The Ipcress File (1965, United Kingdom)
Running time: 109 minutes
Language: English
A British Army sergeant, Harry Palmer, is reassigned to a counter-espionage unit, led by Major Dalby, when a British scientist called Radcliffe is kidnapped from a train and the agent who was protecting him is shot dead. That is a problem for the Dalby unit for two reasons - they lost an agent and failed at their job to protect an important individual. To make things worse, more than a dozen other British scientists from different specialities have left their jobs recently, which suggests there is some activity of foreign agents. Dalby and his men have very little time to prove they are not incompetent, otherwise the unit will be disbanded. Their first move is to find anyone who would have the resources and reasons to kidnap Radcliffe. One of their suspects is in a French prison, so they concentrate on Eric Grantby, codenamed Bluejay. Palmer uses his connections in Scotland Yard to locate Grantby and approaches him to make a deal for the release of the scientist. But here the things begin to get complicated...
First of the Harry Palmer movies, based on the novel by Len Deighton, that were in a way the competition for James Bond movies even though the same producer was behind both series - Harry Saltzman. Harry Palmer stories were kept down-to-earth spy world stories, while James Bond films usually were spectacular fairy tales. The Ipcress File has an excellent plot that shows the world of espionage and counter-espionage, where no one can be fully trusted. Great performances from the main cast, a complexed plot and mystery.
Can you solve a case like this?
Our rating |
8 / 10 |
Movie value |
8 / 10 |
Realism factor |
4 / 5 |
Adventure factor |
4 / 5 |
Story complexity |
4 / 5 |
177 |
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Creators of The Ipcress File
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Cast of The Ipcress File
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as Harry Palmer | |
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as Major Dalby | |
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as Colonel Ross | |
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as Bluejay | |
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as Jean | |
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as Carswell | |
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as Radcliffe |
The Ipcress File trivia
IPCRESS
Acronym IPCRESS stands for Induction of Psychoneuroses by Conditioned Reflex under strESS.
The Ipcress File quotes
Harry Palmer: The fellow whose job I’m taking, will he show me the ropes?
Major Dalby: Maybe - if you’re in touch with the spirit world.
Harry Palmer: I beg your pardon?
Major Dalby: He was shot this morning.
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