Ty Hardin only made one Eurospy movie, but more importantly so did Sergio Corbucci, rated by many the next best Spaghetti Western director after Sergio Leoni. Corbucci created the legendary "Django". This one was filmed during his peak period, after "Django" but just before "The Great Silence", "The Mercenary" and "Companeros".
You quickly become aware that this director has a much higher level of technique, superior to any Eurospy director in my experience. This is less glamorous and more gritty than most Eurospy, in fact you could argue that, apart from being made in Europe and being about spys, it has more in common with Cold War espionage films like "The Ipcress File", "Funeral In Berlin" or "The Quiller Memorandum" with a story more grounded in real World of spying, being related to a microfilm list of agents that various groups want to get hold of. But it also has a lot more action than most Cold War movies, so I guess it sits somewhere in between.
The screenplay, also by Corbucci, has some clever reveals and twists, which also lift it above most other films in the genre. The soundtrack is full of music designed to punch up the tension and drama. Greece is the exotic location this time, so we spend quite a bit of time at the Acropolis and driving around Athens in a fine array of classic 1960s vehicles, a Fiat 850 Coupe, a Citroen DS, a Mk II Jag, a Merc 190B, a Roller and even a 2CV. (Apologies if I got some of the models wrong, I'm not an expert).
Ty Hardin reminds me of a better looking version of Stacey Keach and his acting is also better than most Eurospys, but he never really made the big time (or even the "B" grade big time). Michael Rennie brings the "International Man Of Mystery" character that he played in the TV series of "The Third Man". The supporting cast are all memorable; - Vittorio Caprioli as Ty's wily old pal "Pizza". Gordon Mitchell ("The Albanian") and Remo De Angelis ("The Bulgarian") are suitably menacing as the leaders of two rival gangs. Graziella Granata is vivacious as "Rumba", the dancing girl of ill repute, Paola Pitagora is sympathetic as "Greta", the girl who is forced to work for the villains against her will, and Hum Silvers is good as the resourceful street urchin. There are also a number of other colourful cameos, reminiscent of the type viewers are accustomed to seeing in the Spaghetti Western genre.
Someone else on IMDB commented "I heard Leo's (de Caprio) character in "Once Upon A Time In Hollywood" would be partially based on Ty Hardin's". I.e. Quinton Tarantino has watched this film and enjoyed it (as did I)
PS - other interesting information about the real Ty, who was a true "International Man Of Mystery"
In 1958, he had his name changed legally from "Orison Whipple Hungerford Jr." to Ty Hardin.
He married the 1961 Miss Universe, German beauty queen Marlene Schmidt. At the time of his death, Hardin lived with his eighth wife.
In 1974, he was arrested in Spain for drug trafficking and spent time in prison
In the 1980s, after difficulties with the Internal Revenue Service, Hardin founded a tax protest movement known as the "Arizona Patriots".
While appearing in a TV series called "Riptide" in Australia, he memorably told a journalist, "I'm really a very humble man. Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for my looks, my stature and my talent."
