Ep #14 - Bootleg Bond in the 60s - Derek Flint and Matt Helm
The Silencers (1966)
While 007 may have been the original catalyst, what truly turned the 1960s into an era of Bond was the vast amount of rip-offs and spoofs that tired to cash in on the craze. Welcome to a new segment on Cinema60 where, every seven episodes, we will guide you through the magical world of Bootleg Bond!
We start with Derek Flint and Matt Helm, two big contenders who in 1966, right when Bond Mania was heating up, dipped their toes in the spy-craze waters. Derek Flint was the hyper-intelligent, infallibly brilliant secret agent. Matt Helm was the womanizing drunk who stumbled into solutions as often as any random woman’s loving arms. Flint and Helm both represented blatant marketing strategies that were eager to peer into the psyches of the movie-going public; according to Hollywood, you were either watching for the gadgets or for the girls.
Join Bart and Jenna as they discuss every Helm and Flint movie in one go and manage to make it out with their eyes not perma-rolled to the backs of their heads. Warning: expect a whole lot of problematic junk in these silly stinkers.
The following films are discussed:
• Our Man Flint (1966)
Directed by Daniel Mann
Starring James Coburn, Lee J. Cobb, Gila Golan
• The Silencers (1966)
Directed by Phil Karlson
Starring Dean Martin, Stella Stevens, Daliah Lavi
• Murderers’ Row (1966)
Directed by Henry Levin
Starring Dean Martin, Ann-Margret, Karl Malden
• In Like Flint (1967)
Directed by Gordon Douglas
Starring James Coburn, Jean Hale, Andrew Duggan
• The Ambushers (1967)
Directed by Henry Levin
Starring Dean Martin, Janice Rule, Senta Berger
• The Wrecking Crew (1968)
Directed by Phil Karlson
Starring Dean Martin, Nancy Kwan, Sharon Tate
And, as an added bonus, also a bit on:
• Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
Directed by Jay Roach
Starring Mike Myers, Elizabeth Hurley, Michael York
