Spanish Fly

Simply awful waste of the talents of Terry Thomas and Leslie Philips.

If you like extended titillation of buxom beauties, then this is for you, but I can't imagine what it must have been like actually going to the cinema and viewing this rubbish.

This movie is apparently based on a German play, made by the Spanish and starring the British. Like most sex comedies it has a slight plot and is dependent on the actors.

Film opens with a tired British businessman (Leslie Phillips) complaining to his doctor (Frank Thornton) about his lack of sex drive. His wife (Sue Lloyd) sends him to Spain, with four beautiful models, to shoot ads for their lingerie line. There he meets a down on his luck school chum, British aristocrat (Terry-Thomas) who is scheming to pass off some deplorable Spanish wine as more expensive French wines. He in turn is assisted by his loyal chauffeur/houseman (Graham Armitage), who also runs interference with the local population. Realizing that the wine is undrinkable Terry-Thomas has Armitage collect various herbs etc. to improve the taste. By accident they include spanish flies, an aphrodisiac, in the mixture. Terry-Thomas tries the wines out on Phillips and the models, obviously resulting in a night of passion. Phillips arranges to buy a thousand bottles but his wife, in London, notes the huge expenditure and comes to Spain to investigate. At the same time Armitage has been paying off all the local bills in wine. Unfortunately Terry-Thomas forgot to check the "side effects", other than arousal, from the use of Spanish Fly. As everyone starts barking like dogs he and Armitage seek their escape.

While the models parade around in lingerie the actual nudity in the film is limited (a topless shower scene by model Andrea Allan).

The main interest in the film is the leads: Terry-Thomas and Leslie Phillips. Unfortunately neither one is at their prime. Terry-Thomas was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease four years before this movie and would make another five movies before he was forced to retire three years later. While I have not seen all of these later movies, Terry Thomas's roles in the two or three I saw were limited cameo's and I suspect that Spanish Fly may have been his last featured lead. He appears tired and his performance pales in comparison with the gleeful cads of prior years. Leslie Phillips would make one more movie before taking a decade long sabbatical from film (and returning as a character actor). In prior films he was always the "naughty boy" who couldn't say no to beautiful girls. Here he appears disinterested and even the presence of four beautiful models can't put a sparkle in his eye. The old adage is that comedy is in the reaction not the action. Graham Armitage comes off best, having the opportunities to react to Terry-Thomas, Leslie Phillips, the girls and the local population. Frank Thornton has a walk on, presumably to exploit his fame from the Are You Being Served? TV series. Sue Lloyd is largely wasted. The models are pretty but, aside from Naduiska and Andrea Allan, basically have one line roles. Tech credits are OK and the Spanish locale is scenic.

Leslie Phillips and Terry-Thomas still retain interest but I was left with a sense of sadness considering what they would have done with their scenes in better days.

All in all the movie is an acceptable timewaster.

The plot and the setting rather resembles David Cronenberg's The Parasite Murders' (1974), but I would guess only by coincidence. Or at least I hope so!

Shot in Menorca, with an onscreen credit for the Janet Reger underwear, those stars would have promised well fifteen years earlier. But in the seventies? Forget it...!

Roaring and humorous film with odd characters , surreal imagery and nutty plot . Crazy humor gives way to sexy as well as hilarious happenings , closely followed by embarrassing events that doesn't take long in coming to a head in undisguised pandemonium . It deals with English merchant Mike Scott (Leslie Phillips) complaining to his G.P. (Frank Thornton) about his lack of sexual desire . Mike then goes to Island of Menorca to a shooting session for his lingerie line . There he is received by his photograph assistant Juan (Ramiro Oliveros) and four gorgeous fashion models called Bruce (Andrea Allan) , Francesca (Sally Farmiloe) , Annette (Jaleh Haddah) and the Spanish diva Nadiuska . Then , Mike meets an old school friend, a British aristocrat businessman named Sir Percy de Courcy (Terry-Thomas) who is making a deplorable and poisonous wine to sell tourists and local people (Emiliano Redondo as a barman and Jose Lifante) . Realizing that the wine is undrinkable ,Sir Percy and his helper , loyal chauffeur (Graham Armitage), collect several spices to improve the taste but by accident they add Spanish flies, in the blending , resulting in an aphrodisiac wine . Sir Percy invites Mike and the beautiful fashion models to have dinner and they take wine and obviously takes place a night of passion . However , wine has side negative effects from the use of Spanish Fly ,as they begin barking and behaving like dogs . Then , there shows up Mike's wife (Sue Lloyd) and she also takes wine and the events go wrong .

This an amusing but mediocre picture full of laughters , silly events , embarrassing humor , a lot of lingerie and and some nudity in charge of the three models and the Spanish beauty Nadiuska . This is a full-on surreal Psychotronic sex comedy , it is so excessive and outrageous that blends bemusing deeds , as well as a funny script full of absurd humor , entertainment , and exciting situations . Packed with scenes of absurd nature , this story is a fantastic farce, as we follow the ridiculous situations of a varied group of quirky characters whose destination is dictated by an aphrodisiac wine . As the wine becomes aphrodisiac and all are looking forward to making love but subsequently everyone starts barking like dogs . This main premise about the sexual wine is overspread throughout the movie , but not totally satisfactory , including conventional pitfalls . The narration is so filled with crazy characters , nutty comedy, mixed with surreal elements and an underlying sense of humor . The film works on various levels , however contains some embarrassing , contriving moments and also certain excess . Fine acting by Leslie Phillips as a rogue entrepreneur who lacks sex drive and very amusing , as always , Terry Thomas as a crafty aristocrat who want to have his own fraudulent business for a sexualized wine and at whatever cost . Nice support cast plenty of Spanish actors sch as Ramiro Oliveros , Nadiuska , Emiliano Redondo , Jose Lifante , Marisa Porcel , Sergio Mendizabal as well as British players as Graham Armitage , Frank Thornton and Sue Lloyd .

Atmospheric musical score by Ron Goodwin , including disco music and adding catching songs at the beginning and the end . Colorful cinematography showing splendidly the local beauty , and being filmed on location in Menorca, Cales Fonts , Balearic Islands, Spain . The motion picture was middlingly directed by recently deceased Bob Kellett (1927–2012) . He was a director and producer, known for Are You Being Served? (1977), Up Pompeii (1971) , Up the chastity bell (1971) , Girl stroke girl (1971) , Futtocks End (1970) and this Spanish Fly . Rating : 5 , average but amusing .

I was hoping that with Leslie Phillips and Terry Thomas in the cast that this would be reasonably funny.However this film gets sillier and sillier as goes on.Sad that Terry Thomas has to end his days playing in this sort of film.This also reflects the sorry state of the British film industry in the seventies.