From the Orient with Fury (1965)

- Agente 077 dall'oriente con furore
Not as good as the first in the series, but still entertaining, 22 June 2009

From the Orient with Fury (or one of the other half dozen names this movie goes by) is Ken Clark's second outing as Dick Malloy, Agent 077. While I didn't enjoy it as much as the first in the series, Mission Bloody Mary, it's still a fun movie and definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of Euro-Spy films. In this one, Malloy is searching for a kidnapped scientist who has developed a beta ray that will instantaneously dissolve all metal. Along the way he runs into a pack of baddies intent on stopping him, Russian spies, and enough beautiful women to make even James Bond envious. I'll be honest - the plot doesn't really matter much. There were times as I was watching From the Orient with Fury when I couldn't remember what Malloy's ultimate mission was. But I still was having fun, so who cares. Ken Clark has an easy going air about him that makes him great to watch. I'm really starting to enjoy his work. He's joined in the cast by one of my new Euro favorites, Margaret Lee, Evi Marandi, and the ever-present Franco Ressel. It seems sometimes that I run into Ressel in just about every Italian movie I watch. Terrific location shots from Paris to Madrid to Istanbul add to the overall feel of the film. If I had to point to one weakness that keeps me from rating From the Orient with Fury as high as its predecessor it would be the repetitive nature of some of the fight scenes. I think Malloy runs into and fights the same four or five henchmen at least a eight or nine times. It does tend to get a bit old. Otherwise, I've got few real complaints. I'll give this one a 6/10 upon my initial viewing.

6/10