Russian Roulette (1975)

An RCMP officer is ordered to discreetly take a Russian immigrant into custody in advance of a state visit by the Soviet premier. When his prisoner is kidnapped, the officer is drawn into a complicated assasination scheme.

Director:

Lou Lombardo

Writers:

Tom Ardies (screenplay), Stanley Mann (screenplay)

Stars:

George Segal, Cristina Raines, Bo Brundin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Segal	...	Tim Shaver
Cristina Raines	...	Bogna Kirchoff
Bo Brundin	...	Colonel Sergei Vostik
Denholm Elliott	...	John Petapiece
Gordon Jackson	...	Brian Hardison
Peter Donat	...	Inspector McDermott
Richard Romanus	...	Raymond Ragulia
Nigel Stock	...	Ferguson
Val Avery	...	Rudolf Henke
Louise Fletcher	...	Midge
Graham Jarvis	...	Benson
Constantine Gregory	...	Samuel (as Constantin De Goguel)
Jacques Sandulescu	...	Gorki
Walter Marsh	...	Taggart (as Wally Marsh)
Hagan Beggs	...	Kavinsky

Storyline

During the 1970s, on the eve of Soviet leader's official visit to Canada, the Soviet Ambassy alerts the Canadian authorities to the existence of a Latvian immigrant who may plan to kill the visiting Soviet leader.The Soviets explain that Latvian immigrant Rudolf Henke is bitter over Latvia's treatment by the USSR and that he may attempt to assassinate the visiting Soviet leader in Vancouver, Canada.The Soviets request that Henke be kidnapped by the Canadian police to prevent him from any wrongdoing.Commander Petapiece of the Special Branch of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police assigns Corporal Tim Shaver to kidnap Rudolf Henke.This seems to be the only solution since the Canadian government fears political backlash from publicly detaining such a high profile political agitator without any concrete evidence of criminal activity from his part.The Canadians want to accommodate the Soviet requests in order to keep good bilateral relations with the USSR.When Corporal Tim Shaver of the RCMP ...

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Plot Keywords:

rcmp | 1970s | central intelliegence agency | british columbia | spy | 

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Taglines:

George Segal hangs tough ... and plays the game with all the chambers loaded !

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 August 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

Russian Roulette

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$1,250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bulldog, ITC Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 86 min (Shout Factory TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Initially, the provincial Canadian authorities were uncooperative in allowing the film company to shoot the climactic scene at the National Railroads Hilton Hotel.The filming caused a two-hour traffic jam, causing the police to declare that Bulldog Productions had overstepped permission.

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Soundtracks

Scherzo
(uncredited)
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven
Arranged by Michael J. Lewis

User Reviews

Dated But Enjoyable Cold War Actioneer!

'Russian Roulette' is an independently produced thriller lensed on location in Vancouver, The Russian premier's State visit to the city, sparks an intricate And elaborate assassination plot, The ever excellent and watchable, George Segal, stars as Harry Shaver, a Royal Canadian Mountain,Cop who's currently on suspension for an undisclosed offense towards his boss,

Segal becomes involved in the staking out of a Russian political troublemaker, whom is currently residing in Vancouver, The plot thickens when said troublemaker goes missing, and the arrival of a Hit-man from Detroit really gets the plot going,

In a hilarious scene Segal accidentally kill's the hit-man, which leaves him with questions without answers, Segal with love interest in tow,sets out in a desperate race against time to thwart the assassination,before it's too late, which culminate's in a deadly rooftop/helicopter/ suicide bomb showdown,

There is a wealth of talent involved including British favorite Denholm Elliot, as a greasy Informant, Gordon Jackson, and Cristina Raines as Segal's love interest, Robert Romanus, as an obnoxious hit-man,

It would be great if they could put this on DVD as it would benefit from a spruced up restoration,