Topkapi

Before "Mission Impossible" made every big heist a challenge for technology, there were movie efforts like "Topkapi" which played the human element in the big scam.

A wonderful and truly international cast is assembled here for this 60's effort that showcases Istanbul. Melina Mercouri is marvelous, blending humor and sensuality with her hard side. Maximillian Schell is excellent as the leading man with all the answers while Peter Ustinov is the classic bumbler. Akim Tamiroff adds additional levity as the irascible cook.

Not sure I was totally satisfied with the outcome but it's such a rollicking and colorful ride, give director Jules Dassin top marks anyway.

The film talks a hold-up to Turkish museum carried out by a motley group : Melina Mercouri , Maximiliam Schell , Jess Hahn , Gilles Segal . They are pursued by a chief policeman who blackmails to Peter Ustinov to get undercover in the band.

From the beginning until ending the good mood and humor is continued . The plot is very amusing and the final has got an extraordinary surprise . In the movie there are comedy , action , tongue-in-cheek , giggles and results to be very bemusing . The highlight and great climax , of course , is the heist which is developed with imposing tension and intrigue . The robbing has been imitated thousand times in European films as well as American movies (Mission impossible). This picture along with ¨Rififi¨(also by Jules Dassin) created during the 60s and forward an authentic genre .

The title of the film refers to the Topkapi palace built by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II in 1459, after the fall of the Byzantine Empire , the Ottoman sultans made their main residence in the Topkapi palace for 400 years , it became a museum in 1924 . The motion picture attained a lot of success and originated copies , rip offs and awful imitations . Actors's interpretation are excellent , Peter Ustinov is magnificent and Robert Morley is top-notch specially . Manos Hadjidakis' musical score is cheerful and enjoyable . The picture was very well directed by Jules Dassin (Melina Mercouri's husband).

The yarn will appeal to comedy enthusiasts and robbery genre fans . Rating : Above average . Well worth watching .

Every single moment of Topkapi that dealt with the heist was an absolute thrill to me. It has been a long time since I watched a movie that had me holding my breath to this degree, but there were so many moments when I couldn't wait to see what would happen next (including a scene that clearly inspired an iconic moment from the first Mission: Impossible film.) I also loved how this movie embraced the idea of building a team of people who all have specific roles to play in the heist. Between watching the team assembling and seeing how they adapt to problems along the way, I was hooked. I only wish they got to the actual job a little earlier in the film. There was a long stretch of time where they do nothing of importance, and I was worried it might get boring. I also didn't fully understand the reason that they involved Peter Ustinov in their plot in the first place, which seemed to be a massive inconvenience created solely to add drama to the film.

That being said, I would never complain about Ustinov's presence in any movie. He's a great actor, and works well in this bumbling role. I also quite enjoyed Maximilian Schell as the mastermind and Robert Morley as the gadget man. Where Topkapi truly fell flat for me was Melina Mercouri. She had basically no purpose in the film, and did nothing more than serve as a distraction during the heist. Her entire performance rubbed me the wrong way, and I practically began the film rooting against the team simply because they were stealing something that was ostensibly for her. There were plenty of good things in Topkapi to win me back, and she isn't on screen during the best parts of the movie, so I still enjoyed my time with it. There are certainly better heist/caper films that I've seen, but Topkapi has all the right qualities to be on that list. I will probably even give it another try in the future, and perhaps my complaints won't bother me so much then.

Topkapi is a wonderful caper film that established the genre of the light heist flick. Much copied even to this day, it was a big international hit back in '64. Marvelous international cast (Ustinov's Oscar winning performance among them), exotic settings and a great climax is pure entertainment. Ustinov, Melina Mercouri, Max Shell, Robert Morley, Akim Tamiroff (demented!) and more. What a terrific international all star cast! Exciting movie in it's day, though some of the effects are dated to the 60's. If it seems a bit slow at the beginning (by today's standards), give it a chance. The climax art museum theft scene is one of the great moments in film - don't miss it!

Jules Dassin directed the classic hard-boiled 'Rififi' in the mid-50s. Ten years later he's at the heist genre again, but 'Topkapi' is a very different kind of movie. Gone is the realism and darkness of 'Rififi', which influenced many subsequent crime thrillers. Instead we have a good old fashioned adventure, which is quite tongue in cheek and very colourful and fun. The eclectic ensemble cast are all very good - Dassin's wife Melina Mercouri, Maximilian Schell, Robert Morley, and especially a knockout performance from Peter Ustinov, an actor I usually have little time for. The robbery sequence was "borrowed" thirty years later by Brian De Palma for 'Mission Impossible', but 'Topkapi' is the better of the two movies by far.