Monday, July 16, 2018

Mission to Venice (1964)

A muddled plot, 16 July 2018


A man named Michael Newman (Sean Flynn) is hired by a woman to find her missing husband.  The trail leads to Venice where Newman encounters a group of baddies intent on keeping the man’s whereabouts a secret.  The thugs will do anything, even commit murder, to get what they want.

If my little plot summary sounds vague, it’s because most of the plot of Mission to Venice is incredibly muddled.  I went back and rewatched a couple of scenes to see if I missed something, but no, the details just aren’t there. Still, it’s not an unwatchable example of an early Eurospy film with some decent fight sequences, spy shenanigans, and interesting locations.  A bit “stagey” at times and lacking in real action, but overall, not the worst viewing experience I’ve ever had. I’m sure I would have enjoyed it more had the transfer I watched been better quality. At times, it was a bit like watching a movie through a haze of milk.

I suppose that one of the more interesting things about Mission to Venice is the lead played by Sean Flynn.  Flynn was the son of legendary actor Errol Flynn. He made only a handful of films - most European productions.  Flynn might not have set the world on fire with his acting, but I found him engaging enough. Flynn’s main co-star, Karin Baal, was a real revelation.  I look forward to discovering more of her work.

Finally, I need to mention the score.  Mission to Venice has a catchy, loungey, jazzy score that really works to set the movie’s tone. It’s easily one of the best aspects of the entire film.

4/10


No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.