Customer Reviews

Billion Dollar Brain

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Each one of the "Harry Palmer" films is radically different from the other. "The Ipcress File" (Universal, 1965) was a psychological thriller. "Funeral in Berlin" (Paramount, 1966) was a taut espionage triple cross. "The Billion Dollar Brain" (United Artists, 1967) was something else.

Throughout the series, Michael Caine starred as "Harry Palmer" -- the spy with no name in the Len Deighton novels. Each film has its own spin on Deighton's work. The first two films depicted Harry Palmer as a working class spy. Very down to earth and gritty. This third outing, directed by Ken Russell, was slicker, somewhat Bond-like in feel -- but then, so was the book on which it's based. Some love it, some hate it. The actors are quite good, production values are high, the snow is for real and lots of it. The plot is strange -- no doubt about it. Actually quite bizarre at times with some over-the-top set pieces. A cracking good spy yarn -- but don't expect explosions every five minutes.

This is quite a good (not great), entertaining film and long overdue on DVD. It's been available since September 2004 on Region 2 disc and now at long last on Region 1 on October 4, 2005, in its original aspect ratio and Dolby stereo. Apparently a short segment with Beatles music had to be deleted for copyright purposes. Perhaps the holding company held out for to much money?

After a lapse of over 25 years, the next Harry Palmer films with Michael Caine would be "Bullet to Beijing" and "Midnight in St Petersberg".

Over the top can be a positive thing. For decades Bond movies have made their reputation on it. However, this third entry in the Harry Palmer series goes a long way to undoing the good will built up over the first two instalments (The Ipcress File and Funeral in Berlin) in its 60's excess.
Its predecessors made a virtue not of reality, but creating a believable every day Cockney with unique character traits, unwillingly dragged through the existence of spying, and all the bureaucracy inherent in it. The movie and plot were never fully grounded in reality, but were nonetheless believable.
Here, Ken Russell opts to throw away the edgy impressionistic camera angles developed by Sidney Furie and Guy Hamilton, instead making a pseudo Bond movie. Which is a real pity - who needs another Bond-lite character? The plot builds slowly at first with satisfyingly snowy locations and skullduggery and spying.. but soon becomes lost in an over-the-top ending involving a megalomaniac American oil billionaire using a not-so-super-now-computer to try and invade Latvia.
There is never a real sense of danger to humanity, and too many plot threads are left unexplained for this to be an entirely successful affair.
And yet, all of this is tempered by Michael Caine's effortless charisma in the role. If the scriptwriters fail to maintain the details in the screenplay that made the character so involving, Caine overcomes this with his screen presence. Karl Malden plays well in the rather two dimensional `greedy guy' role, and Ed Begley plays `evil megalomaniac' well within the confines of the material. Guy Coleman makes a welcome return as Colonel Ross but alas is woefully underused. The femme fatale is played by Francoise Dorleac, who tragically died at a young age later the same year in a car accident.
Honeywell computers are given a big credit as having supplied all the computing rooms and material which make such a big component of the plot. It's fantastically quaint now to watch huge rooms of computers racked up to do mundane tasks, programming supplied by stacks of cards. One unintentionally hilarious scene has Karl Malden `editing' the data by taking some of the programming cards out and shredding them! I can't imagine what a generation brought up on iPods and powerful home computers must make of it.
In summary, what makes the movie at best mediocre - the bland script, the over the top campness, will endear it as a classic to others. The action scenes are handled well, the locations in Finland suitably spectacular, and the actors are more than up to the task. However this reviewer was left cold by more than just the scenes of snow and ice.

Though it's the weakest entry in the original Harry Palmer spy series, "Billion Dollar Brain" is definitely worth a look for aficionados of Len Deighton's novels and Michael Caine's performances. Down on his luck as a private eye, Palmer reluctantly takes on a mission for his old boss (all-too-brief appearances by Guy Doleman) in MI5, where he is sucked into a scheme grand enough for a Bond film. What is remarkable about "Billion Dollar Brain" is not the plot -- as muddled as any dreamed up by Deighton -- but that it is remarkably prescient. The film's muted cinematography previews what will become the norm a few years later, as by the 1970s movies lost their technicolor gloss in favor of the more dull, documentary look that this film relentlessly conveys. Moreover, it gives us a glimpse of what the computer-reliant world of today was imagined to be in 1967, from reasonably accurate mechanical phone messages to high-tech security systems employing cameras, retina scans, and voice-recognition equipment. What might have a been a campy characterization for the time -- Ed Begley's blustery, right-wing loon -- is all too terribly real in an age of wealthy demagogues who preach God in one breath and utter destruction of their enemies, real and imagined, in the other. Caine is, as always, impeccable as Palmer, the cynical, reluctant spy, though Karl Malden matches him as scheming collaborator Leo Newbegin, but the lovable Oscar Holmoka steals the show once again as the Russian, Stok, ironically Harry's only true friend in the business. Francoise Dorleac is lovely, and familiar character actors Milo Sperber and Vladek Sheybal round out a good cast. Director Ken Russell does some interesting things with the camera and even manages to infuse adult subtext into scenes that don't require it. (Consider the discovery of the body of Dr. Kaarna, for instance, killed by an amorous female assassin, and what she must have been doing to him to pull it off.) The film's score by Richard Rodney Bennet is a bit of a letdown, at times shrill, and there is an emptiness to the production that matches the coldness of the locations, but "Billion Dollar Brain" stays consistent in its aesthetics and its vision.

