''The Intelligence Men'' (U.S. title: ''Spylarks'') is a 1965

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Robert Asher and starring the British comic duo

Eric Morecambe John Eric Bartholomew (14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984), known by his stage name Eric Morecambe, was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. The partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's de ...

and

Ernie Wise Ernest Wiseman (27 November 1925 – 21 March 1999), known by his stage name Ernie Wise, was an English comedian, best known as one half of the comedy duo Morecambe and Wise, who became a national institution on British television, especially f ...

. It is subtitled " M.I.5 plus 2 equals 0". Morecambe and Wise made two further films, '' That Riviera Touch'' (1966) and '' The Magnificent Two'' (1967).

Plot

Eric, in his London coffee bar, is happily serving black coffee to a sinister-looking man when the man tries to persuade him to remember a tune. Unfortunately, Eric is tone-deaf. Ernie Sage enters the coffee bar and Eric tries to get him to identify the tune, without much success. Eventually, Sage realises that this could be something to do with a forthcoming visit by a Russian trade delegation and an assassination attempt by an organisation known as "SCHLECHT" (a parody of

SPECTRE Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writt ...

from the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

films; the word is German for "bad" or "evil", although there is little evidence of German involvement to sabotage this mission). He reports this to his superiors in

Military Intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

(although he is little more than an office-boy), and they reluctantly agree that only Eric, having heard the tune, will be able to lead them to the centre of the plot. Eric is persuaded to pose as a British agent – the recently deceased Major Cavendish – who had managed to infiltrate SCHLECHT. After a few set-piece comedy interludes, the tune is identified and the plot switches to a performance of ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

'' at the projected venue for the assassination, where the star Russian ballerina Madame Petrovna is in grave danger. This section provides some of the funniest moments of the film: for example, Eric, masquerading as a Russian, adopts a broad Scottish highland accent; and during the ballet performance itself, Eric and Ernie, dressed in Egyptian costumes, get mixed up in the " Dance of the Little Swans". Finally, however, the villain is unmasked and all ends happily.

Cast

as Eric *

as Ernie Sage * William Franklyn as Colonel Grant * April Olrich as Madame Petrovna * Gloria Paul as Gina Carlotti * Richard Vernon as Sir Edward Seabrook * David Lodge as stage manager *Jacqueline Jones as Karin * Terence Alexander as Reed * Francis Matthews as Thomas *

Warren Mitchell Warren Mitchell (born Warren Misell; 14 January 1926 – 14 November 2015) was an English actor best known for playing bigoted cockney Alf Garnett in television, film and stage productions from the 1960s to the 1990s. He was a BAFTA TV A ...

as Prozoroff *

Peter Bull Peter Cecil Bull, (21 March 1912 – 20 May 1984) was a British actor who appeared on the stage and in supporting roles in such films as '' The African Queen'', '' Tom Jones'' and '' Dr. Strangelove''. Peter Bull wrote twelve books. Biograph ...

as Philippe * Tutte Lemkow as Seedy SCHLECHT Agent *

Brian Oulton Brian Oulton (11 February 1908 – 13 April 1992) was an English character actor. Biography Born in Liverpool, Lancashire, Oulton made his acting debut in 1939 as a lead actor. During the Second World War he served in the British Army, and retu ...

as laundry basket man *Michael Peake as sinister stranger *

Bob Todd Brian Todd (15 December 1922 – 21 October 1992), known professionally as Bob Todd, was an English comedy actor, mostly known for appearing as a straight man in the sketch shows of Benny Hill and Spike Milligan. For many years, he lived in ...

as Policeman outside Military Intelligence building (uncredited)

Production

It was the last of several collaborations between Hugh Stewart and Bob Asher. Stewart says this was because he fired Asher's brother Jack, the cameraman, who Stewart thought was too slow.

Reception

Critical

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' wrote: "This exceptionally unfunny comedy makes it very hard to understand what, on any level, has contributed to the popularity of Morecambe and Wise. A formal dinner party scene, not by any means devoid of farcical possibilities, is so appallingly mishandled by the director that it emerges as an almost classic example of how not to amuse while apparently trying." ''The

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

Guide to Films'' gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise found the transition from TV celebrities to film stars a difficult one to make. They were not helped by the fact that, for their big-screen debut, Sid Green and Dick Hills (scriptwriters of their ITV series at the time) failed to marry the familiar Eric and Ernie characteristics that kept audiences in stitches week after week with the demands of what is, in all honesty, a fitfully entertaining spy spoof." Critic

Leslie Halliwell Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fi ...

awarded the film no stars, describing it as an "inept and rather embarrassing big-screen debut for two excellent television comedians".

Box office

The film was one of the 12 most popular movies at the British box office in 1965."Most Popular Film Star." Times ondon, England31 Dec. 1965: 13. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 11 July 2012. Stewart says the film was not a success in America, but it made a profit, and led to two more Morecombe and Wise movies.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Intelligence Men, The 1965 films British spy comedy films Cold War spy films 1960s spy comedy films Films shot at Pinewood Studios Films directed by Robert Asher Morecambe and Wise Films set in London 1965 comedy films Parody films based on James Bond films 1960s English-language films Films scored by Philip Green English-language spy comedy films English-language action adventure films