Billion Dollar Brain (1967)

Director:

Ken Russell

Writers:

Len Deighton (novel)
John McGrath (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 December 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Pow . . . Power . . . Brainpower

Plot:

A former British spy stumbles into in a plot to overthrow Communism with the help of a supercomputer. But who is working for whom?

Plot Keywords:

British | Private Detective | Harry Palmer | Spy | Thermos

Cast

Michael Caine	...	Harry Palmer
Karl Malden	...	Leo Newbigen
Ed Begley	...	General Midwinter
Oskar Homolka	...	Colonel Stok (as Oscar Homolka)
Françoise Dorléac	...	Anya (as Francoise Dorleac)
Guy Doleman	...	Colonel Ross
Vladek Sheybal	...	Dr. Eiwort
Milo Sperber	...	Basil
Janos Kurutz	...	Latvian gangster
Alexei Jawdokimov	...	Latvian gangster
Paul Tamarin	...	Latvian gangster
Iza Teller	...	Latvian gangster
Mark Elwes	...	Birkenshaw
Stanley Caine	...	G.P.O. special delivery boy
Gregg Palmer	...	1st Dutch business man

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (as De Luxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

297 Pentonville Road, King's Cross, London, England, UK

Company:

Jovera S.A.

Trivia:

The bombers that General Stok sends to sink the convoy are actually British Canberras.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Train wagon in Russia was marked VR which is Finnish Railways acronym meaning Valtion Rautatiet.

Quotes:

Harry Palmer: I suppose I ought to wish you good luck.
Dr. Eiwort: You may do as you please. For me this is not a game of chance. And I am not in it for the money.
Harry Palmer: What is it then, your hobby?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Harry Saltzman: Showman (2000) (V)

Soundtrack:

A Hard Day's Night

Weird - (if you are Finnish you must see this film)

Definitely an odd film, it is best to take it as a parody of the spy-film genre: as such it is enjoyable. Michael Caine is mostly sort of half bemused and half confused as the hapless Harry Palmer whose job is drawing him deeper into insanity and mayhem. And implausibility. The culminating scene is, well, pure symphony of the best (read:trash) special effects of the day. The plot is full of twists and double-crosses, and includes a Texan bent on taking over the world (how very now).

If you are Finnish, or have visited Finland, the experience is either heightened or or lowered: Billion Dollar Brain is one of the films where Finland stands as a location-double for the unaccessible Soviet Union. It is hard to concentrate on the plot, when first Helsinki is playing Helsinki, then Porvoo is in Russia, and Riga is again in Helsinki. The border is seemingly in Hameenlinna. One ends up wondering how Harry does not realize his train is going merely back and forth. Location-spotting can keep you amused as well, though.