Milo Tindle (Michael Caine) is invited to the home of detective novelist Andrew Wyck (Laurence Olivier) to discuss in a gentlemanly type way how Tindle has stepped out with Wyck's wife, Marguerite (Dame Not-Appearing-in-This-Film). Wyck tries to make light of the situation while still being incredibly obviously furious about it, and proposes that although Milo's hair salons are doing well, he is never going to be able to provide the kind of luxury Marguerite requires without a little help. Wyck has an aristocrat's view of taxation, in that he should be exempt from it, and coincidentally has a safe full of Marguerite's jewels and the name of a reputable fence in Amsterdam all ready to go, should Milo be amenable to a little light insurance fraud and a staged B&E between friends. But as the games progress, it becomes very clear that at least one man is playing in deadly earnest.
I was hoping to like this film. I like Michael Caine. I like Laurence Olivier. I love Joseph L. Mankiewicz. I did not like this film. The pervasive misogyny and rampant ethnic slurs (anti-Italian) date the script terribly and it felt very limited having just the two actors. There was never a break. Even the arrival of a maid or another voice on the phone would have provided a respite from hearing the same two voices (although a variety of accents, thank you, Olivier) for two hours and eighteen minutes straight.
It feels like a movie obsessed with its own cleverness, a flaw helpfully spelled out by Wyck's character. But everyone else in Movie Club really liked it, so YMMV. It is on YouTube only because of some weird licensing thing. Make sure you get the HD version.
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