Modesty Blaise (1966)

Modesty Blaise, a secret agent whose hair color, hair style, and mod clothing change at a snap of her fingers is being used by the British government as a decoy in an effort to thwart a ... See full summary »

Director:

Joseph Losey

Writers:

Evan Jones (screenplay), Peter O'Donnell (comic strip),

Stars:

Monica Vitti, Terence Stamp, Dirk Bogarde

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Monica Vitti	...	Modesty Blaise
Terence Stamp	...	Willie Garvin
Dirk Bogarde	...	Gabriel
Harry Andrews	...	Sir Gerald Tarrant
Michael Craig	...	Paul Hagan
Clive Revill	...	McWhirter / Sheik Abu Tahir
Alexander Knox	...	Minister
Rossella Falk	...	Mrs. Fothergill (as Rosella Falk)
Scilla Gabel	...	Melina
Michael Chow	...	Weng
Joe Melia	...	Crevier
Saro Urzì	...	Basilio
Tina Aumont	...	Nicole (as Tina Marquand)
Oliver MacGreevy	...	Tattooed Man
Jon Bluming	...	Hans

Storyline

Modesty Blaise, a secret agent whose hair color, hair style, and mod clothing change at a snap of her fingers is being used by the British government as a decoy in an effort to thwart a diamond heist. She is being set up by the feds but is wise to the plot and calls in sidekick Willie Garvin and a few other friends to outsmart them. Meanwhile, at his island hideaway, Gabriel, the diamond thief has his own plans for Blaise and Garvin.

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Plot Keywords:

diamond | sheik | island | spy | based on comic strip | 

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Taglines:

Nothing can faze Modesty Blaise, the world's deadliest and most dazzlingly female agent!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English French Italian

Release Date:

4 July 1966 (Norway)

Also Known As:

Modesty Blaise - Die tödliche Lady

Filming Locations:

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Modesty Blaise Ltd., Twentieth Century-Fox Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 'Modesty Blaise' comic-strip itself makes two appearances of note in this movie. There is a close shot of a painting of the comic strip when the character of Willie Garvin is introduced and in another shot, Modesty Blaise herself is seen looking at copies of the comic strip.

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Goofs

When Modesty shoots an arrow at the guard on the island, when watched in slow motion you can follow the arrow as it flies over the arch to the right as the guard is "hit" by an arrow from the left.

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Quotes

Gabriel: [to Pacco] If the girl is alive tomorrow night, you won't be.

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Connections

Referenced in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

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Soundtracks

"The End (We Should Have)"
Written by John Dankworth, Evan Jones and Benny Green
Sung by Monica Vitti and Terence Stamp

User Reviews

Mod mod mod mod mod mod mod Modesty!

A delicious phantasmagoria of feathers, frolics, fashion, false eyelashes, frivolity, fol-de-rol, foppish frothiness and all that was mod and mad in that giddy year, nineteen-sixty-six. Monica Vitti is nothing like the comic book character created by Peter O'Donnell and Jim Holdaway--the original stories have been reprinted and are worth checking out. In his memoirs Terence Stamp recalled that Vitti was so clumsy it was hard for her to get through even simple stunts. The film is in reality a paean to style and to the triumph of presentation over substance which was a lot of what Sixties fashions were about. Vitti's wigs pretty much steal the show--Dirk Bogarde, in blond toupee as evil mastermind Gabriel, and Rosella Falk as Mrs Fothergill (a sort of sadistic Emma Peel) clean up on what's left. The music is a lot of fun--indeed fun is the operative word here. Serious squares can keep their dull movie critic vibes out!