HotToastyRag Laurence Harvey is assigned to kill a KGB agent who's killed several British agents. But, when he's informed of the man's codename, he panics—because it's actually his codename. He's a double agent! He spends the rest of the movie trying to protect his identity and escape back to Russia without any of his British co-workers suspecting his disloyalty. Along the way, he meets free-spirit Mia Farrow and has a passionless affair with her.I like Laurence Harvey, and I love Mia Farrow, but I was bored to tears with this movie. I could lay blame on the script, pace, or acting, but it's probably a combination of all three. I didn't understand the characters, the pace was uneven, and the acting felt tired. Laurence Harvey never acted like he was truly afraid to be discovered, and if his only motivation was to make it out of the country alive, why even bother with Mia Farrow? It made him even more unlikable to me, since he obviously had no feelings for her. If you have any interest in seeing this movie, pop in The Spy Who Came in from the Cold or any James Bond flick instead.

mike dewey Very entertaining late 60's Cold War romp through Britain and Germany. Excellent realism (Russian agent heroin user who longs for home simultaneously with the next hit!) and Laurence Harvey's cold, matter-of-fact demeanor as the disgruntled agent who is pretty much fed up with the whole political spy scene. He turned out to be a super choice for this role!Also, Mia Farrow is excellent as the ditsy, naive "bird" who takes a fancy to LH's counterpoint character. But the real kudos go to Peter Cook, the mod devil-may-care chap who supplies to LH all the pertinent spy goings-on with a mordant, off-color humorous style. (Note his playboy flirtations juxtaposed with his serious delineations of Home Office tidbits to LH at the penthouse tower bar in Germany.) Lionel Stander gets in a good dry line or two as a Russian agent who confronts LH in Germany. Quincy Jones gets my musical kudos for the tasteful soundtrack! Finally, the ending is also tastefully done, all too apropos for LH's downward spiraling lifestyle.

MrOllie It was somewhat of a feature of the late 1960s to make bleak and world weary spy movies. This film is in this mould. I saw the film upon it's release and quite enjoyed it, albeit it is slow and a little dull. Still, I think that it is an interesting piece of film making and enjoyed the performances of Laurence Harvey and Tom Courtenay who play British agents who do not like each other. (Harvey is in fact a double agent). There are some good locations shots of 1960's London (mainly bleak) and Berlin (not so bleak). Harvey trudges around both capitals after been given an assignment to kill a Russian Spy - who is in fact himself. Mia Farrow is a trendy young thing (tho' a bit on the thin side)and adds love interest. However, as she keeps turning up wherever Harvey goes, is she as innocent as she appears? A young Peter Cook also stars as a rather irritating junior British agent. John Bird and Lionel Stander add a little humour into an otherwise humourless film. Definitely worth a look.

moonspinner55 Laurence Harvey plays a Russian-born spy based in London who is now working for both countries as a double-agent; he's assigned by the British to kill his alter-ego, and hopes to find a target to assume his alias. Opening with a wonderful credits sequence, "A Dandy in Aspic" looks initially to be an enjoyably old-fashioned Cold War excursion with such familiar elements as CIA operatives and the KGB. Unfortunately, though screenwriter Derek Marlowe adapted his own novel, the key ingredients of such a spy-drama appear to have gone missing; the film is all talky exposition and little pay-off. Mia Farrow continually pops up unannounced as Harvey's love-interest, probably in the faint hope we'll assume she's sneakily involved somehow. There are so many camera set-ups, verboten conversations, and obtuse face-offs that the overall effect is both exhausting and stultifying. Harvey took over the direction of the film after original director-producer Anthony Mann passed away unexpectedly. This must account for the funereal pacing and the cloudy character interaction, though the plot itself wasn't exactly timely--not even for 1968. Farrow (just prior to "Rosemary's Baby") adds quite a bit of gamine magic to the proceedings as an amateur photographer who appears to be following Harvey wherever he goes; it isn't much of a role, but Mia's beauty and youthful charm go a long way towards making the picture tolerable. Other assets: Quincy Jones' low-keyed score and the fine cinematography by Christopher Challis and Austin Dempster. ** from ****