Subterfuge

Generic 1960s spy story about an American "security agent" named Michael Donovan (Gene Barry) who goes to London to meet an important professional contact. But when Donovan arrives he finds that his contact has been murdered. What follows is kidnapping, falling in love, and danger in dealing with high level thugs. The visuals are a bit dreary and the plot seems muddled.

The main problem here is the script. There are too many characters and too many villains. It's hard to tell who is doing what to whom. And I could not figure out the motivation of the villains. Further, none of the characters are interesting. They're all cold, impersonal, and have little to no sense of humanity or individuality. They're just stick figures inserted into the script in service to a contrived story. Who are these people? Do we care about them? I don't.

The visuals are drab. Indoor scenes are too dark. Outdoor scenes trend repetitive, with too many camera shots of those English double decker buses, subway trains, and expensive cars. Characters spend a lot of time talking shop while imbibing expensive liquors. The film tries to be worldly and sophisticated. However, "Subterfuge" is no James Bond movie. And Gene Barry is no Sean Connery.

Casting and acting are not very good. Gene Barry may be debonair but his persona and acting are boring. Joan Collins may be glamorous but in this film she shows why she never won any major acting awards. The rest of the cast is perfunctory and dull.

My impression is that the producers were trying to cash in on all the international intrigue that was such a hot film topic in the 1960s. But "Subterfuge" lacks suspense and mystery. Characters are cold and impersonal. Performances are lackluster. There are some good spy films out there. This is not one of them.

Subterfuge is quite an elusive title to track down, however it was released on VHS in the US, and DVD copies have recently become available. The cast is pretty starry, however the plot is rather confused, and Peter Graham Scott's direction couldn't be described as anything other than workmanlike. Of chief interest are the location shots of the London of 1968 - fascinating for those who know the capital well - and the luminous Joan Collins, who, clearly realising the weak script wasn't going to give the audience much for their money, and that her good-girl role lacked much substance, sets about creating a one-woman style festival. So we get Joan in hats, leotards, thigh-high leather boots, evening dresses, mini-dresses, furs ... you name it - if it was 'in' in 1968, Joan is wearing it and looking as glorious as always (and slimmer than ever). And for the more sombre scenes when her character's life is in turmoil, Joan isn't afraid to deglamourise her look. As for the rest of the cast, the only performances of note are Marius Goring (his name way down in the credits!) as the chief villain, and Suzanna Leigh being surprisingly good as a somewhat psycho villainess. Top-billed Gene Barry resembles a walking store-window dummy: devoid of any emotion or talent whatsoever, he seems disinterested and disconnected from the action and the actors around him, and he is the main reason the film fails. A poor script can be enlivened by a star turn such as that of Miss Collins, or a fun and campy characterisation such as that of Miss Leigh, but with a leading man as uninspired as Gene Barry, Subterfuge is beyond saving.

Gene Barry plays an American secret agent who comes to London to meet a British informer who has something important to tell him. By the time he arrives there, his contact has already been killed and Barry gets kidnapped. He escapes with the help of a local agent (Tom Adams), and is asked to investigate a leak in the British secret service. To do that, he has to get close to the agent's wife (Joan Collins). Romance ensues. Actually, that romance may be the weakest aspect of "Subterfuge": Barry and Collins don't exactly set the world on fire as a couple. There is a rather sadistic bad girl, played by Suzanna Leigh, who is much more exciting to watch than the bland Collins, but doesn't have enough screen time. On the positive side, the film boasts some amusing fight scenes, a fairly twisty plot and lots of on-location London footage, so it just about gets a passing grade. ** out of 4.

Here's one that tries to be cynical and hip but fails on both accounts. Director Peter Graham Scott was involved with both the Danger Man and The Avengers television series' but drops the ball here, churning out a staid but not altogether lifeless espionage non-thriller.

A very satisfying, taut 70's spy yarn, unaccountably overlooked. Well-written with some decent dialogue and many plot twists, it's fairly late in the film when the true loyalties and back stories are revealed.

Gene Barry is his usual wooden self but he does a good job as the uncompromising tough guy. Tom Adams hams it up, maybe he didn't like playing a foil to the action hero (having some form himself).

Joan Collins is on a different planet from the rest, she raises the overall quality with some real class as the icy, fiery, aristocratic, sensitive wife dragged into an espionage world she despises.