A Man Could Get Killed

1965s 'A Man Could Get Killed' is a great slice of 60s movie hokum. It has James Garner at his "Basically, I'm just passing through on my way to Australia" best. Added to that, the cream of England's 'old duffer' character actors, Coote, Culver, Parker and Grey. An interesting cameo from the great Irish doctor/actor Niall MacGinnis, as the ships captain. Sandra Dee is as loud as any American tourist in Europe should be allowed to get, but still gorgeous. Tony Franciosa as the pretend Portuguese smuggler is fun and of course the wonderful, and criminally underrated, Melina Mercouri stealing the show. Throw in some diamonds and it all adds up to a not bad 97 minutes of escapism. And with a nice romantic ending to the strains of, probably Bert Kaempfert's greatest tune 'Strangers in the Night'. What's not to like! I saw this film as a young boy, when first released, loved it and have never forgotten it. How this film is not available on DVD is beyond me! It's about time we had a box set of James Garner 60s films with, obviously, this film included.

What are James Garner, Melina Mercouri, Anthony Franciosa and Sandra Dee all doing in the same picture? Not having a good time, according to reports. American banker Garner arrives in Lisbon on business and is mistaken for the man meant to replace a murdered government agent, who was stabbed while on a search for stolen diamonds. That man's flirtatious widow (Mercouri) spies Garner at her husband's funeral and pursues him. Meanwhile, an American diamond smuggler pretending to be Portuguese (Francisosa, with a lousy accent that apparently convinces Mercouri) is after the gems but is pursued by another American (Dee), a love-hungry college student on holiday. The film's first director, Cliff Owen, was apparently run off by the stars themselves; his successor, Ronald Neame, couldn't stop Garner and Franciosa from going at each other's throats, while Dee, nearing the end of her contract with Universal, complained the eight-week shoot turned into "a miserable four months." Despite all this, there are some witty lines in the screenplay by Richard L. Breen, T. E. B. Clarke and David E. Walker, adapting Walker's novel "Diamonds For Moscow", and Mercouri is an absolute scene-stealer. With a voice so languorous and lascivious it's practically mocking, Melina gives the picture such a lift that, for a few moments, it stops being about diamond smuggling and is instead all about her. The appropriately Latin-influenced score by Bert Kaempfert introduced the instrumental "Strangers in the Night" (originally titled "Beddy Bye"), which netted itself a Golden Globe nomination for Best Song despite the fact it didn't have lyrics yet! ** from ****

Just wanted to let anyone who might stumble upon this movie to know that it's certainly worth your time viewing. Melina Mercouri is great as the widow of a shadowy underworld figure who entangles James Garner in her search for missing booty. The booty being a small fortune in loose diamonds. The movie has lots of sixties style going for it and is set in beautiful Mediterranean locales. With a great supporting cast of sixties superstars like Sandra Dee and Tony Franciosa the movie entertains with tons of tounge in cheek, cloak and dagger sexy verve. It's a fun in the sun movie with all the stars putting in great performances. One final note, as the credits roll at the end of the movie, Frank Sinatra's rendition of Strangers in the Night provides a fitting and satisfying end.

A year before we were married, my wife and I went to see this movie on a date. We have not seen it since, yet we still quote a line or two from it all these decades later. I hope we do not have to wait for James Garner's death before it is released on DVD. It is a truly funny motion picture, liked even by someone like me who likes very few comedies. As I recall, the humour in this movie springs from the story, ridiculous though it may be, and that makes for a good amusing film. Robert Coote in particular was superb.

I didn't really wanted to add much to the other reviews. If you've watched and just kicked back to many sixties films of this type, and find joy simply soaking the unique sights and sounds of the time that showcases some of the performers of that era, here's another offering to entertain you similarly. You can add it to the many rollicking Tony Curtis, Dean Martin, Rock Hudson, Peter Sellers, Carry on... flavor of comedies that were quite popular then, a time that weren't real for many of us born after.

The remarkable thing is, some people get the impression the actors and crew involved were having as much of a good time off camera as they were having on camera or enjoying themselves as much as the audience that enjoyed it. Not so, according to many involved who spoke about their experience making the film years after. Sandra Dee has expressed that she never wanted to make it in the first place and regrets having spent four miserable months on the picture. The first director was dismissed for having 'trouble' with the actors. James Garner was reportedly disappointed with the result. He and Tony Franciosa didn't get along well during filming either. Their fight scene in the movie was said to be quite non fictional.

In fact, Garner admitted he punched Franciosa because the guy abused and never pulled his punches against stuntmen, or tried at all to feign it as necessary. It's almost like implying Franciosa was displaying a misplaced sense of machismo and bravado on the set. Franciosa was known at the time for not being able to control his hair trigger temper.

Regardless, the fact that they were able to convince so many people they weregenuinely having great fun, getting famously along, and convey a light hearted comical movie lay testament to an actor's ability to act if nothing else.

Just a few additional information about the film that isn't mentioned on this site for those interested.