Movies
Catch Me a Spy (1971, Kirk Douglas, Marlène Jobert)
Fabienne (Jobert) is a French newlywed living in London whose husband (Mower) is kidnaped while they are on their honeymoon in Bucharest. She is informed that he will be exchanged only for Webb (Blier), a Russian agent being held in London. When Webb dies accidentally, Fabienne searches for a substitute, settling on Andrej (Douglas), a hotel waiter who also smuggles manu- scripts out from behind the Iron Curtain.
Naturally the situation becomes complicated when Fabienne falls for Andrej after she has reported him to the authorities. Catch Me A Spy features a great cast, an exciting speedboat chase, a few chuckles, and every spy cliche in the book. Writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais are better known for their classic sitcoms Porridge and The Likely Lads but in the late 1960s and early 1970s contributed to some good British genre movies.
production details
UK / Rank – Ludgate / 94 minutes / 1971
Script: Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais (based on the novel by George Marton, Tibor Meray)
Cinematography: Christopher Challis
Music: Claude Boiling
Producers: Steven Pallos, Pierre Braunberger
Director: Dick Clement
cast
Kirk Douglas as Andrej
Marlène Jobert as Fabienne
Trevor Howard as Trevor Dawson
Patrick Mower as John Fenton
Bernadette Lafont as Simone
Bernard Blier as Webb
Angharad Rees as Victoria
Sacha Pitoëff as Stefan
Richard Pearson as Haldane
Garfield Morgan as The Husband
Isabel Dean as Celia
Robin Parkinson as British Officer
Jonathan Cecil as British Atache
Robert Raglan as Ambassador
Jean Gilpin as Stewardess
Bridget Turner as Woman on Plane
Trevor Peacock as Man on Plane
Clive Cazes as Romanian on Plane
Robert Gillespie as Man in Lift
Ashley Knight as 1st Schoolboy
Philip DaCosta as 2nd Schoolboy
Sheila Steafel as Woman in Lift
Bunny May as Lift Operator
Fiona Moore as Russian Girl
Dinny Powell as Heavy
Bernice Stegers as Russian Girl
Del Baker as 2nd Heavy
Cheryl Hall as Clarke’s Girlfriend
Tom Courtenay as Baxter Clarke