The Jigsaw Man

Little bit complicated but I gave it a ten cause I like jigsaws

Michael Caine and Sir Laurence Olivier are involved in this routine movie (probably rent was due and the fellows were late on payment) which is completely useless. A former British spy who betrayed his own country is sent back from Russia on a mission. But suddenly (well, not so suddenly) the story twists to an unexpected (well, not so unexpected) ending. No actor seems to be interested in what is happening and the Italian dub (above all Olivier) is rather poor. The plot makes little sense and . If you look for a spy movie with Michael Caine, watch "The Ipcress File" or "The fourth protocol",instead. They would be a very much better choice.

This movie is interesting. It is very hard to follow, but after seeing it two or three times, it comes. A very well defined star-studded cast but the movie is not what you'd expect it to be. Other than that, this movie would be good to watch if you like action, politics or just want to kill time.

This is probably the worst film I've ever seen. Though it seems to be a thriller, I spent the first twenty minutes of it thinking it was a comedy à la Leslie Nielsen; then I realised it didn't mean to be funny. The lines give the word "poor" a new sense. Cheap. I watched it on a coach trip, and contributed to make the trip rather miserable.

The whole film reminded me of a Professionals episode, but with worse acting. Dodgy accents, russians drinking vodka and wearing red star hats so you know who they are. Some foreign bloke in a suit with blue sunglasses, badly driven cars for no reason, etc. Olivier seems to be a terrible actor, shouts a lot, trying, but failing to be a blustering mi6 top brass, whilst wearing a false beard. Token blonde in the form of Susan George, whose teeth seem to suggest she should be in a Hammer vampire movie instead. A convoluted plot that makes little sense, its just shows how filming has improved in the last 40 years.

A British espionage drama; A story about a former head of the British Secret Service defector given plastic surgery and sent back to Britain by the KGB to retrieve some vital documents. A gritty but poorly produced thriller that trades on a well worn formula of spies, moles, double agents, defections, betrayed lovers and the long, cold war. The story dodders with flabby story exposition and an over garrulous dialogue. The plot is a bit convoluted, so much so that the brisk pace gives it an almost farcical feel. Although the main line of the story is clear enough, truncated subplots gives the impression the director was trying to preserve too much of the source material. Michael Caine's Russian accent is risible and Laurence Ollivier occasionally chews up the scenery to give it some pulse.

THE JIGSAW MAN is an unremarkable spy drama of the 1980s that manages to be boring rather than thrilling, routine rather than intriguing. It doesn't help that it has no suspense whatsoever, it just goes through the motions throughout and veers into silliness on more than one occasion. Terence Young directs for the penultimate time in his career and is a long way from his glory Bond days of the 1960s here. Michael Caine is the miscast protagonist, a Russian spy who undergoes facial surgery in order to go undercover back in Britain once his cover is blown. An extraordinary cast of famous faces propel the story along, but you can't help find them more than a little wasted. Laurence Olivier is the handler, Robert Powell a fellow agent, and Susan George doesn't seem to have aged a day since STRAW DOGS. Charles Gray delivers an impeccably pompous turn while Vladek Sheybal, Michael Medwin, David Kelly, and Anthony Dawson do little more than provide mildly interesting cameos.

Every great actor must have at least ONE on the CV they would not want anyone to find out about and for the likes of Caine and Olivier, ( I STILL cannot believe they were in this!), this is IT. Lacks EVERYTHING: pace, style, excitement, camera work, plot, score etc. etc. Unlike my REAL pet hates, such as John Wayne's "The Green Berets", I cannot even get really excited enough to hate this turkey, but just regard it in the way you would a really boring and unsatisfactory meal in a third rate restaurant - something you have gone through, but will never repeat by returning. Regard this film in the same way or, even better, save two hours of your life by doing something better than recording this when it is shown at 1.30a.m. on Channel Zog, (for I cannot imagine any other way you are going to get to see it), and wasting the time to view it later.

Sir Philip Kimberley is a former M16 intelligent general who defected to the Russians in the 70s, returns back to his home country after faking his death. He receives plastic surgery on his face, so he could go into England to pick up very important documents that he has hidden which has KGB agents working in England. Knowing that the British thinks his dead, he escapes the KGB men and defects back to the British as a Russian spy. He goes on to basically play each other off, in the hope he can pick up a large amount of doe and go on to live a new life, along with his daughter. "The Jigsaw Man" is pretty much a fundamental Cold War thriller, which feels clammy and looks like a cheap b-grade spy film. The routine material (taken off Dorothea Bennett's novel) wants to be crafty with many plot tricks involving double crossings, disguises, ever-changing accents and secret documents. But with these aspects, there's just too much restraint and haggard developments in what is mainly a story and dialogue driven outing. You'll need these elements to be strong and convincing, but a stated script completely drags and spits out some bawdy lines. The serious nature of it, can come across quite laughable and ludicrous. While the chunky plot offers a labyrinth of turns, it can be meandering and vapid in many shady situations. These twisty developments running through the story are well organised, but never in a astute manner. Thrills are minimal, but the elaborately taut layout breaks out for an action flourish towards the latter end. Even then, the minor pockets of get-up-and-go just can't break the slumber for too long. Terence Young's pedestrian direction seems to go missing in very long spells, but Freddie Francis' polished photography and John Cameron's steamily leeching music score doesn't follow the same fate. The cast is an excellent one. Michael Caine is decent enough, even though it's not quite an inspired performance and provides nothing more then a sour-face. Laurence Olivier provides class, but again he's left with not too much on offer. One very underrated Robert Powell gives a reliably understated turn and Susan George is sparklingly potent in her supporting role. Incredibly patchy and at times hollow, but still a sturdy espionage thriller. The main problem is that it lingers about in too many chewy sequences then really getting on with it.

It's very hard to know what to write about this. Take a seasoned director of taut spy thrillers (Terence Young, responsible for Dr No and From Russia With Love) and pair him with an experienced second-unit chief (Peter Hunt). Take three of the most talented actors of modern times (Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine and Charles Gray). Take a roman a clef about Kim Philby and a fictional return to Britain post-defection and make it in 1983 when spy thrillers were still relevant in a Cold War context. You'd think you'd have a pretty good film. Sadly, you don't. This film is terrible. A lumpen script and corny story is weighed down by an unsympathetic lead (is Michael Caine a goodie or a baddie?), wild overacting from Laurence Olivier (who was far too old to play a spy chief) and confusing plot points (Charles Gray's character has a wig...only Gray has a perfect head of hair and looks ridiculous with his bald cap on). Young clearly slept through the film instead of directing it and the script/plot is very hard to follow. I saw it last night for the second time and it's almost like both versions were cut but in different places... I'm pretty convinced that a third watching wouldn't help. For those who haven't seen it, don't even bother with the first watching. Truly truly awful.