Silver Bears (1977)

Financial wizard "Doc" Fletcher (Sir Michael Caine) is sent by crime boss Joe Fiore (Martin Balsam) to buy a bank in Switzerland in order to more easily launder their profits. When he ... See full summary »

Director:

Ivan Passer

Writers:

Paul Erdman (novel), Peter Stone

Stars:

Michael Caine, Cybill Shepherd, Louis Jourdan

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Caine	...	Doc Fletcher
Cybill Shepherd	...	Debbie Luckman
Louis Jourdan	...	Prince Gianfranco di Siracusa
Stéphane Audran	...	Shireen Firdausi
David Warner	...	Agha Firdausi
Tom Smothers	...	Donald Luckman
Martin Balsam	...	Joe Fiore
Jay Leno	...	Albert Fiore
Tony Mascia	...	Marvin Skinner
Charles Gray	...	Charles Cook
Joss Ackland	...	Henry Foreman
Jeremy Clyde	...	Nick Topping
Moustache	...	Signore Bendetti
Mike Falco	...	Boston
Philip Mascellino	...	St. Louis

Storyline

Financial wizard "Doc" Fletcher (Sir Michael Caine) is sent by crime boss Joe Fiore (Martin Balsam) to buy a bank in Switzerland in order to more easily launder their profits. When he arrives, Fletcher finds that the bank, acquired by his associate Prince di Siracusa (Louis Jourdan), consists of some shabby offices above a restaurant. To make up for this, the Prince suggests that Fletcher invests in a silver mine owned by Shireen and Agha Firdausi (Stéphane Audran and David Warner). This solves one problem, but the mine also attracts the attention of some of the most powerful people in the silver business. Fletcher must pull out all of his wheeler-dealing skills in order to keep hold of everything for which he's worked, in the process romancing a banker's discontented wife (Cybill Shepherd).

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Plot Keywords:

silver bullion | champagne | silver smuggling | sherry | cigar smoking | 

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Taglines:

They were after silver and they struck gold.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 June 1977 (UK)

Also Known As:

Fool's Gold

Filming Locations:

USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

EMI Films, Raleigh Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie was released four years after its source novel was published.

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Goofs

As Doc and Gianfranco enter Firdausi's, a passer-by stares directly at the camera until the shot's end.

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Crazy Credits

The final credits play over a scene of Donald Luckman writing his story of the events whilst in gaol.

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: Burt Reynolds/Diana Ross/Jack Douglas/Jay Leno (1977)

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Soundtracks

Raffaella
(uncredited)
Music by Franco Pisano

User Reviews

Not half as bad as they tell you

"Silver Bears" is a great little effort from Czech master, Ivan Passer. It's funny well acted and neatly done comedy caper, that wont let you go until the end. I don't know why it was so badly reviewed when it easily counts among the top 20 comedies of the 70's. Michael Caine is great as usual as Cockney mafioso who in order to make a buck for himself gets a green light from Italian mafioso to start a bank in Switzerland in order to launder some funds, but there's a catch. In fulfilling that mission, without getting himself a brand new pair of cement boots, Caine is greatly helped by Louis Jourdan as sleazy Prince Di Siracusa, and an odd couple of blockheads consisting of Jay Leno in his best role to date, apart from the "Tonight Show", and Tony Mascia as Marvin Skinner. Cybil Shepherd is always great as a decoration, and the movie slides along beautifully with turns on every corner. Passer later proved to be great as a director of many layers, showing his skills most notably in the "Cutter's Way", but here he does it strictly by the numbers. Great fun, catch it if you can, if you like comedies with style, you wont be disappointed.