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Billion Dollar Brain (1967)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
20 December 1967 (USA)
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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? full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
British
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Private Detective
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Harry Palmer
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Spy
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Thermos
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NewsDesk:
User Comments:
Could be seen as the weakest of the Harry Palmer trio, but...
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Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | 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 |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
111 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (as De Luxe)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The movie contains several references to the work of director Sergei M. Eisenstein. Most notably the ice battle scene from Aleksandr Nevskiy (1938), the red flag (seen flying over 'Riga' Eisensteins birthplace) and the wounded nurse (the frozen Kaarna) from Bronenosets Potyomkin (1925).
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Goofs:
Continuity: When Palmer first meets Anya beside the lake, there are shadows on the frozen lake in the long shots. In the close shot, the lake is in full sunshine.
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Quotes:
Harry Palmer:
OK, Leo, what's the catch?
Leo Newbigen: There's no catch.
Harry Palmer: Then who gets killed?
Leo Newbigen: Nobody gets killed.
Harry Palmer: There's no catch, and nobody gets killed? I'd still like to know more about it, Leo.
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Leo Newbigen: There's no catch.
Harry Palmer: Then who gets killed?
Leo Newbigen: Nobody gets killed.
Harry Palmer: There's no catch, and nobody gets killed? I'd still like to know more about it, Leo.
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in Harry Saltzman: Showman (2000) (V)
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Soundtrack:
A Hard Day's Night
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (52 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Billion Dollar Brain (1967)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| DVD | Matt12 |
| Wide screen version on TCM | JadeJaguar |
| Newbigen discovers Anya's treachery early on but.. | MrSqwubbsy |
| April 2-4, 2006 in L.A. | cestsibon |
Recommendations
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The film starts off in a manner which would fit any of the Palmer films, Ross and Palmer antagonizing each other, Caine coming up with a great line "If you want me back in that office, you're going to have to send around two very big men with a blackjack". The Maurice Binder titles seem to say this film is going to be very different, however, and they are quite breathtaking, miles away from the other two movies, and very reminiscent of his work on the Bond series, or The Sea Wolves. The film itself is packed with Ken Russell's usual visual flair, setting this movie apart from Sidney Furie's or Guy Hamilton's rather drab and realistic settings. 67 saw the Bond franchise up the ante with You Only Live Twice, which saw SPECTRE going into space and Bond in a tiny gyro-copter, so perhaps a giant supercomputer and disguised oil tankers aren't so far fetched in comparison (this series is meant to be the backlash against the fanciful James Bond escapades after all). However, the further you go into the film, it becomes more apparent that it's taken a wrong turn and Michael Caine is in Goldfinger territory, the room in which Midwinter keeps the Brain seems to be very Ken Adam in design. It's not bad, it just doesn't fit the franchise for which it was made (and this proved to be the final theatrical Palmer outing, which really is a shame). And sure, Midwinter's war on Communism plot seems crazy, but here's a Texas oil man willing to go to war based on bad intelligence. Sounds familiar?
The saving graces of this film are Ken Russell's keen eye and stylistic direction, the way the script stays true to Harry's character, Richard Rodney Bennet's fantastic score (utilizing the ondes martenot, i believe) and the performances, which deserve credit all down the line. From Michael Caine's superb recreation of Palmer, Karl Malden lending strong support, Ed Begley's over the top turn as Midwinter, Oskar Homolka (again) as Stok, and Françoise Dorleac's seductive turn in what would be her final film, they all elevate the film from being some kind of sub-007 rip off. I was going to give it a 7, but I decided on an eight, because above all, it's so damn entertaining.