The Ipcress File (1965)

Directed by Sidney J. Furie. Starring Michael Caine, Nigel Green, Guy Doleman, Sue Lloyd, Frank Galiff, Aubrey Richards, Gordon Jackson, Thomas Baptiste, Oliver MacGreevy.

Caine’s first lead film role is playing Harry Palmer, an ex-soldier and reformed criminal who now works for the Ministry of Defense. He may be involved in espionage affairs, quick with the sarcasm, and eager for casual sex, but consider this a diametric alternative to the lavish escapism and fantasy of the James Bond pictures (and the connections don’t end there—Harry Saltzman produced this venture, Ken Adam was responsible for the production design, and John Barry even provides the mysterious score, which employs familiar phrases related to his work with Bond). Gritty story concerns the investigation into the disappearance of a scientist and a puzzling piece of audio labeled “IPCRESS” that may be connected to a secret brainwashing technique. The script works hard to emphasize dour drudgery in intelligence tradecraft, and shadows the answers for so long that there’s little clarity even at the resolution, but the gloomy, unromantic aesthetic as photographed in dulled yet contrasted tones gives it an authentic edge and urgency lacking in the average spy vs. spy caper. Screenplay by Bill Canaway and James Doran, based on Len Deighton’s novel. Followed by four sequels, starting with Funeral in Berlin.

77/100