The Silencers *** (1966, Dean Martin, Stella Stevens, Victor Buono, Daliah Lavi, Cyd Charisse, Nancy Kovack) – Classic Movie Review 5015

The campy, infectiously amusing 1966 spy spoof thriller film The Silencers is the first of four action capers for Dean Martin’s incredibly popular Sixties secret agent Matt Helm. Stella Stevens is a formidable co-star as agent Gail Hendricks.

Director Phil Karlson’s campy, infectiously amusing 1966 spy spoof thriller film The Silencers is the first of four action caper comedy movie outings for Dean Martin’s incredibly popular Sixties secret agent, Matt Helm, based on the character created by Donald Hamilton.

Here Matt Helm is at the apex of a plot based on two of Hamilton’s novels, The Silencers (1962) and Death of a Citizen, Hamilton’s first Helm novel (1960). Director Karlson’s spoof sees Martin facing an attempt by vast villain Tung-Tse (Victor Buono) to destroy an American atomic testing site in New Mexico with high hopes of causing widespread devastation and a Third World War.

The formidable quartet of Stella Stevens (as sexy but clumsy government agent Gail Hendricks), Daliah Lavi, Cyd Charisse and Nancy Kovack join in the daftly entertaining fun, in a film that promoted Martin to the status of cheery, self-mocking sex symbol, without promoting itself too well, as Oscar Saul’s easy-going screenplay lacks a great deal of wit.

However, Martin is extremely likeable, and so are his co-stars, who also include Robert Webber, James Gregory, Arthur O’Connell, Roger C Carmel, Beverly Adams, Richard Devon, David Bond, John Reach, Robert Phillips, John Willis and Frank Gerstle.

Burnett Guffey’s cinematography and Elmer Bernstein’s score are distinguished assets. The title song is performed by Vikki Carr, with Cyd Charisse opening the film with a striptease-style dance, lip synching to Carr’s vocals. Carr also performs ‘Santiago’.

Apparently, it is the first film to have a post-credits scene. The end credit runs: ‘Coming up next Matt Helm meets Lovey Kravezit in Murderers’ Row.’

Indeed he did, for The Silencers proved the first of a four-part Matt Helm series, followed by Murderers’ Row (1966), in which Beverly Adams again plays Helm’s secretary Lovey Kravezit, The Ambushers (1967) and The Wrecking Crew (1968).

Producer Irving Allen broke up with film partner Albert R Broccoli over buying the rights to the James Bond novels, when Allen was not interested. After the Bond films were so successful, Allen decided to make his own spy series. He read a copy of one of the Matt Helm novels at an airport, optioned the film rights in 24 hours with his own money, and in 1964 set up the series with Columbia Pictures.

With James Bond and Dean Martin both flavour of the month, The Silencers was a big hit in 1966, earning $7 million in US box office. Allen said: ‘It was a very lucky thing, great timing that Helm caught on the same time Dean’s TV series took off.’

However, Allen recalled: ‘We had wanted Paul Newman or one of the good stars, but no one would go up against Sean Connery. Nobody wants to go up against a successful series.’ So it was decided to turn Hamilton’s serious spy novels into a tongue-in-cheek film comedy and Allen signed Dean Martin to play Matt Helm in March 1965.

Comedy writer Herbert Baker revised Oscar Saul’s original screenplay, and Richard Levinson and William Link also worked on the script.

The cast are Dean Martin as Matt Helm, Stella Stevens as Gail Hendricks, Daliah Lavi as Tina, Victor Buono as Tung-Tze, Arthur O’Connell as Wigman, Robert Webber as Sam Gunther, James Gregory as Macdonald, Nancy Kovack as Barbara, Roger C Carmel as Andreyev, Cyd Charisse as Sarita. Beverly Adams as Lovey Kravezit, Richard Devon as Domino, Patrick Waltz as hotel clerk, David Bond, John Reach, Robert Phillips, John Willis and Frank Gerstle.

Daliah Lavi (1940–2017).

Palestine-born sex symbol Daliah Lavi (1940–2017) died on 3 May 2017, aged 76.

Stella Stevens (October 1, 1938 – February 18, 2023).

Stella Stevens (born Estelle Eggleston; October 1, 1938) died from Alzheimer’s disease in Los Angeles on 17 February 2023, age 84. She starred in such popular films as Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962), The Nutty Professor (1963), The Courtship of Eddie’s Father (1963), The Silencers (1966), Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968), The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970), and The Poseidon Adventure (1972).

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5015

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