Scorpio

Handsome Alain Delon is "Scorpio" in this 1973 spy film starring Burt Lancaster and Paul Scofield, and featuring John Colicos, Arthur Hil and Joanna Linville. Cross (Lancaster) is an old CIA agent who assassinates foreign officials the U.S. needs out of the way. His some time parter is Jean Laurier, aka Scorpio, a freelancer. Scorpio is given the order to kill Cross - the agency feels he knows too much. Cross is very clever, but Scorpio knows him well enough to anticipate some of his moves. The two men play an international game of cat and mouse, and along the way, there are casualties.

This is a compelling if somewhat slow thriller, very typical of the spy films one saw in the '60s and '70s. What makes this one is the locations - having been to Vienna, I sat across from the opera house in the exact place where one scene was shot. The streets, the hotel lobbies and the rooms were unmistakably European. The cast is excellent, with Lancaster doing a great job - and his own stunts at the age of 59 - as a down to earth, tired agent. Scofield is effective as Zharkov, a Communist friend who helps Cross, and John Colicos is very good in a typical role for him as Cross' cold-blooded boss. Delon isn't quite in the league of these actors - he brings a kind of lethargy to his role and is almost too internalized, plus his accent is quite thick, so some of his dialogue is difficult to understand. You can't beat him for eye candy, though.

I've enjoyed other spy films better, but this one, written by David Rintels (my cousin's brother-in-law) is good with the right atmosphere and some dandy performances.

Back in the 1970s when Capitalism and Communism were fighting the cold war with undercover activities, a film such as this was able to play on our fears of the "good" guys as well as the "bad" guys. So, along with Burt Lancaster's aging C.I.A. agent, Cross, we can't know whom to trust. We like Burt, but we also like Alain Delon (Scorpio) the free agent assigned to assassinate him. We loathe John Colicos as the C.I.A. chief, yet he's supposedly working for our side. We like Paul Scofield's Zharkov, yet he's a commie. (Indeed, Scofield who is a master of cold characters has never been so charming.) The film offers great action scenes as well as unmitigated suspense. There is a superlative cast, and a lot of surprises. (Burt ain't named Cross for nothin'.) If you are a fan of thrillers, or even you aren't, this one's a must see!

This is a convoluted espionage thriller with shades of John Le Carre. Unfortunately Michael Winner directs it like an early 1970s Europudding with most of the main actors sound like they have been dubbed.

Burt Lancaster is veteran CIA spook Cross who wants to retire and live in peace with his wife. He has accumulated a nice nest egg.

However Cross is now branded by his employers as a double agent. It helps them to know that Cross has leftist sympathies during the Spanish civil war. His protege codenamed Scorpio (Alain Delon) has been tasked to wipe Cross out, a task he has been forced to do.

Both play a cat and mouse game across various cities. Scorpio is not sure if Cross is a double agent or has merely been framed.

Winner has adopted a cynical look at spies. Both Cross and his Soviet counterpart Zharkov (Paul Scofield) are disillusioned old men, both of live and their countries.

There is plenty of good action but it is a muddled story and with a disappointing ending.

The movie hasn't aged well, but it still lives with great performances by it's lead actors. The editing and pace feel a bit odd (or off) and it's not only, because it's a slow moving movie, but because some choices seem "wrong".

If you can overlook those "flaws", you can surely enjoy the movie. The story is pretty complicated though and you might feel a bit confused at the ending. But this confusion can be a good thing, too. And the more I think about the ending, the more I like it. While it could have a better set-up, it still delivers and gives the movie one final punch, that will leave you surely with some sort of taste in your mouth (as the saying goes). If you like spy movies, this is essential, otherwise be aware of it's flaws and downfalls.

The thing about spys and espionage is that there is a difference >between good guys and bad guys. Burt Lancaster portrays aging C.I.A agent Cross who wants to leave the C.I.A to spend more time with his wife (Joanne Linville). However he has been training another mentor Jean code name "Scorpio"(Alain Delon) who is just been learning the tricks of the trade as a C.I.A assasin. C.I.A boss (John Colicos) feels that Cross knows too much and that he should be killed. He soons asks Scorpio to do the job, but he refuses. Scorpio is later arrested on phony narcotics rap and is blackmailed to do the job of eliminating Cross, so he accepts it. Cross however catches on that he is being by the watched C.I.A and the game of cat and mouse between him and Scorpio begins. He later takes refuge in with on old colleague (Paul Scofield) in Venice. Yet the question remains. Who is doublecrossing who? Who will survive the game? Who is good and who is bad? This a great film. Burt Lancaster was 59 years old and he had the ability to perform his running scenes as he is being pursued by Delon and another C.I.A hitman. He is proven to be a good actor who attributed the physical-athletic attributes in the film. Alain Delon gives a marvelous performance the man forced to hunt down and kill Lancaster. I give this film 10 out of 10**********.