![]() ![]() Jean Courtney, a colleague of Harry's played by Sue Lloyd in the original film, is also included in the show but here she's given a much bigger role. Spoilers: yes, it is a brainwashing technique, and Harry is subjected to it, leading to some surreal and mind-bending scenes. Pure visual elements aside, Cole also puts on some great performances in the series, especially towards the end when he discovers firsthand what Ipcress really is. You look at this version of Harry Palmer and there is no way in a million years that you'd expect him to be a spy, which is exactly what Harry Palmer should be like. But that is exactly what makes Cole's casting a great choice. ![]() At first glance, Peaky Blinder star Joe Cole does not seem like a good fit for the role, especially if you're comparing him to Caine. Introduced as a British soldier in divided Berlin who engages in some casual black marketeering on the side, Harry is the one who serves as the audience's eyes and ears in this shadowy world. Related: 'The Ipcress File' Cast and Character Guide: Who’s Playing Who in the British Spy Drama SeriesSome things do remain the same between the two, most importantly the character of Harry Palmer. While the mind control element is what 1965's The Ipcress File is best known for, the film was also important because it provided a gritty, realistic alternative to the flashy upbeat spy fiction seen most memorably in the James Bond movies. ![]() The 1965 movie's brainwashing scene eventually became so influential that you can see its touch in a wide range of films from The Manchurian Candidate to Captain America: The Winter Soldier (and even 2002's Scooby-Doo). Len Deighton's novel and its subsequent film adaptation starring Michael Caine capitalized on these fears to tell an iconic story of brainwashing and espionage. Throughout the 60s, there were rumors of secret CIA experiments involving mind control (rumors that we now know were at least partly true). And now, you can return to that infamous era again with the exciting AMC/ITV show The Ipcress File. While spy stories were already around when the Cold War began, it's an undeniable fact that that tumultuous period is when the genre really came into its own. Well worth seeing.You'd think that over 30 years after its end, the Cold War would have lost its ability to inspire spy stories. Regardless, the film has lots of originality and style. Part of this is the writing and part of it is the nice characterization by Michael Caine. As I mentioned above, the Palmer character seems real. I could easily say more but want you to just see it for yourself. Eventually, they find one of these missing folks-and his mind has been wiped clean! What happened? Who did this and how? Apparently the word 'Ipcress' is the key. It seems that Harry's assignment is to discover what is happening to so many important agents and scientists. Why? Well, this becomes apparent late in the film. However, his boss, the Colonel, has decided to reassign him to work for the Major. In "The Ipcress File", Harry has apparently made a mess of his military career and instead of sending him to prison, the government has decided to make him a spy-as he IS resourceful.though also a bit disdainful of authority. Now I cannot comment about how closely this character and these plots were to the original Len Deighton novels (where Harry was NOT blackmailed into working for the service), as I've never read them, but the films are wonderfully entertaining. After all, he was just a guy who wore glasses and seemed anything but glamorous. There were no gadgets, Palmer was smart but no superman and when a woman threw herself at him, he immediately suspected her motives. ![]() Why? Because even the most outlandish one of these films ("The Billion Dollar Brain") was far more realistic than Bond films. It's a shame he didn't make more in the 60s and 70s as they were very good films-ones that left me far more satisfied than most of the James Bond movies-though I would not say that about the later films in the series. Then, rather out of the blue, two more in the 1990s. Michael made three Harry Palmer films in the 1960s, starting with "The Ipcress File". Reviewed by MartinHafer 9 / 10 While most wouldn't agree, I liked this better than most of the Bond films. ![]()
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