A spy spoof in the 60s tradition featuring the comic book heroine Modesty Blaise set in the Italian Mediterranean.
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Title: Modesty Blaise (1966)
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Modesty Blaise
(TV Movie 1982)
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Monica Vitti | ... | ||
| Terence Stamp | ... | ||
| Dirk Bogarde | ... |
Gabriel
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| Harry Andrews | ... | ||
| Clive Revill | ... |
McWhirter /
Sheik Abu Tahir
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| Alexander Knox | ... |
Minister
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Rossella Falk | ... |
Mrs. Fothergill
(as Rosella Falk)
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Scilla Gabel | ... |
Melina
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Michael Chow | ... | |
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Joe Melia | ... |
Crevier
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| Saro Urzì | ... |
Basilio
(as Saro Urzi)
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Tina Aumont | ... |
Nicole
(as Tina Marquand)
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Oliver MacGreevy | ... |
Tattooed Man
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Jon Bluming | ... |
Hans
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Lex Schoorel | ... |
Walter
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Edit
Plot Summary
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Add Synopsis
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. Written by Dean Harris <hepcat@inch.com>
Taglines:
Nothing can faze Modesty Blaise, the world's deadliest and most dazzlingly female agent!Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
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Details
Country:
UKRelease Date:
16 September 1966 (West Germany) See more »Also Known As:
Modesty Blaise - Die tödliche Lady See more »Box Office
Budget:
$3,000,000 (estimated)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Westrex Recording System)Color:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1
Edit
Gabriel: One has to start somewhere, you know.
Modesty Blaise: Your first mistake.
Gabriel: [Pointing his finger reprovingly] My last!
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
First ever 'Modesty Blaise' movie. The film is the first of three 'Modesty Blaise' movies, all made separately in different decades and each made around twenty years apart. The others are My Name Is Modesty: A Modesty Blaise Adventure (2004) and Modesty Blaise (1982). See more »Goofs
Modesty's body double in the knife fight scene between her, Willy and the two villains is obviously much bulkier and taller than she is. See more »Quotes
Modesty Blaise: [Speaking of Gabriel's criminal career] The Royal Box at Ascot... picking pockets.Gabriel: One has to start somewhere, you know.
Modesty Blaise: Your first mistake.
Gabriel: [Pointing his finger reprovingly] My last!
See more »
I've never read the Modesty Blaise comics. What inspired me to rent this DVD was a love of 60's kitsch fashions, and an immense respect for Monica Vitti. And while I was baffled by the events in the film -- it didn't seem to make a DAMN bit of sense the first time around -- I still found myself loving it. And on repeated viewings I love it even more.
What's to love? Primarily, the quirkiness of EVERYTHING in the film: the direction is off-kilter (so many things happen in parts of the screen that you're not looking at, and the pacing is bizarre to say the least: a constant string of anticlimaxes that I found refreshing), the acting is deadpan and weird (Bogarde's shifty, psychopathic, and slightly flaky villain...Stamp's disgruntled but cheerful anti-hero...Rosella Falk's twitchy, wide-eyed, barely-restrained violence -- she is a stand-out highlight in the movie...and Monica Vitti, expressing herself mostly through strangely-timed gestures and facial expressions...just check out her "How do you get this off?" routine), the sets are gorgeously dressed (Gabriel's atmospheric island, and the fantastic cell with the spiral staircase), and the plotting is all over the place. Who's double-crossing who? Why are they doing that? WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON? On first impression, I felt the film was just "winging it," making it up as it went along. But far from it...it's elaborately plotted, just strangely presented.
Really, I love this film, and I'm so glad it's seen re-release. It's sloppy, crazy, irreverent, and fun. If you view it as a weird little film -- not as a spoof, or an adaptation of the comic, or a reflection of the times, or as an attempt to be hip or strange -- I think you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
And yes, the clothes ARE fantastic.