Assignment K
| Assignment K | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Val Guest |
| Screenplay by | Val Guest Bill Strutton Maurice Foster |
| Based on | |
| Produced by | Maurice Foster Ben Arbeid |
| Starring | Stephen Boyd Camilla Sparv Michael Redgrave Leo McKern Robert Hoffmann Jeremy Kemp |
| Cinematography | Ken Hodges |
| Edited by | Jack Slade |
| Music by | Basil Kirchin |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production companies | Gildor Productions Mazurka Productions Ltd. |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Assignment K (also known as Department K) is a 1968 British spy thriller film directed by Val Guest in Techniscope and starring Stephen Boyd, Camilla Sparv, Michael Redgrave, Leo McKern, Robert Hoffmann and Jeremy Kemp.[1][2] It was written by Guest, Bill Strutton and Maurice Foster based on the 1964 novel Department K by Hartley Howard.
Plot
A British spy has his cover blown, leading to the East German Stasi kidnapping his girlfriend to try to extract information about his double agents' activities.[3]
Cast
- Stephen Boyd as Philip Scott
- Camilla Sparv as Toni Peters
- Michael Redgrave as Harris
- Leo McKern as Smith
- Robert Hoffmann as Paul Spiegler
- Jeremy Kemp as Hal
- Jane Merrow as Martine
- Carl Möhner as Inspector (credited as Carl Moehner)
- Vivi Bach as Erika Herschel
- Werner Peters as Kramer
- Dieter Geissler as Kurt
- John Alderton as George
- Jan Werich as Dr. Spiegler
- David Healy as David
- Ursula Howells as Estelle
- Basil Dignam as Howlett
- Geoffrey Bayldon as The Boffin
- Joachim Hansen as Heinrich Herschel
- Windsor Davies as Joe
- Karl-Otto Alberty as Fake policeman
Production
Val Guest said "We shot it all out in Kitzbuhel, great cast: we had my Leo McKern again, and Michael Redgrave who was a very sick man, had terrible difficulties with his lines... Stephen [Boyd] was a wonderful person, a great giggler, a great professional, very nice guy."[4]
Critical reception
The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Routine spy thriller, unimaginatively scripted and directed. The entirely conventional settings include the inevitable night clubs, expensive hotels and ski slopes (where the travelling matte is much in evidence). Stephen Boyd is bland and wooden as the toy tycoon/spy; Camilla Sparv has little to do but look alluring; and Leo McKern and Michael Redgrave appear fleetingly and to little effect. The plot meanders from dull beginning to dull end with nothing of interest in between."[5]
Leslie Halliwell said: "Dreary espionage thriller, instantly forgettable, and only watchable at odd moments while it's on."[6]
Writing in the Los Angeles Times, critic Charles Champlin commented: "the dialogue is intermittently sophisticated, very intermittently, and the total effect is old chapeau, very old chapeau."[7]
See also
References
- ^ "Assignment K". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
- ^ "Assignment K (1968)". Yahoo Movies. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Assignment K (1968)". TCM. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
- ^ Fowler, Roy (1988). "Interview with Val Guest". British Entertainment History Project.
- ^ "Assignment K". Monthly Film Bulletin. 35 (408): 39. 1 January 1968. ProQuest 1305826629.
- ^ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 56. ISBN 0586088946.
- ^ Champlin, Charles (19 September 1968). "'K' Opens Citywide Showings". Los Angeles Times. p. 13 (Part V). Retrieved 16 August 2025 – via newspapers.com.
External links
- Assignment K at IMDb
- Assignment K at the TCM Movie Database (archived)
- Assignment K trailer via YouTube
Content Disclaimer
Informasi ini disarikan dari Wikipedia dan disajikan kembali untuk tujuan edukasi. Konten tersedia di bawah lisensi CC BY-SA 3.0. Kami tidak bertanggung jawab atas ketidakakuratan data yang bersumber dari kontribusi publik tersebut.
- The information displayed on this website is sourced in part or in whole from Wikipedia and has been adapted for the purpose of restating it. We strive to provide accurate and relevant information, however:
- There is no guarantee of absolute accuracy. Wikipedia is an open, collaborative project that can be edited by anyone, so information is subject to change.
- It is not intended to constitute professional advice. The content displayed is for informational and educational purposes only. For important decisions (e.g., medical, legal, or financial), please consult a professional.
- Content copyright. Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). This means that content may be reused with appropriate attribution and shared under a similar license.
- Responsible use. Any risk arising from the use of information from this website is entirely the responsibility of the user.