notably poor performance, especially during a scene where he drives while clearly impaired, struggling with his lines. Elisa Montes appears briefly as a potential double agent, and her presence is a welcome, albeit small, addition.

The film's dialogue often borders on the ridiculous, highlighted by a scene where a Japanese drug lord dramatically declares, "We will send you tons of drugs! DRUGS will spread!" In another moment, Rand's request for whiskey from a waiter, followed by his demand for a funnel instead of ice and soda, exemplifies the movie's attempt at humor amidst its purported "serious" espionage theme.

3mikecanmaybee

For Euro-Spy Fans Only

The Cobra get a qualified endorsement for a couple of plot twists and some unintended humor. Dana Andrews as Capt. Kelly mails it in. There is one scene where he is driving and slurring his lines reminiscence of Otis in Mayberry. The Jerk leading man Mike Rand (Pietro Martellanza ) just won't quit with the tough guy stuff. There is a great cameo by an actor named Changie who plays the evil Chinese National Li Fang. Where else can you find a Euro-Spy where the leading man quotes a passage from the Koran? This one is for Euro-Spy fans only and just barely.

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The future of our country is at stake, again.

The movie starts off well enough with a cheesy rock score by Anton Garcia Abril that leads into a cool psychedelic credit sequence but it's all downhill from there. Peter Martell, who made a lot of spaghetti westerns, is a less than likable lead; a swarthy brute with John Wayne delivery who's always getting the gun knocked out of his hand. Martell is Mike Rand, an ex-Treasury agent who, we are told, was discharged from a high security post `for the good of the nation.' He must be a bad boy, all right.

Rand says `man' a lot and sweatily muscles his way into bed with the high-class likes of Anita Ekberg. Her name's Lou and she runs a women's spa when she's not shooting up drugs. Ekberg looks pretty darn good for a strung out junkie but she's not given nearly enough to do here.

The other big star, the one who's given way too much to do is Dana Andrews. Andrews is Kelly, Rand's boss, and he's in on a surprising amount of the action in the film. One wonders why, exactly. Andrews seems pretty deep into the sauce and his boot-blacked hair doesn't melt away the years the way they thought it would.

To sum up, aside from a couple of bright spots, this is not really a good or fun film. You would have to be in a pretty tight spot to want to spend your time with Mike Rand, man.

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Citazioni
Capt. Kelly: Gentlemen, will you find yourselves seats. They have already been briefed on the situation, Sir.
Hullinger: Which, I might say, sounds rather grave.
Capt. Kelly: Tragic would be more accurate. In past years, quantities of opium have been smuggled into the United States. But we've just learned that an incredible amount of the drug is being prepared for shipment. As you may know, 150 pounds of pure opium has a market value of a hundred million dollars - the price of a squadron of fighter-bombers. In other words, Sir, we're up against a gigantic operation.
Hullinger: Serious enough to call me to Istanbul?
Capt. Kelly: It would be impossible to exaggerate the danger, Sir. The future of our country and the whole Free World is at stake. Oh, King...
[he gestures]
Capt. Kelly: . Won't you sit down, Sir?
Capt. Kelly: And now, Mr Hullinger, let's have a look at some of the facts. OK, King.
[the video projector begins to show a drug documentary]
Capt. Kelly: Opium and drugs in such quantity, means an increase in the plagues of society; in delinquency, in mental disease, in social disorder. It's like the spreading of some dreadful leprosy. it'd destroy the moral fibre of the youth of our nation.
Capt. Kelly: Our backs are to the wall, Gentlemen. There are 200,000 drug addicts in New York alone. And the Narcotics Bureau considers only those on record.
Mr stewart: That's right, unfortunately. To try and eliminate the evil by bearing down on the addicts is like attempting to destroy a giant oak tree by tearing off the leaves, one at a time.
Capt. Kelly: That's why the Government has ordered that the problem be solved at the roots. We know that the opium comes from Chinese plantations in Kian Sie and Wei Chong, A timebomb from Peking to destroy the very foundations of American society.
Hullinger: Pattern for conquest. It's perfect.
Capt. Kelly: Our job is not to analyse the historical or moral aspects of the phenomenon but to liquidate the organisation at any cost.
Hullinger: How?
Capt. Kelly: The FBI, the Bureau of Narcotics and the CIA and the police forces of friendly nations are all collaborating. The physical forces at my disposal have a free hand.
Sadek: Carte blanche, Mr Kelly?
Capt. Kelly: Carte blanche, Captain Sadek. The threat is so great, all rules are off.