The heroes of both the books and the films are American private eye Joe Walker (played in the films by Tony Kendall) and New York cop Tom Rowland (played by Brad Harris). Joe Walker is a devil-may-care sort of guy fitting pretty neatly into the stereotype of a glamorous private eye. Tom Rowland is a tough no-nonsense cop who thinks his pal Joe is wild and irresponsible.
This adventure begins with the ambush of a police van. The object was to spring convicted robber Arthur Hillary. Hillary knows where the loot from a spectacular jewel robbery is hidden. His brother Robert has the jewels and Arthur doesn’t know exactly where they’re hidden.
The two brothers don’t get on, partly because Arthur thinks Robert stole his girl Elizabeth (Erika Blanc). Elizabeth is now married to Robert.
In the English dubbed version the surname Hillary is changed to Tracy.
Robert lives in Canada and that’s where Arthur and his accomplices are heading. That’s also where Tom Rowland is. He’s helping the local Canadian police on this case.
Tom is rather taken aback when he discovers that Joe Walker, who is supposed to be Brazil has just checked into the same hotel he’s staying in. What on earth is Joe doing in Canada?
Joe is in fact working for the insurance company so he’s trying to recover the jewels. Since Tom is trying to find the thieves it makes sense for them to coöperate which, after much squabbling, they do.
There’s much more serious disagreement between the two Hillary (or Tracy) brothers. When I tell you that they’re twin brothers you’ll have some idea of the likely nature of those complications.
Arthur’s accomplices want the jewels as well. There’s not much honour among these thieves.
Finding the jewels is the challenge. Whenever they are they’re very well hidden.
Another complication is Robert’s nurse/secretary Emily (Corny Collins). Robert seems very fond of her, and Elizabeth has noticed this.
Tom also seems to have grown very fond of Elizabeth, in a way that might conceivably affect his professional judgment.
The plot revolves around those missing jewels, with various characters willing to bump each other off and resort to other nastiness in order to get them.
At this point you might be thinking that this doesn’t sound like a eurospy movie. Where are the gadgets? Where is the outlandish spy thriller plot in which the fate of the world hangs in the balance? You’d be right to wonder. The Kommissar X movies certainly started out as typical (and very fine) examples of the eurospy genre. By the time we get to this fifth film we find that the series has morphed into something entirely different. This is a pure crime thriller. There’s no hint whatsoever of spies or diabolical criminal masterminds or international intrigue.
It seems that the producers had decided that the 60s spy craze had just about run its course and that glamorous crime thrillers set in exotic locations (liberally sprinkled with pretty girls) were going to be the wave of the future. They may have been correct in feeling that the eurospy genre was close to being played out.
You might also think that Canada is an odd choice as the setting, since eurospy movies usually had more exotic settings. The reason may have been that Expo 67 was happening in Montreal at the time the movie was being shot. Expo 67 was the biggest and most successful world’s fair in history. It’s used as the background for much of the action in the movie and at the time it would have given the movie a very up-to-date and topical feel. And since this is a crime movie rather than a spy movie the futuristic trappings of Expo 67 (monorails and such things) supplied some of the technological coolness that had been provided by the secret spy headquarters and the gadgetry of the earlier spy-oriented films.
The action moves along at a brisk pace. There’s a pretty cool fight scene in a martial arts club. Theres an epic fight scene later on. Being outnumber six or eight to one doesn’t even slow Joe and Tom down. Corpses slowly accumulate. Lovely ladies are threatened with torture.
Tony Kendall (who was of course Italian) and Brad Harris always make a great team. In this film their constant efforts to get the better of each other provide extra amusement. There are very satisfactory villains and three lovely ladies all of whom can act. There’s mayhem aplenty but no graphic violence and no sex.
The early Kommissar X movies have long been available in English dubbed versions but sourced from very poor washed-out prints. The recent German DVD boxed set provides lovely bright vibrant transfers and the English-dubbed soundtrack of Kommissar X - Drei blaue Panther is provided as well.
Although it’s not technically a eurospy movie it still has much of the eurospy vibe to it. A fast-paced fun movie. Highly recommended.
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