Telefon

This film is not exactly literature, but the pacing works. The acting is good, and the characters are well drawn, if not a little too characatured, to coin a term. Bronson plays a Soviet KGB guy who is (naturally) the "only one" the Soviets can rely on to complete the mission. Lee Remick does her best with the script that calls for her to be the CIA agent who is simultaneously hardened/sexy-horny/friendly/sincere/scheming/and afraid. A tough role, but she pulls it together with a pre-Charlie's Angels perfection that is to be admired. Donald Pleasance is the bad guy flying all around the U.S. getting all cast members concerned about potentially unleashing "World War III;" the official fear of the Cold War. The whole plot's an implausible mess, but fun viewing, and certainly no worse than much of what's at the box office 30 years later...

Charles Bronson usually excels when he's surrounded by top talent on his action films, and on this explosive political thriller he has Don Siegel as director, Peter Hyams and Stirling Silliphant as the screenwriters (adapting Walter Wager's novel) and Lee Remick as his co-star (one assumes Bronson might have preferred wife and frequent co-star Jill Ireland for this role, but Remick fills the bill nicely). Plot concerns "sleeper agents" (or Russian spies) placed all over the US during the Cold War, average-seeming men and women who have been brainwashed into believing they are ordinary but who can be 'activated' by special code into sabotaging military or civil structures and facilities--followed by their own suicides. Shades of "The Manchurian Candidate"! Donald Pleasence is the sinister KGB clerk who has come to America in hopes of straining US-Russian relations by methodically setting off agents over the telephone to cause destruction in various American cities. Bronson, a KGB major, is selected to kill Pleasence, while talkative Remick is an agent assigned to pose as Bronson's wife. Globe-trotting, fast-moving, mindless entertainment; when it stops for character interaction, the director and his scenarists are really just catching their breath. Great fun for Bronson buffs, though Remick has a tough time lighting Chuck's fuse. This well-dressed honcho is stoic and unemotional, and the movie is all business. **1/2 from ****

The plot is good and the actors Bronson, General Strelsky (Patrick Mcgee) are good but the movie has gone out of time. One of the weaknesses is that we now know that it is impossible to hypnotise people for an extent of more than 10 years. People just tend to forget and to cure from psychical injuries of the time.

"Telefon" isn't exactly the most plausible espionage thriller ever made, but it was particularly the far-fetched and flamboyant plot line, along with the acting performances and harsh violence, that kept me glued to the screen. "Telefon" is the codename for an old Soviet war incentive against the US. Years ago, during the peak years of the Cold War, 51 Russian secret agents were strategically placed all over America. They were instructed to build up regular lives, however, reciting a specific piece from Robert Frost's poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" triggers some kind of hypnotic effect that turns them into unstoppable kamikaze soldiers with sabotaging assignments. The "Telefon" project got pretty much forgotten during the détente era, but now the dangerously berserk Stalinist Nicolai Dalchimsky single-handedly decide to awake the "sleeper" agents and leave a trail of destruction throughout America. Moscow headquarters' only chance to prevent World War III from happening is to send Major Grigori Borzov, who's loyal as a dog and has a photographic memory, to the US and eliminate Dalchimsky. You got to admit the idea behind "Telefon", which is based on a best-selling novel, is crazy enough to provide 100 minutes of grotesque and exhilarating action. In fact, the action and the extended imaginative sabotaging operations are what matter most here, as the rest of the script is full of ineptness and holes. The film hastily jumps from one wrecking sequence to the next without bothering to explain the background of the "Telefon" project or the motives of the culprit. Donald Pleasance, who portrays the evil Dalchimsky, is terribly underused because the screenplay never once bothers to elaborate on his malignant plans. This could have been a great role for Pleasance, but now it's just another villainous character like he has depicted dozens and dozens already. Charles Bronson is at his best, since he doesn't have to speak any more than absolutely necessary, but nevertheless acts forceful and confident. Don Siegel's direction is surprisingly pedestrian and distant, which isn't normal for him. Still, "Telefon" is good solid Charlie Bronson entertainment with a totally bonkers plot line!

Charles Bronson, (Maj. Grigori Borzov),"Twinky",'69 played a Russian KGB agent who was assigned to stop a possible World Ward III with the United States. Many years back there was a secret plan called "Telefon" which had a mysterious ability to capture a person's brain and set them off in all kinds of destructive evil deeds. Lee Remick,(Barbara),"No Way to Treat A Lady",'68, played the role of an agent for the United States and was assigned to work with Maj. Grigori. Barbara tries to turn Grigori on by all kinds of advances towards his manhood, but he is like a cold fish and strictly doing his assignment given him by the KGB. Donald Pleasance,(Nicolae Dolchinsky),"The House of Usher",'88, plays his usual role of the evil character who starts all kinds of trouble by just simply making telephone calls. Bronson and Remick were a great team together, however, the ending turned out completely different than what I had thought it would have ended.

Fair Bronson movie that drags due to bad screenplay and bad script.But the story was good and so were the performances by the lead actors.Tough Bronson and sexy Remick have good chemistry here and we kind of wish to see more of them together at the end of the movie.Regarding the accent of Bronson,there are Russians out there (contrary to popular ignorant belief) that know how to speak fluent English thank you and when we have the scenes where he is talking to a fellow Soviet comrade,that is what is called conveient interpretation.Of coarse it would be much better if they forced Bronson to speak Russian for those particular scenes and then have subtitles in English but that was unfortunately not done.Youy can tell the budget here was limited but it is effective for pleasing the spy story fans as well as fans of suspense and the man Charles Bronson......

