Das Geheimnis der gelben Mönche

The story is dumb (pilots of airplane bail out while passengers don't even notice), the setting is usually inside a studio, but the number and combination of extraordinary actors is quite unusual. Karin Dor and Stewart Granger make such an intriguing couple that one would just wish they should have been used much more often. The more precious is this rare specimen of their and Curt Juergen's artistry. - A piece of historical interest to the old movies enthusiast.

Stewart Granger is after a generally evil organization run by Curd Jurgens but the real story has to do with Jurgens' efforts to kill Karen Dor and get the money she is soon to inherit.

Granger is again an FBI agent and indeed, is even supposedly the same man who thwarted the smuggling racket in "Red Dragon" but he has a different name; James Vine. Luckily, this time the results for viewers are much improved as the groovy credit sequence will attest. Hip graphics and a cool rock song kick things off nicely. Here Granger isn't quite the smarmy character he was in "Red Dragon" but he is still the unlikely beneficiary of a relationship with a pretty young thing, even pledging to marry her in the end!

Director Manfred Kohler (From Beirut With Love) has made a vast improvement on Granger's previous spy outing and the talented cast is a real asset to the film's modest successes.

Stewart Granger is at his most dapper, suave, best in this otherwise completely unremarkable effort that offers a hybrid "Bond" meets "UNCLE" scenario. Luckily for us, it has the consummate baddie Curd Jürgens as his deadly foe and the scenes they have together, mostly towards the end, are what redeems it from serious mediocrity. It's all about "Sandra" (Karin Dor) who meets our charmer on an aircraft. He ("James Vine") has to land the thing, saving all the passengers, and soon discovers that she is about to come into $70-odd million on her 25th birthday and that there are moves afoot in certain quarters to try and prevent that anniversary from happening. What ensues are a series of fun escapades and the pair try to stay one step ahead of their pursuers who have a habit of using brain-washing as their preferred means of controlling their subjects. The ending is rotten, but there is certainly some fun to be had en route. The cast are enjoying themselves and the production is reasonable, if hardly one that would trouble Messrs. Broccoli and Saltzman. Speaking of them, Adolfo Celi makes an appearance too (sans eyepatch), and we've a bit of Klaus Kinski at his malevolent best too. Aim low and you ought not to be too disappointed - it's all about the stars.

Two great actors which I like very much, Adolfo Celi and Klaus Kinski, are wasted in a mediocre production. With the help of a few other famous names of the movie world, Stewart Granger, Karin Dor, Curd Jürgens. The script is completely stupid and the interpretation of all leaves it desirable for a better chance in another movie. Those who manage to hide the best how disagreeable and ungrateful are their roles, are Kinski and Jürgens. Granger is too bombastic, like in all his movies. Dor is not credible, her acting is forced. And Celi, who has the most unfortunate role, is eaten by a bunch of hungry rats, he does what he can in such a situation. Manfred R. Köhler, the director, has achieved a much better film a year earlier, "Thirteen Days to Die"(1965)Der Fluch des schwarzen Rubin (original title), with another German specialist in villain roles, Horst Frank.

A secret agent (Stewart Granger) is charged with preventing a crime syndicate's plot to assassinate a young heiress (Karin Dor).

Stewart Granger is one of those actors who could make anything enjoyable- his charisma and charm is impressive as always and he's no different here in this fairly entertaining Eurospy thriller; the pace is brisk, and I liked the scenes where Granger and Karin Dor were interacting or Granger knocking out the villains, and Curd Jorgensen is quite menacing; definitely a warm up audition for his role as Stromberg in a future Bond film. Matter of fact, there's a bevy of actors - Molly Peters, Adolfo Celi, and the pretty Karin Dor. Klaus Kinski is good as a henchman with a conscious.

However, it's the budget that makes things appear tacky/ cheap. It's a bit rough around the edges and lacks stylishness. The execution, of lets say, the hero landing the aircraft wasn't tense enough. The guitar music became annoying after a while. Bond films would've been tacky without its significant budget and production design.

Bearing that in mind, there's some OTT stuff in here that you might like - Villainous monks, a listening device in an egg shell, brainwashing, a chess playing villain, a sadistic hench lady, and a snake loving Commissioner- there's some tongue-in-cheekiness, thanks to Granger, and some ok action. The ending, though, felt rushed and flat.