''Crossplot'' is a 1969 British neo noir

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

starring

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 19 ...

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

actress

Claudie Lange Claudie Lange is a Belgian actress and model, mainly active in Italian cinema. Lange entered the film industry at 21, when she met Federico Fellini during a vacation in Rome; Fellini gave her a minor part in ''Juliet of the Spirits'' (1965), and ...

was also featured in her largest English-speaking role.

Plot

Roger Moore is Gary Fenn, a talent scout for a London modelling agency who finds the perfect target and calculates the events which mean that only one girl will be good enough for his bosses, a Hungarian Marla Kugash (Lange). He finds her among the

anti-war movement An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to ...

in the bohemian depths of

swinging London The Swinging Sixties was a youth-driven cultural revolution that took place in the United Kingdom during the mid-to-late 1960s, emphasising modernity and fun-loving hedonism, with Swinging London as its centre. It saw a flourishing in art, mus ...

. She is in the company of a young man, Tarquin, who is extremely protective of her and overtly aggressive to Fenn. The young Hungarian, an illegal refugee from her native homeland, accompanies Fenn to a photoshoot. However, she admits she is in fear of her life, and seems disturbed by the presence of her aunt. When she is nearly killed, the girl drops out of sight and Fenn has to go on the run himself, suspected of a separate murder. He locates her to a country house, which turns out to be the home of Tarquin, an

aristocrat The aristocracy is historically associated with "hereditary" or "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece, ancient Ro ...

in spite of his anti-war sentiments. It is revealed that Marla's aunt is part of a shadowy organisation trying to destabilise the existing world order so they can take over themselves. They will go to any length to try and shut Fenn and Marla up, including sending a helicopter after them. Fenn and his friend manage to escape to London, where they realise that the shadowy movement are planning to assassinate a visiting African

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

Hyde Park Hyde Park may refer to: Places England * Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London * Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds * Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield * Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester Austra ...

. They manage to foil the plot.

Cast

as Gary Fenn *

as Marla Kugash *

Martha Hyer Martha Hyer (August 10, 1924 – May 31, 2014) was an American actress who played Gwen French in ''Some Came Running'' (1958), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her autobiography, ''Finding My Way ...

as Jo Grinling * Alexis Kanner as Tarquin *

Derek Francis Derek Francis (7 November 1923 – 27 March 1984) was an English comedy and character actor. Biography Francis was a regular in the Carry On film players, appearing in six of the films in the 1960s and 1970s. He appeared in ''The Tomb of Lige ...

as Sir Charles Moberley *

Ursula Howells Ursula Howells (17 September 1922 – 16 October 2005) was an English actress whose elegant presence kept her much in demand for roles in film and television. Life and career Howells was born in London, the daughter of composer Herbert Howells, ...

as Maggi Thwaites *

Bernard Lee John Bernard Lee (10 January 190816 January 1981) was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven Eon-produced James Bond films. Lee's film career spanned the years 1934 to 1979, though he had appeared on stage from ...

as Chilmore * Francis Matthews as Ruddock *

Dudley Sutton Dudley Sutton (6 April 1933 – 15 September 2018) was an English actor. Active in radio, stage, film and television, he was arguably best known for his role of Tinker Dill in the BBC Television drama series ''Lovejoy''. Early life Sutton was ...

as Warren * Mona Bruce as Myrna *

Veronica Carlson Veronica Carlson (born Veronica Mary Glazier; 18 September 1944 – 27 February 2022) was a British actress who was known for her roles in Hammer horror films. In 2019, she was inducted into the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards' Monster Kid ...

as Dinah *

Michael Culver Michael Culver (born 16 June 1938) is an English actor. He was born in Hampstead, London, the son of actor Roland Culver and casting director Daphne Rye. He was educated at Gresham's School. Actor Culver's aunt, father, mother and brother a ...

as Jim *

Gabrielle Drake Gabrielle Drake (born 30 March 1944) is a British actress. She appeared in the 1970s in television series '' The Brothers'' and ''UFO''. In the early 1970s she appeared in several erotic roles on screen. She later took parts in soap operas ''Cr ...

as Celia *

Tim Preece Tim Preece (born 5 August 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared on British television since the 1960s and also acted on stage. Early life Preece was born in Shrewsbury in Shropshire and was educated at the Priory Grammar School for Boys, ...

as Sebastian *

Norman Eshley Norman Eshley (born 30 May 1945) is an English actor best known for his television roles. Biography Eshley attended Bristol Grammar School and worked in a bank, before training as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He played many ...

as Athol *

Michael Robbins Michael Anthony Robbins (14 November 1930 – 11 December 1992) was an English actor and comedian best known for his role as Arthur Rudge in the TV sitcom and film versions of '' On the Buses'' (1969–73). Career Michael Robbins was born in ...

as Garage Attendant *

John Barrard John Barrard (12 September 1924 – 13 October 2013) was a British character actor who had a career spanning five decades and who perhaps is best known for playing Dooley, Santa's No. 2, in '' Santa Claus: The Movie'' (1985). Barrard's te ...

as Wedding Guest *

David Prowse David Charles Prowse (1 July 1935 – 28 November 2020) was an English actor, bodybuilder and weightlifter. He portrayed Darth Vader (voiced by American actor James Earl Jones) in the original ''Star Wars'' trilogy and a manservant in Stanle ...

as Best man * Les Conrad as Tugboat Captain

Reception

The film is not particularly well regarded by critics. One suggested that the film quickly became "tedious" in spite of the numerous action sequences, and the plot was far too "convoluted" and "confusing".Five Thrillers from MGM – Reviews by David Nusair
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References

External links

* * {{Alvin Rakoff 1969 films British spy films Films shot at Associated British Studios 1960s English-language films Films directed by Alvin Rakoff 1960s British films