Working class "spy" Harry Palmer, deftly portrayed by actor supreme Sir Michael Caine, returns in the third & final instalment of the original series of Len Deighton novels-to-film ("Bullet to Beijing" & "Midnight in St Petersburg" came almost three decades later, & therefore aren't in the "original" series).

Deighton's "Spy w/ No Name" (dubbed "Harry Palmer" by Sir Michael & producer Harry Saltzman for their series of films) was initially created to topple, ironically enough, Saltzman's other cash cow, the James Bond series, by depicting a more realistic version of the Cloak & Dagger game. Palmer is the antithesis of 007; working class, a bit of a layabout, & a convicted criminal pressed into service by the British government instead of doing hard time in prison. Had Saltzman been able to maintain the momentum, it's very likely that Palmer would be as recogniseable as Bond to this day. Unfortunately, with production & distribution companies changing with every film, it was difficult to keep the series off the ground. A 4th Palmer film, based on Deighton's book, "Horse Under water", unfortunately never materialised.

This final instalment reveals Palmer as an independent agent, so to speak. Having tired of being used as Col. Ross' pawn, Palmer sets up shop as a private investigator, but is, once again, forced back into service by Ross when Palmer's presence is linked directly to a murder scene. As always, Palmer is deliberately kept in the dark by his "superiors" & must manage to suss out what's really going on on his own.

"Billion Dollar Brain" is quite a different feel from "The IPCRESS File" & "Funeral in Berlin", in that it's more Bond-like than the others; the budget is bigger, locales & sets are more elaborate, the plot more grandiose, the villain more colourful. Fortunately, Palmer never becomes 007 despite all the trappings, & therefore, never becomes a parody of himself. We're treated to an everyday bloke trying to figure out what in hell is going on about him, right along with the audience.

Karl Malden & Ed Begley turn in fine performances (a bit over the top for Begley, but nothing that detracts from the overall viewing experience), & the delightful return of Guy Doleman as the unflappable Col Ross is welcome for strictly hissing & booing value.

It's truly unfortunate that "B$B" never really made as enormous an impression on audiences as the other Palmer outings, as it was, in many ways, indicative that the series was continuing to get better as it went. Makes one wonder what "Horse Under Water" would've been like had it been made.

One of the major complaints about this long-awaited DVD release is that a scene which features The Beatles' song "A Hard Day's Night" has been edited out. It makes no sense for MGM to have done that when they could just as easily have inserted an equally memorable '60s song, or at worst, tacked on pedestrian instrumental music in its stead (ala the disappointing exclusion of "Nights in White Satin" from the DVD release of "Wiseguy"). I'm fortunate enough to have found an uncut, remastered letterboxed copy of "B$B" a few years ago, so I can enjoy the film in its pristine state.

All in all, if you're a Palmer fan, rejoice in the fact that this movie has finally been released to DVD, despite the deletion of the aforementioned scene, as well as the lack of any bonus material. It's a great romp & an excellent swansong to an excellent series of films.

BILLION DOLLAR BRAIN was the third and final theatrical Harry Palmer picture, and rather than offering a sly counterpart to the Bond series, it approaches a near parody of them. Unlike the prior pictures there's a larger-than-life villain this time, and things even kick off with a self-conscious Maurice Binder title sequence. After that, settle in for a 60s spy yarn that's dated, but certainly unique.

This time, Harry is dragged back into the service to monitor an old American friend (Karl Malden) and his gorgeous mistress (Francoise Dorleac). The story ultimately leads to a fanatic American anti-communist (Ed Begley Sr.) and his plot to start WWIII by invading a Soviet satellite with his private army.

The film marked the first theatrical offering from Ken Russell who would go on to be the enfant terrible of British film industry for the next two decades. It offers a taste of Russell's offbeat style, but he never goes entirely over-the-top, though its shift in tone from the other Palmer films is a little jarring.

When I saw B$B as a kid I loved it as a wild standalone Bond send-up. Seen in the context of the other two films and the Deighton canon, it's the weakest of the three Caine movies. And taken on it's own terms it's audacious, but also at times off-puttingly arch. While the other two films riff off the protagonist's cynisism, here we get the filmmaker's cynicism in its place. There's no one to root for, and by the end Harry is almost literally lost in the frozen landscape.

Also, the "Palmer" character in the book eschews violence altogether, and usually finds a way to outwit his adversaries. Here he has a scene with Dorleac that borders on a sexual assault. This may have played in a Bond picture, but it doesn't mesh with the "Palmer "character here.

