Les filles du code secret

At first encounter this would seem as a rather flimsy concoction of muddled espionage pastiche with Dirk Bogarde as a decoding expert surrounded by a league of only very pretty girls - and there are lots of them. One of them is more obtrusive than the others, Susannah York, who importunes on his private life to become his mistress - with complications. The film really becomes interesting, however, when he loses his job, and there the action starts with increasing thickening of the plot, as the espionage business moves into higher gear.

Everything is brilliant in this film, however limited it is to its times of the late 60s which makes it very outdated today, but the acting couldn't be better, by Dirk of course, always intelligent and interesting, Susannah York at her best, John Gielgud and Nigel Davenport in smaller but not less important parts, Lilli Palmer as the most experienced of them all and something of an odd key player, and even Donald Sutherland in one vital scene. Jerry Goldsmith is the name of the music vying with Johann Sebastian Bach as Dirk's only actual relief from his troubles, while it all ends with an odd twist, which neither Dirk, Susannah York nor the audience would have expected. It's not altogether a comedy, no thriller, although better than any later James Bond, no real spy thriller, but something of it all in brilliant combination.

"Sebastian" is a film from 1968 that is the ultimate swinging London '60s flick, starring Dirk Bogarde, Susannah York, Lili Palmer, and John Gielgud. Bogarde plays a tough, cold on the outside British mathematician who heads a code decryption department during the Cold War. He has many women in his employ, and one of them (Susannah York) falls for him and pursues him, and he reciprocates.

Fun music and atmosphere of the '60s permeates. York is lovely as a smart, pretty woman who knows what she wants, isn't afraid to try for it, and cracks the hardest code in the bunch - Dirk Bogarde. Bogarde is excellent as a man of deep feeling who likes to keep his work life separate from his private life and doesn't quite succeed.

Not much of a plot, but the acting is good - you can't really go wrong with Lili Palmer and John Gielgud in the supporting roles. Palmer plays a codebreaker of long-standing who is nevertheless under suspicion for some of her views, and Gielgud is one of the big bosses over Bogarde.

Enjoyable.

This is a good film to watch if you like British films from the era and especially ones with Dirk Bogarde. It's made with some style but the script is a problem. Though it starts out intriguingly, in the end this espionage film is rather much ado about nothing. The main point of interest in this rarely seen movie now is the equally rarely heard Jerry Goldsmith score, which I rather like. I believe it got an LP release back in 1968, but has never been issued on CD. Perhaps one of the reasons for that, as I've recently read, is that Goldsmith didn't have a good experience doing the score and never had much to say about it or simply didn't want to discuss it at all. Unfortunate, because the score, though minor Goldsmith, does have merit. I hope someday to read just what Goldsmith's problems were with it.

A rather inconsequential film with some rather now dated cinematic ideas is saved by the top line of British acting talent. You can't argue with the cast which includes Dirk Bogarde, Susannah York, Nigel Davenport and John Gieldgud in main roles. 'Sebastian' is also blessed with such an array of acting quality there's no wonder a lot of people really rate the film. The character players include a young Donald Sutherland, the always magnetic and taken from us too soon Janet Munroe (See The Day The Earth Caught Fire), the underrated Ann Beach, and the totally spiffing Ronald Fraser (if you know nothing else by this latter two then try to them together in the excellent Armchair Theatre TV presentation 'A Bit Of A Lift').

For these and other brilliant screen stars to be attracted to this film must mean that there was something in the script that I missed or was missed by the director, or I suppose arguably I just came upon in after it's view by date.

I found the film dated (although I do like British films from the 1960s) and lacking in any real story. I think Bogarde was wrong to say he was not right for the part, he performs well enough but I think a writer such as Le Carre would have fleshed out and nuanced the character and the film as a whole better. My view is that it falls between too many stools not knowing whether it wants to be a hip and happening psychedelic 60s movie, a tale of espionage, a romantic story involving the breaking down of walls, or a comedy farce much beloved of the time.

Despite all these factors I would still recommend a night in with the film if for nothing else than to see brilliant actors tackling greater or lesser roles.

The list of excellent actors and actresses in the film is endless and includes Dirk Bogarde, Susannah York, Sir John Gielgud, Lili Palmer and Nigel Davenport, with many more first-rate performers besides. Add to this the musical talents of Jerry Goldsmith and it is quite an achievement by the Director to create this piece of utter nonsense, especially as some of the screenplay is worthy and the settings very 60's and good. Is this meant to be a serious film? It could only have merit if it was a total send-up of it's decade and spy-films generally, but as Dirk Bogarde later described it as a "non-event," the meaning and intent was obviously lost on him; a big disadvantage as he was the star. This film must have begun with promise and potential for why else would such an array of talent include themselves in it's making? Something after that went radically wrong, but like your other contributors I would gladly purchase a DVD if only, in my case, for curiosity value.