Topaz (1969)

Topaz (1969) – A French secret service agent does a favor for American intelligence that leads him back to a Soviet spy in the French government.

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock                           Starring John Forsyth, Frederick Stafford, John Vernon

This movie would seem to have everything I could want.  Hitchcock directs a story based on a Leon Uris novel.  I’m a big fan of both.  In the end, the movie comes up short.

Set just before the Cuban Missile crisis of 1962, the Americans need to know what is going on in Cuba.  Nordstrom (Forsyth) turns to his French colleague Devereaux (Stafford), who still has contacts on the island.  Along with the testimony of a newly defected Soviet official, it becomes clear that there is a Soviet spy ring operating in France at a very high level.  Devereaux is caught between loyalty to his own country and his friendship with Nordstrom.  The Americans don’t want the Soviets to find out how much they know.

The problem with the movie isn’t the concept (it’s actually a pretty good spy movie), the direction or the acting.  I’d put it on the script and the soundtrack.  Uris was invited in to write the screenplay of his book, but he and Hitchcock didn’t get along.  So the script was re-written on the fly, with some parts being written just before being shot.  The story line feels like it could have used another couple weeks of editing and polish.  The soundtrack just doesn’t fit.  For a tense spy thriller, we end up with this rather silly music that robs several key scenes of any gravitas.  That’s unfortunate since the score was done by one of the greats, Maurice Jarre.

The movie is part of a cold streak following “The Birds” for Hitchcock.   “Marnie”, “Torn Curtain” and “Topaz” did not do particularly well at the box office.  Legend says that he didn’t really want to do the last two but was pushed into them by his studio.  The movie lacks any big name stars, and there isn’t a “Hitchcock Blonde” at the center of it all, so it doesn’t quite feel like one of his classics. There are a couple more typical moments.  My favorite is the death scene of Devereaux’s contact in Cuba.  The overhead as she crumples to the floor is simply stunning.

Why You Will Like It – A solid spy thriller.

Rating – *** Worth A Look