Arabesque (1966)

This mystery/thriller is from director Stanley Donen. It follows on from the director's previous film, Charade starring Cary Grant. Charade was very much a Hitchcockian thriller which could pass as the work of the 'Master of Suspense' himself. That film totally delivered whereas this one is brilliant entertainment but with a few clunky scenes and a slightly disappointing plot reveal towards the end.Donen directs brilliantly with exciting action scenes, sophisticated scenes of dialogue and BAFTA winning cinematography featuring very stylish and interesting camera work. Viewing this in HD is a treat for the eyes, it looks beautiful. The acting is of a high standard throughout the cast with some good villains and a top class performance from Sophia Loren. Gregory Peck is his usual brilliant self as the Oxford professor dragged into a dangerous game of spies, plots and murder due to his abilities in deciphering hieroglyphics. The part was meant for Cary Grant and Peck is not usually seen in this kind of role where amusing quips are delivered in the midst of danger and romance. A star of his quality takes it in his stride, though, and he is spot on in the role.The mysterious plot goes along well and keeps you really interested but there are scenes which are badly thought through and as the truth behind the mysteries gets revealed towards the end it does not quite make sense to the degree it could. There are a number of things which jar a bit as being too improbable or inadequately explained: A royal guardsman inexplicably collapsing due to a comment from Peck and his fellow guard totally ignoring the incident, people running into and around London Zoo at night with no security barrier or anything to stop them, people using various methods of trying to kill Peck when a simple gunshot would do and the revelation of the hieroglyphic message all seem symptoms of the hastily rewritten screenplay.Scenes in the zoo, a horse race, a cornfield and a viaduct all have that Hitchcockian stamp on them and Donen at this stage seemed to be trying (or being told by film studios?) to become the new 'Hitch'. In Charade he managed to achieve that level. In Arabesque he does a really good job in the entertainment, action, use of great actors and visual style but falls down a bit on plot execution.7.5/10

Of course it is silly and Gregory Peck is not the right man, it was written for Cary Grant after all, but it is also irresistible. The film begins with a standard enough thriller set-up and ends stunningly with a similarly effective Hitchcockian chase through the countryside and over a magnificent metal bridge chased by agricultural machinery and a helicopter. In between, however, director Stanley Donen lets it all hang loose and despite the often engaging, more often mundane dialogue, rumbling on takes to making a film with images. We see reflections in shop windows, reflections in car windscreens, coloured lights also adding to the reflections. Upside down images, sideways images, shots through lights, fish-tanks, people's legs. the screen shines with constant and curious op-art images, constantly surprising and complementing whatever action is being played out. Oh and among the wondrous sights is, of course, Sophia Loren, shot lovingly in a multitude of costumes and shoes and boots and reflected here there and everywhere. A joy to watch. An actress and a director having fun.

In the mid-1960s, director Stanley Donen made 2 films that remind me so much of each other -- this film and "Charade". Although "Charade" was more successful financially, I always felt there was something not quite right with the film (although I never figured out what), while this film seems pretty much perfect. Both films have actors I very much admire -- Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn - versus - Gregory Peck and Sophia Loren, but this match-up of Peck and Hepburn seems to have just a bit more chemistry working.The story line works pretty well (there are a few minor spots where connections just seem to happen out of pure lock, but that's okay). Mostly, things develop at a pace that is logical for the story, and tells you just enough at each point to make you want to get to the next point. And the climax of this film -- the demise of helicopter -- is one of my all-time favorite film scenarios. And, unlike today's films that would be bursting with CGI effects that you know are damn-well impossible, here, everything seems like something that could happen. The tension in parts of the script is perfect. And, like with Hitchcock, the story works because it's the story of a common man caught up in an uncommon situation. Oh, and there are some rather nice and sophisticated camera angles throughout the film...not enough to distract, but enough to make you think several times, "Hey, that's cool".Gregory Peck is perfect. Just perfect. Professorish without being a prude, brave enough to do what has to be done. And adequately tongue-in-check. The same can be said for Sophia Loren, although she's not the common woman here. But she plays it too a tee with just enough mystery to make you wonder.Alan Badel is delicious as the villain! This is a film where you should just sit back and revel in sly comments, a great script, and the chemistry between Peck and Loren.Highly recommended.

After the success of CHARADE in 1963 Stanley Donen followed it up with another romantic comedy/spy caper called ARABESQUE. And I really enjoyed it. OK, so it's not quite as good or as witty as CHARADE (which I gave a 9/10) but it's a very solid follow-up. Some of the camera angles/tricks in this one (courtesy of cinematographer Christopher Challis - who also shot A SHOT IN THE DARK) are simply amazing!!! They give the film a certain psychedelic feel/quality to it which is very reflective of the times - mid-to-late 60s. Plus the score is by the great Henry Mancini. And Maurice Binder (who did the titles for the Bond films) does the title sequence here. Both Mancini and Binder also worked on CHARADE. And I gotta say that you'll never see a hotter Sophia Loren than in this flick. It's impossible for a woman to look any hotter than Sophia in this one!! That alone is reason enough for checking this movie out! It was also fairly interesting to see the typically no-nonsense Gregory Peck in a comedy role but I thought he handled himself quite well here. He obviously wasn't as good as Cary Grant was in CHARADE (Grant is a natural with this material) but he was better than I would have imagined him to be. Plus I really enjoyed Alan Badel as the villain - he has a falcon for a pet/weapon. He really looked like Peter Sellers for some reason. Oh and it has a creepy opening at the eye doctor's office. I won't spoil it for anyone. Let's just say that I will definitely think of this film the next time I go to see the eye doctor. It's as unsettling as the dentist scene in MARATHON MAN.