Eurospy Guide [Paperback]

Matt Blake (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2004

For a brief period in the mid-1960s, the whole world went spy crazy. From Sri Lanka to Poland, from the US to India, cinemas were filled with the exploits of suave secret agents, glamorous femmes fatales and increasingly demented villains. The symbols and images of the genre permeated advertisements, pulp novels and television series as well. No suburban dinner party was complete without a discussion of the latest escapades of a Bond, a Bulldog Drummond or a Harry Palmer. The intention of this book is to examine the more obscure cinematic manifestations of sixties spy mania. Though these films may be almost entirely forgotten today, they were literally everywhere at the time. With the sorry state of the world, what better time than today to delve into the life of a super-slick secret agent? Someone who understands the games that nations are playing, someone who can process incoming information and control—rather than be controlled by—situations. Someone who is backed up by the might of military hardware and brainpower. Someone who can charm the chicks and beat up the bad guys. This is the import of the secret agent: In a world of profound flux, we need the anchor of a hero who is able to do something about the things that we, frankly, have no power over. That, of course, and the fact that the films are bloody good fun.

Product Details

• Paperback: 308 pages
• Publisher: Luminary Press (July 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1887664521
• ISBN-13: 978-1887664523
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #959,134 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant !!!, December 29, 2004

By 

Cyberbambi123 (Zürich - Switzerland / Europe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eurospy Guide (Paperback)

We Europeans have produced many excellent B-movies, which seem to be unfortunately not so well known in the USA. They are the source of hours of fun and pleasure if you do not take them too serious. Matt Blake and David Deal have written an excellent book about the european spy-movies (without the 007-James Bond Films, which are covered in many other books). The encyclopedia is very complete and covers also the films with spys like Jerry Cotton, Agent 3S3, Lemmy Caution, OSS 117, 077, Harry Palmer and many others. Definitively a brilliant reference-book for the serious filmbook- or moviecollector !
other books about the same genre:
"spies & sleuth" from Cinebooks
"the great spy pictures" Vol. 1 + 2 from James Robert Parish
"les faux espions" from John Carnaby
"George Nader und seine Filme" from Dirk Brüderle

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars About time!, November 5, 2004

By 

Johan K. Kjellstrom "077spy" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eurospy Guide (Paperback)

Finally somebody took the time to review this forgotten genre. The James Bond phenomenon of the 60's, especially with the release of Goldfinger, had every studio in Europe, and to a certain degree in the US as well, jumping on the bandwagon and cranking out spy thrillers. Some were terrible, some were enjoyable and some were great. This book gives a very good and honest overview of the genre. Both Matt and David give their honest opinions, no holds barred, on the movies reviewed. The review includes cast overview, locations country of origin, year released as well as a personal review of the films. It also includes chapters on the series (Kommisar X, 077, S3S, etc), the main actors as well alternate titles of the movies. All in all makes for a very enjoyable read. Now to hope that some of the studios released these movies on DVD.

Johan

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spy Kids, January 25, 2005

By 

Charles A. Sigars - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eurospy Guide (Paperback)

We were so young. This is a Boomer Book, reminding us of Bond and Helm and now, if we didn't know, our brothers (and sisters) across the pond. My 15-year-old son laughs at "Austin Powers" and now I can show him where the whole damn thing came from.

It doesn't matter if you're a fan. The reviews are quirky, enlightening, funny, and laced with references to what we remember even if we've let it slip a little. This is less a reference book than an overview of a difficult time when some really goofy things happened on film, some of them awful, some less so, some pretty magnificent. Even if you never rent or buy any of these films, you'll get hours of enjoyment from just reading about what it was. This is one for the library, or maybe the bedroom, or possibly the bathroom. The places you read.