{"id":76367,"date":"2021-09-22T13:35:23","date_gmt":"2021-09-22T20:35:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=76367"},"modified":"2023-12-18T20:37:56","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T03:37:56","slug":"modesty-blaise-1966","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=76367","title":{"rendered":"Modesty Blaise (1966)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;We&#8217;ve no alternative; we must have Modesty Blaise.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster-199x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"199\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-76369\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster-199x300.png 199w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster-680x1024.png 680w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster-85x128.png 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster-179x270.png 179w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Poster.png 723w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWorld-class jewel thief Modesty Blaise (Monica Vitti) is hired by a pair of British officials (Harry Andrews and Alexander Knox) to send a bribe of diamonds to a sheik (Clive Revill), knowing that a rival thief (Dirk Bogarde) will attempt to snatch them as well. Modesty teams up with her long-time partner (Terence Stamp) to complete her mission, which includes facing villainous Bogarde and his wife (Rossella Falk) on their isolated Mediterranean island.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dirk Bogarde Films<\/li>\n<li>Harry Andrews Films<\/li>\n<li>Joseph Losey Films<\/li>\n<li>Monica Vitti Films<\/li>\n<li>Satires and Spoofs<\/li>\n<li>Spies<\/li>\n<li>Terence Stamp Films<\/li>\n<li>Thieves and Criminals<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThis notorious misfire by director Joseph Losey &#8212; <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Modesty_Blaise_(novel)\">based on a novel featuring the titular comic strip character<\/a> &#8212; is a colorful bomb of a satire attempt. The introduction to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s538blaise.html\">DVD Savant&#8217;s review<\/a> sums the movie up well: <\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>Modesty Blaise<\/em> can best be described as an interesting mess. One of director Joseph Losey&#8217;s most expensive and atypical films, it&#8217;s a complicated, confusing, and sometimes tiresome collection of SuperSpy situations and characters that never finds a satisfying tone, although some aspects of its production are superb.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Later, DVD Savant describes it as &#8220;a comedy without laughs, that has no control over its tone&#8221; &#8212; a movie that &#8220;starts like a James Bond film and crumbles into rather boring scenes punctuated by pitiful jokes and impenetrable in-jokes.&#8221; Italian actress Vitti &#8212; best known for her starring roles in Michelangelo Antonioni&#8217;s <em>L&#8217;Avventura<\/em> (1960), <em>La Notte<\/em> (1961), <em>L&#8217;Eclisse<\/em> (1962), and <em>Red Desert<\/em> (1964) &#8212; is appropriately quirky and beautiful yet somehow not quite believable as an agile super-spy: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Modesty-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Much more intriguing (though under-developed) is Bogarde&#8217;s fussy super-criminal Gabriel, wearing dapper clothes and a silver wig and caring far too much about details of the food he eats: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76382\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Lobsters-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; while allowing torture and killings to occur around him. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76383\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Mime-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>This movie has color and style to spare, but it&#8217;s frustrating to be tossed from set to set &#8212; with Vitti rapidly changing outfits and hair colors as well:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76388\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Costumes-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8212; for no real purpose other than whimsy. Given its budget, <em>Modesty Blaise<\/em> had the potential to be a clever, female-centric send-up of James Bond flicks, but it falls far short of this goal. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dirk Bogarde as Gabriel<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76378\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Bogarde7-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jack Hildyard&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76372\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Cup-Cinematography-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Still-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Stylish sets and outfits<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76374\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Set2-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-76373\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Modesty-Blaise-Room-480x270.png 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s worth a one time look if you&#8217;re curious. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0060708\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/fantasy\/modesty-blaise-film-1966.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1966\/08\/11\/archives\/screen-gaudy-modesty-blaise-girl-secret-agentmonica-vitti-costars.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=177&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/modesty-blaise\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/JWw-tCJEcOA\">Welcome to the Basement Video Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s538blaise.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve no alternative; we must have Modesty Blaise.&#8221; Synopsis: World-class jewel thief Modesty Blaise (Monica Vitti) is hired by a pair of British officials (Harry Andrews and Alexander Knox) to send a bribe of diamonds to a sheik (Clive Revill), knowing that a rival thief (Dirk Bogarde) will attempt to snatch them as well. Modesty teams up with her long-time partner (Terence Stamp) to complete her mission, which includes facing villainous Bogarde and his wife (Rossella Falk) on their isolated&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=76367\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=76367"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76367\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94088,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76367\/revisions\/94088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=76367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=76367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=76367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}