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Memorable, crazy movie

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The first part of a trilogy starring Tom Adams as British secret agent 'Charles Vine', a man equally adept with both girl and gun. For his first assignment, he is assigned to protect Swedish scientist 'Henrik Jakobsen' ( Karel Stepanek ) who claims to be on the verge of a great scientific breakthrough - a gravity control device known as 'Regrav'. Not only will it revolutionise the transport system, but is capable of creating a force field to protect a country from nuclear attack. The British want Regrav, so do the Russians. From the moment Jakobsen steps off the plane, both his and Vine's life are in danger. The enemy are ruthless and cunning - deploying fake policemen, soldiers, transvestite killers, and even a double of Vine - to try and get what they want. All he has on his side is a Mauser Broomhandle, his wits and his fists. Made on a budget which wouldn't have paid for one of 007's Vodka Martinis, this little-known British spy film is surprisingly good. Adams is handsome and laconic and could - in my view - have made a fine Bond ( one wonders if he was ever seriously considered for the role ). A throwaway reference to "that chap who cracked the gold conspiracy" puts Vine in the same universe as Bond. Like 007, Vine has his own twangy guitar theme tune which plays whenever he walks into a room. The supporting cast is fine, particularly Francis De Wolff as 'Walter Pickering' of the Foreign Office and Peter Bull as the scheming criminal boss 'Masterman', while John Arnatt steals the show as Vine's boss Rockwell - his explanation of events to Vine at the hospital is brilliantly delivered. Look out for the lovely Judy Huxtable ( a.k.a, 'the computer centre girl' ) - she later married Peter Cook. The script is well-written, beginning with a teaser worthy of 'The Avengers' in which Henrik's brother August ( Robert Marsden ) is gunned down by enemy agents on Hampstead Heath, and climaxing with a multi-double cross shoot-out in London's docklands. Lindsay Shonteff pulls off some decent action scenes, using the city of London to good effect. If 'Licensed To Kill' can be compared to any Bond film, its 'From Russia With Love', as once again agents of the East and West are played off against one another by a mysterious third party. Vine's miniature gun is a real hoot! Very underrated film. Shown in America as 'The Second Best Secret Agent In The Whole Wild World'.Things To Look Out For - during the opening titles, when Tom Adams' credit appears, in the bottom right-hand corner you can see a caricature of Vine, holding a gun and smoking a cigarette. Vine's next mission was 'Where The Bullets Fly' ( 1966 ). Shonteff had nothing to do with it, sadly, and it shows.

Let's be frank. This is one damp spoof. I'll go into the details of this deadly dull affair if, for some reason, you're interested. Tom Adams is Charles Vine, an inexperienced agent whose assignment is to keep an eye on a scientist (Karel Stepanek) as he prepares his formula for Regrav, a process that reverses gravitational waves. Vine is `a double 0 number, licensed to kill' and he certainly does make use of that particular privilege. During the course of the film Vine kills more than a dozen people. It's not the number that gives one pause, it's the callous and somehow nonchalant way he goes about it that is perturbing. Vine is, by his own confession, in it for the money but one suspects he gets a certain pleasure out of taking lives as well.Stepanek (Our Man in Havana), as the Swedish scientist, gives the best performance of the movie but that's not saying much. The entire production is so lifeless that the actors seem to just want to get it over with, and one can hardly blame them. The film starts off with a bad taste killing when a nanny pulls a machine gun out of her baby buggy and slaughters a man in front of her two infant charges. Then we are treated to a lame theme song by Sammy Davis Jr. and it's all downhill from here, folks. The film suffers from poor pacing, badly choreographed gun battles and worse fight scenes and the whole thing feels much longer than its 95 minute running time.

***spoiler*** I saw this picture one bored night on TV "midnight theater"and I found a very funny scene. Towards the climax where the hero and the vilain shoot each other and that is supposed to be suspenceful,they sneak along two sides of a building to one corner to meet,and they think of the same thing and took off their shoes to mute the sounds of footsteps.Then,I found the hitman,who is really a shabby guy and looks incompetent,wearing a sock with a hole at its tip and his foot thumb coming thru it! I burst into laughter and the suspence failed. Over all I had a fun time.3 out of 5.

I viewed this film when it opened in the US in 1965 (right in the middle of the James Bond craze), and I never forgot it. The American title was " The Second Best Secret Agent In The Whole Wide World". And the tag line for it was, " He's only number two, but he's just as good as the higher priced agent".The lead British actor, Tom Adams, plays the main character as though he was born to the role. In an easy laid back fashion that exudes a sincere confidence, his 'tongue in cheek' performance is just right for this film. He's believable, satirical and funny where it counts. In essence, he was perfectly cast for this well done, if not the best, of the James Bond Spoof's.The plot is, at times, a bit confusing. But what the film lacked in story-line is made up for by the well paced action sequences. Just when you think you might become bored, something happens and you're caught up in the whole affair once again. And the black and white photography well captures the mood of the time.For many who are devotees of the 1950's - 1960's espionage drama era, this film is a must see. If for no other reason, simply the pure fun of it.