Assignment K (1968)

A British Agent, posing as an executive of a toy company, tangles with East European spies in various European locales.

Director:

Val Guest

Writers:

Val Guest (screenplay), Bill Strutton (screenplay)

Stars:

Stephen Boyd, Camilla Sparv, Michael Redgrave

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stephen Boyd	...	Philip Scott
Camilla Sparv	...	Toni Peters
Michael Redgrave	...	Harris
Leo McKern	...	Smith
Robert Hoffmann	...	Paul Spiegler
Jeremy Kemp	...	Hal
Jane Merrow	...	Martine
Carl Möhner	...	Inspector (as Carl Moehner)
Vivi Bach	...	Erika Herschel
Werner Peters	...	Kramer
Dieter Geissler	...	Kurt
John Alderton	...	George
Jan Werich	...	Dr. Spiegler
David Healy	...	David
Ursula Howells	...	Estelle

Storyline

Philip Scott (Stephen Boyd), head of a successful toy company, is also secretly the head of a British spy unit. When his cover is blown, enemy agents kidnap his girlfriend to force him to reveal the identities of his operatives.

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Plot Keywords:

espionage | eurospy | spy | agent | secret | 

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Taglines:

Any moment the world might blow up in their double faces!

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Second of three consecutive back-to-back-to-back spy movies for Swedish actress Camilla Sparv. Murderers' Row (1966) was the first and The High Commissioner (1968) was the third.

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Connections

Referenced in Obsessed Dieter: An Interview with Producer and Actor Dieter Geissler (2016)

User Reviews

Worth watching (spoiler)

It has zippy music, attractive locations and Camilla Sparv as an affable boytoy, but that world is not enough. Hits all the action man buttons of the 60s, race car driver, MI6, spy, playboy, and on. But he's not Bond and not Harry Palmer, and therein lies the problem.

Stephen Boyd miscast so the tone of the movie was not dark enough to sustain strong interest. The ending was good as she plays both Scott and Harris off each other and gets both of them, and her cohorts, out of the spy game. A better script would have concealed then revealed complex betrayals and alliances and, perhaps, who Sparv really worked for and to what purpose. Forty or so years later Casino Royale got it right.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

Assignment K

Filming Locations:

Whitehall, Westminster, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gildor Productions, Mazurka Productions Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1