DVD Review: Assassination in Rome (1965) / Espionage in Tangier (1965)
Dark Sky Films recently released two Eurospy thrillers called Assassination in Rome (aka Assassinio made in Italy, 1965) and Espionage in Tangiers (aka Marc Mato, agente S. 077, 1965) on one NTSC Region-0 DVD as part of their terrific “Drive-In Double Feature” series. This is the first time these films have been made available on DVD to western audiences and if you’re a fan of Eurospy movies you’ll probably want to give this new Drive-in Movie Double Feature (Assassination in Rome / Espionage in Tangiers)
Hugh O’Brian stars in Assassination in Rome as a well-dressed American journalist working in Italy who becomes involved in a murder investigation and missing person’s case when an old flame (Cyd Charisse) turns out to be the missing man’s wife. The story progresses slowly and often seems more like a soap opera then an espionage film. There are a few minor laughs, lots of beautiful Italian scenery and a brief look at the old Cinecitta Studio's lot that Italian film buffs should enjoy. Thankfully this mystery wraps up interestingly at the end and the film is shot beautifully by Italian director Silvio Amadio. It also contains a nice score by composer Armando Trovajoli.
Espionage in Tangiers is a little more intriguing and stars Argentinean actor Luis Dávila as secret agent Mike Murphy who’s on a mission to hunt down a deadly disintegration raygun that has been stolen from a government laboratory. One of Dávila costars is José Greci and she stands out as a beautiful fellow spy and occasional love-interest named Lea. Lea seems to be having fun attempting to thwart Mike’s plans at every turn. Various bizarre and often nonsensical plot twists keep things entertaining, but much of the action in Espionage in Tangiers is rather silly and Luis Dávila doesn't have Sean Connery’s charm. If you can get over Dávila’s poor attempts at humor and don’t mind watching him slap the ladies around a bit, you might find a few things to enjoy in Espionage in Tangiers. Director Gregg C. Tallas does some creative things with this low-budget thriller and films much of the action on the exotic Tangier streets. Like many Eurospy films, it also has a nice soundtrack by Italian composer Benedetto Ghiglia.
Neither of these films are the best Eurospy movies that I’ve seen, but they are mildly entertaining and the Dark Sky Films DVD is a nice bargain since you get both films presented in widescreen on one disc. The films look terrific and you get the choice of English subtitles or an English language audio track with each movie. The DVD also includes trailers for other Dark Sky DVDs and their usual vintage "Drive-In Intermission Programming" which makes you feel like you're watching the movies at a real American Drive-In.
You can find out more about the DVD at Amazon
- Kimberly Lindbergs
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