Nicolai Dalchimski, a now rogue secret agent for KGB has stolen an important notebook which has the names and phone numbers of sleeping undercover KGB agents living in America. Under hypnosis they were given instructions, that when they hear a certain poem resided it triggers them to unknowingly act upon their mission which is a suicidal act on mainly military targets. Dalchimski heads to America to begin the process, so the Soviets send Colonel Borzov over there to put a stop to it before it causes a world war three. A curiously low-key, but plodding espionage cold war thriller (taken off Walter Wager's novel) by stalwart director Don Siegel. I'm really caught here, as the plot remains stimulating due to the novelty of its new slant (involving a KGB assignment of brainwashed sleepers living in the USA, who could be used to destroy an important target when a certain quote is mentioned to them), but I found it durably grinding than excitingly gripping. There was so much opportunity arising from the situations to the let the tension gradually build-up (as the concept is an alarming one), but despite some tight drilling set-pieces it never manages to tie them together to create a rampant urgency throughout. It's quite a spotty cross-country trip (spending a lot of time with Charles Bronson and Lee Remick), which gathers a head of steam before letting go the in the final third when the two parties finally come to blows (some underground car parking) and then delivering a well-staged, but underwhelming climax. The plot-work (by Peter Hyams and Stirling Silliphant) is quite constructive (if outrageous) with its sober script consisting of humorous quirks, but Siegel's efficiently grounded direction tries to cleverly milk out the dramatic suspense, but is forced to sourcing the material in an mechanical fashion. Although Pleasance's phone calls of stating Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods" to trigger of the sleepers are eerily achieved. Those familiar with his work though would come to appreciate the use of the well positioned camera (photographed by Michael Butler), from the leering frames to the long, expansive shots of the surrounding backdrops. Siegel truly had an eye for those details. The music was composed by no other Lalo Schifrin (who's done quite a few scores for Siegel --- "Dirty Harry" (1971) comes to mind), as he chips in with an engrossingly simmering and characteristic score that works with its dangerous tone. The performances are acceptably spot-on with a sturdy as ever Charles Bronson and Lee Remick shines with her affable presence. The two worked together very fittingly, but sometimes their moody interludes did take away from the bigger picture. Donald Pleasance gleefully turns it up as the rogue Russian agent, but in the end I wished there was a little more to his character. Patrick Magee, Sheree North, Jacqueline Scott also show up good support roles and Tyne Daly appears in something of a disposable character, well for laughs anyway. The way she was brought in, I thought there might have been more made of it. Also if you look at the cast there are some regulars, if only used in small parts that feature in other Bronson and Clint Eastwood films… with the likes of character actors Ed Bakey, John Mitchum and Roy Jenson. Hypnotically established gear work that's leisurely paced, but bestows little to no fireworks.

I've always liked "Telefon". I liked it when I saw it in the theater and I've liked it all of the many times that I've seen it since. "Telefon" never lets me down. It is still an exciting movie to watch. The last fifteen minutes or so is great stuff. The scene in Houston is another winner. The cast is very good and they all do a nice job. Charles Bronson was one of the greats. He delivers a nice performance in this movie. Director Don Siegel is one of my favorites. He made a very good movie with "Telefon". (I remember as part of the promotion for this movie there was a phone number you could call a hear a brief audio trailer. We must have called that number twenty times.)

Here's the story line, spoiler. The book for this movie should be great, what a concept. KGB agents brain washed into believing there someone else, then they hear this Robert Frost poem and bang they go on a suicide mission. A great story with too low of a budget, the film quality is grainy, bad acting, and a choppy script. The concept and Bronson could not save this movie. I like a few scenes in this film, ie the snake, the mom serving pancakes, and the beginning. The film dragged, and watching it to the end was a chore. This movie is a 5, but could of, should of, been a 10

Telefon casts Charles Bronson as a KGB agent on assignment in America trying to stop Donald Pleasance from igniting World War III. Bronson is aided and abetted uneasily by CIA agent Lee Remick and the two of them get involved with each other as well as the mission at hand. It's quite a mission they have, Pleasance is an old line Stalinist and he's noticed the new regime is slowly doing away with his kind. So he knows about this operation involving 51 Manchurian candidates who are Russian sleeper agents the way Laurence Harvey was in the Manchurian Candidate. With the proper phrase these people who are under hypnosis and just living regular humdrum lives get a signal to complete a mission involving sabotage of some military installation in their area. Pleasance has come to America to set these agents off. It might have been a whole lot easier to just dial long distance once he was out of the Soviet Union, but apparently Pleasance is also getting a few jollies and really wants to see his handiwork. Bronson gets the list and follows Pleasance's trail hoping to head him off. A nice cast of talented players pulls off and makes entertaining when you think about it, a really silly Cold War era story. Pleasance as usual pulls all the stops out as the villain and Bronson is his usual menacing self. His loyal legion of fans might like Telefon, I'm kind of partial to it myself, but I recognize it's illogicality.