To Skin a Spy (1966)
7/10
With the Lives of Others : A good spy thriller directed by Jacques Deray.
30 July 2013
Avec La Peau Des Autres/With the lives of others is an excellent spy thriller directed by Jacques Deray. He is considered an undisputed master of french thriller films. In many ways, there are very few directors in Anglophone cinema who can match the diversity and range of his films. For this film Jacques Deray chose Austrian capital Vienna as its setting. Much of the film concentrates its action to determine whether the head of a local Austrian network is a double agent or not ? This gives rise to a series of attacks, counter attacks, traps and wrong tracks whose sole purpose is to mislead the head of French information service. Everything appears to work well as all the leading characters are shown to speak French language but cultural differences do make their presence felt in many scenes. This can be deemed as a major handicap by certain viewers to fully comprehend the film's "raison d'être". This film boasts of a fine performance by French actor Lino Ventura as he plays his role with utmost care that nobody seems to stop him from carrying out his mission. Lastly, a film for those who state that Vienna has just music to show to the world.
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