Assignment to Kill

"Assignment to Kill" is far from a perfect film. There are a few plot holes and a lady at the end of the film who is there...but with no real explanation for who she is nor her bizarre actions. Still, despite a few minor problems, I liked the film...mostly because I loved the sort of man Patrick O'Neal played in the film...a seemingly amoral private detective who is hiding some actual ideals!

Some time ago, four shipping accidents occurred in a very short space of time...all to the same company. It seems obvious that the sunken ships were sunk on purpose but there's absolutely no proof. Work by various other detectives working for the insurance company either came up with nothing or they died by what appeared to be an accident. So, they company has sought out yet another men, Richard Cutting (Patrick O'Neal) to look into this case.

This is a highly unusual film in that although O'Neal was the star, he rarely ever got to star in movies. Often he played villains, especially on television shows. Here he's excellent...cool, complicated and not at all like most movie detectives. He's also a man who acts like his moral compass is broken but over time you can see that he actually has a very strong and idiosyncratic conscience.

The trail takes him to Zurich, as a plane crash in the mountains which happened some time ago was just discovered. The pilots' remains were found but it appears as if the passenger might have escaped with their life. Cutting thinks this man might know about the sunken ships...and his part-time secretary (Joan Hackett) might be able to help him. However, Matt Wilson (Herbert Lom) and his goons always seem to be at his heels. What's next? See the film.

Apart from the acting by O'Neal and Lom, the dialog was really nice. It was so good....but the actual details of the story were occasionally poorly thought out...making it a story with a few flaws which I was still able to enjoy. Well worth seeing.

By the way, coincidentally, one of the characters in the story is murdered in Zurich. This same actor died in real life in Zurich only a few months later.