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Topaz (1969)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
19 December 1969 (USA)
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Tagline:
Hitchcock takes you behind the actual headlines to expose the most explosive spy scandal of the century!
Plot:
A French intelligence agent becomes embroiled in the Cold War politics first with uncovering the events leading up to the 1962 Cuban Missle Crisis, and then back to France to break up an international Russian spy ring. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
2 wins
&
1 nomination
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NewsDesk:
(3 articles)
Geek Deal: Alfred Hitchcock Masterpiece DVD Collection for $54
(From Slash Film. 28 October 2009, 9:32 AM, PDT)
15 Bloody Box Sets
(From Fangoria. 19 January 2009, 8:00 AM, PST)
(From Slash Film. 28 October 2009, 9:32 AM, PDT)
15 Bloody Box Sets
(From Fangoria. 19 January 2009, 8:00 AM, PST)
User Comments:
The French Connection
more (62 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Frederick Stafford | ... | Andre Devereaux |
| Dany Robin | ... | Nicole Devereaux |
 | John Vernon | ... | Rico Parra |
| Karin Dor | ... | Juanita de Cordoba |
| Michel Piccoli | ... | Jacques Granville |
| Philippe Noiret | ... | Henri Jarre |
| Claude Jade | ... | Michele Picard |
| Michel Subor | ... | Francois Picard |
| Roscoe Lee Browne | ... | Philippe Dubois |
| Per-Axel Arosenius | ... | Boris Kusenov |
 | John Forsythe | ... | Michael Nordstrom |
| Edmon Ryan | ... | McKittreck |
| Sonja Kolthoff | ... | Mrs. Kusenov |
| Tina Hedström | ... | Tamara Kusenov (as Tina Hedstrom) |
| John Van Dreelen | ... | Claude Martin |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
143 min | 127 min (edited version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:
Spain:18 |
Canada:G (Quebec) |
Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) |
UK:PG (DVD rating) |
Iceland:12 |
UK:A (original rating) |
Brazil:14 |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:M |
Finland:K-16 |
Norway:15 |
Norway:16 (1970) |
Peru:14 |
Sweden:11 |
USA:M (original rating) |
USA:PG |
West Germany:12 |
Singapore:PG
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Leon Uris wrote the first draft of the screenplay, but Alfred Hitchcock declared it unshootable at the last minute and called in Samuel A. Taylor (writer of Vertigo (1958)) to rewrite it from scratch. Some scenes were written just hours before they were shot.
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Goofs:
Continuity: The position and numbers of the pencils in the mug on Jarré's desk, when Picard interviews him, varies between shots.
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Quotes:
Francois Picard:
I've been shot...Just a little.
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Movie Connections:
Featured in 'Topaz': An Appreciation by Film Critic/Historian Leonard Maltin (2001) (V)
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (62 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Topaz (1969)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| Pietà | ClassicsCaper |
| I'll watch Topaz on my deathbed! | Max_Planck |
| Red Dots | j_chy |
| Juanita de Cordoba | PorkPie007 |
| Middle finger | mrpacker |
| Juanita's secret? | treehugger1313-1 |
Recommendations
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Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Crime section | IMDb USA section |
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One aspect of "Topaz" that should be kept in mind is that while American and British critics were belittling Hitchcock as a "mere entertainer," the French New Wave critics, led by Francois Truffaut, were lionizing him and Truffaut even published a book-long interview with Hitchcock published in 1967.
Hitchcock hadn't worked in years and was desperately trying to get another movie going when Universal showed him the book "Topaz" -- about spies in the French government, with a French protagonist and climactic scenes in Paris. I think that Hitchcock may have -- unwisely -- decided to do "Topaz" so he could do a "French picture."
There are some great individual scenes in Topaz -- the opening defection in Copenhagen, the suspenseful mission to get secrets from the Cubans in Harlem's Hotel Theresa (Hitchcock in Harlem?!); the hero's dangerous mission into Cuba and the death of his key contact there.
But Hitchcock really didn't like making "Topaz," he was bored and ill and resentful (Universal had killed a project called "Frenzy" -- not to be confused with the 1972 film he made of that name -- and Hitchcock was bitter about it.)
So we end up with a very half-hearted Hitchcock movie with a few good scenes, no real stars, THREE failed endings (all available to see on the DVD), and an attempt to "make nice with my French friends."