Malden is good as usual, what a varied career he had. He could play pretty much anything. The ravishing Dorleac had the unusual distinction of being Catherine Deneuve's better-looking sister. Her final kiss-off to Harry is a terrific moment, one of the film's best. (She was killed tragically shortly after this.) Begley gives a bravura performance in the pretty cliché role of the Texas blowhard. His big scene, one of Russell's boldest touches, has him giving a bombastic monologue while the camera swirls all around him. It's a pretty marvelous feat of acting. Also, Russell gets a marvelous assist from Richard Rodney Bennett's moody score.

Unfortunately, BILLION DOLLAR BRAIN failed to match the success of the earlier entries and as a result what would have been the final picture (the second novel) HORSE UNDER WATER was never made.

I saw and admired the first incarnations of Harry Palmer. They were great. This was not. Always wondered why I could never catch this movie on TV. I suppose its the movie rights that kept this off the little screen, but its still the weakest of the three. Too splashy and large. The others were smaller and more appealing. The movie rambles and is all over the map, almost literally, in terms of location. It wavered between serious espionage and over the top comedy to me. Seems the director didnt pay attention to the earlier films to get a bead on what made them far better. Keeping it much simpler and more character focused instead of trying to shock the eyeballs with vivid colors would have been better. Much of the visual seems just to impress but left little impact. Michael Caine is still great but his character in the first two movies was pretty much the only one with idiosynchrasies. This movie seems to be full of them. A great cast somehow doesnt gel right. Karl Malden is solid but doesnt seem right for the picture. Ed Begley is certainly capable, but the character played is ridiculous, trite [by todays standards]and overplayed. Francoise Dorleac makes for good eye candy but little intrigue. Oscar Homolka is again great to see and works well with the Palmer character. Dont know how the movie did financially, but if it were made a little better maybe Harry could have gone a little further, or better remembered in filmdom.

The scenery is good, the filming in Helsinki and Porvoo is beautiful.

I like Michael Cain, but this is not one of his best.

The 'Billion Dollar Brain' its self is maybe worth a 'buck'.

Ken Russell's razor-sharp direction whips Harry Palmer through snow-swept Helsinki and Latvia while being pursued by Russian agents and Texas zealots.
This tongue-in-cheek tour de force loses a full star, however, for slashing a frantic sequence during which the Beatles are featured on the soundtrack. Evidently Michael Jackson must have wanted too much cash for the copyright fees to the music, so we are stuck with an incomplete version of the film. It's not a long sequence, but it's like tearing a small piece off a famous painting - the movie is not quite the same.
Otherwise, the icy ending (shades of Alexander Nevsky), the delicious Francois Dorleac, the wizened Oscar Homalka, the greasy Karl Malden and the unflappable Michael Caine are fun to spend time with.
And one final word - the visions of fanatical oil-rich Texans convinced they can change other parts of the world because they have wealth and "god on their side" once seemed a caricature but now seems all too real.

One of the Trilogy. I watched it and then sold it on Ebay with the other two.

The most successful rival to the Bond franchise, Harry Palmer and his world of espionage scored by being the very antithesis of 007. The Ipcress File introduced Palmer as a down at heel MI6 agent operating in a very dowdy, unglamorous world of surveillance and cold war brutality. Based on the anonymous narrator of a series of Len Deighton novels (he was named Harry Palmer for the films), Palmer was located more in the site of John Le Carre rather than Ian Fleming, despite the fact that the films were made by one of the Bond producers, Harry Saltzman.

Funeral in Berlin followed in 1966 and took Palmer behind the iron curtain. The third and final Plamer film of the 1960s, Billion Dollar Brain, was criticised for straying too much into Bond material with its colourful locations, world class villain and a plot involving a privately financed invasion of Soviet territory and possible nuclear retaliation. The point missed by the critics is if Brain did go more James Bond, it did so with irony; the Russian characters in the film are portrayed as cultured and incorruptible, while the members of the Texan based Crusade For Freedom are either treacherous, dangerously paranoid or bungling idiots apparently glued to their Stetsons. Ken Russell's stylish direction, memorable photography and an evocative music score also served to make Brain a superior movie, but one very ahead of its time.

Brain bombed at the box office and plans to film Horse Under Water were shelved. But the Palmer trilogy continued to win new fans with each new generation and, on the strength of that, Michael Cain agreed to return to the role in 1996 for two new films, shot back to back, which dealt with Palmer turning freelance in the former Soviet Union. The first, Bullet to Bejing, proved a lively, fast paced little thriller and a worthy successor to the original trilogy. The second, Midnight in St. Petersburg, failed to live up to the promise of the first being a shorter, duller affair. As it turned out, neither film stood a chance as the distributors, Buena Vista, chose to premiere the films as TV movies in the States and straight to video elsewhere. This time, Palmer was retired for good.