A private eye is hired by an insurance company to investigate a shipping magnate suspected of deliberately sinking his own ships for the insurance money. He finds himself involved in a web o... Read allA private eye is hired by an insurance company to investigate a shipping magnate suspected of deliberately sinking his own ships for the insurance money. He finds himself involved in a web of deception, double-crossing, and murder.A private eye is hired by an insurance company to investigate a shipping magnate suspected of deliberately sinking his own ships for the insurance money. He finds himself involved in a web of deception, double-crossing, and murder.
- Landlady
- (as Eva Soreny)
- Felice Valayan
- (as Cynthia Baxter)
- Waiter
- (uncredited)
- Waiter
- (uncredited)
- Secretary
- (uncredited)
- Secretary
- (uncredited)
- Waiter
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWILHELM SCREAM: When the hitman falls over the balcony at the end of a fight with the detective.
- GoofsWhen Cutting goes to see Valayan at his home, before he leaves, he places a folded piece of paper with the secret account number on a table beside him that has a polished metal ashtray. After Cutting leaves, the camera pulls back from Wilson to the table. The ashtray is gone, replaced by a large bronze piece, the paper is folded differently and is no longer parallel to the edge of the table, and the lighting on the table is darker.
- Quotes
Bohlen: Our investigators don't carry guns. Do you carry a gun?
Richard Cutting: Uh-huh.
Bohlen: May I see it?
Richard Cutting: No.
Bohlen: Why not?
Richard Cutting: I wouldn't be carrying it. You would.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Nathan for You: Souvenir Shop; ELAIFF (2014)
While the plot is traditional the movie benefits from quite good dialog which seems to arouse the interest of the actors. I've always liked Patrick O'Neal but recognized that his stoic manner limited his performances. In Assignment To Kill he opens up emotionally, particularly in his scenes with Joan Hackett. She, in turn, is a delight and plays the dialog superbly. Let's face it Herbert Lom has been playing villains like this for decades but even he seems to enjoy himself. He adds an additional dimension by relating his activities to Cutting's. Although I found it a little offsetting to hear him addressed as Matt Wilson, Lom is definitely a mittel-European villain! Gielgud is his usual incisive self with arched eyebrow at work. I mentioned Leon Greene simply to note that his career in films started with the dynamic Miles Glorious in A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum. A few years later he is a nameless thug; I guess even actors have to eat. Homolka, in a small role, is a happy reminder of performances past and Van Eyck is appropriately cynical and world weary.
Technical credits are good, particularly the scenery in Geneva and the Alps.
This film is one of those happy discoveries, which if not an A picture is at least a superior B picture, and deserves a wider audience. It also proves the old adage that an actor is only as good as their material. Here the actors had a good script, by director Sheldon Reynolds, and respond with zest.
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $1,500,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 42 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1