The Assassination Bureau
Encyclopedia
The Assassination Bureau Limited (released in North America as The Assassination Bureau) is a black comedy
film
made in 1969 based on an unfinished novel, The Assassination Bureau, Ltd
by Jack London
. It stars Oliver Reed
, Diana Rigg
, Telly Savalas
, and Curt Jürgens and was directed by Basil Dearden
.
Whereas London's original novel was set in the USA, this film is set in Europe.
, during the early 1900s, aspiring journalist and women's rights campaigner Sonia Winter (Rigg) uncovers an organization that specializes in killing for money, the Assassination Bureau, Limited. Thinking to bring about its destruction, she commissions the assassination of the bureau's own chairman, Ivan Dragomiloff
(Reed).
Far from being outraged or angry, Dragomiloff is amused and delighted and decides to put it to his own advantage. The guiding principle of his bureau, founded by his father, has always been that there was a moral reason why their victims should be killed — these have included despots and tyrants. More recently though, his elder colleagues have tended to kill more for financial gain than for moral reasons. Dragomiloff, therefore, decides to accept the commission of his own death and challenge the other board members: Kill him or he will kill them.
With Miss Winter in tow, Dragomiloff sets off on a tour of Edwardian Europe, challenging and systematically purging the bureau's senior members. Little do they realise that this is a plot by Miss Winter's sponsor, newspaper publisher Lord Bostwick (Savalas), to take over the bureau and plunge Europe into war — Bostwick is the bureau's vice-chairman and is bitter for having passed over in favour of the founder's son.
Bostwick and the other members of the Bureau plan to get rich quick by the "biggest killing" of them all — buying stocks in arms factories and then propelling Europe into war by assassinating all the heads of state of Europe at the same time while they attend a secret peace conference.
Dragomiloff and Miss Winter uncover the plot — dropping a bomb from a Zeppelin
airship on to the castle in Ruthenia
where the kings, emperors and presidents of Europe are trying to avoid a possible war caused by the death of a Balkan prince who was killed by a bomb intended for Dragomiloff.
Dragomiloff steals aboard the airship and destroys it, killing the remaining members of his board of directors. He is then decorated by the heads of state he has saved. There is an implied notion that Dragomiloff may wed Miss Winter as well.
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
made in 1969 based on an unfinished novel, The Assassination Bureau, Ltd
The Assassination Bureau, Ltd
The Assassination Bureau, Ltd is a thriller novel, begun by Jack London and finished after his death by Robert L. Fish. It was published in 1963...
by Jack London
Jack London
John Griffith "Jack" London was an American author, journalist, and social activist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction alone...
. It stars Oliver Reed
Oliver Reed
Oliver Reed was an English actor known for his burly screen presence. Reed exemplified his real-life macho image in "tough guy" roles...
, Diana Rigg
Diana Rigg
Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg, DBE is an English actress. She is probably best known for her portrayals of Emma Peel in The Avengers and Countess Teresa di Vicenzo in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service....
, Telly Savalas
Telly Savalas
Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...
, and Curt Jürgens and was directed by Basil Dearden
Basil Dearden
Basil Dearden was an English film director.-Life and career:Dearden was born at Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. He graduated from theatre direction to film, working as an assistant to Basil Dean...
.
Whereas London's original novel was set in the USA, this film is set in Europe.
Plot
In LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, during the early 1900s, aspiring journalist and women's rights campaigner Sonia Winter (Rigg) uncovers an organization that specializes in killing for money, the Assassination Bureau, Limited. Thinking to bring about its destruction, she commissions the assassination of the bureau's own chairman, Ivan Dragomiloff
Ivan Dragomiloff
Ivan Dragomiloff is a fictional character, the chairman of The Assassination Bureau, Ltd in the book of that name by Jack London. This character was played by actor Oliver Reed in the movie of the same name....
(Reed).
Far from being outraged or angry, Dragomiloff is amused and delighted and decides to put it to his own advantage. The guiding principle of his bureau, founded by his father, has always been that there was a moral reason why their victims should be killed — these have included despots and tyrants. More recently though, his elder colleagues have tended to kill more for financial gain than for moral reasons. Dragomiloff, therefore, decides to accept the commission of his own death and challenge the other board members: Kill him or he will kill them.
With Miss Winter in tow, Dragomiloff sets off on a tour of Edwardian Europe, challenging and systematically purging the bureau's senior members. Little do they realise that this is a plot by Miss Winter's sponsor, newspaper publisher Lord Bostwick (Savalas), to take over the bureau and plunge Europe into war — Bostwick is the bureau's vice-chairman and is bitter for having passed over in favour of the founder's son.
Bostwick and the other members of the Bureau plan to get rich quick by the "biggest killing" of them all — buying stocks in arms factories and then propelling Europe into war by assassinating all the heads of state of Europe at the same time while they attend a secret peace conference.
Dragomiloff and Miss Winter uncover the plot — dropping a bomb from a Zeppelin
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
airship on to the castle in Ruthenia
Ruthenia
Ruthenia is the Latin word used onwards from the 13th century, describing lands of the Ancient Rus in European manuscripts. Its geographic and culturo-ethnic name at that time was applied to the parts of Eastern Europe. Essentially, the word is a false Latin rendering of the ancient place name Rus...
where the kings, emperors and presidents of Europe are trying to avoid a possible war caused by the death of a Balkan prince who was killed by a bomb intended for Dragomiloff.
Dragomiloff steals aboard the airship and destroys it, killing the remaining members of his board of directors. He is then decorated by the heads of state he has saved. There is an implied notion that Dragomiloff may wed Miss Winter as well.
Cast
- Oliver ReedOliver ReedOliver Reed was an English actor known for his burly screen presence. Reed exemplified his real-life macho image in "tough guy" roles...
as Ivan Dragomiloff - Diana RiggDiana RiggDame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg, DBE is an English actress. She is probably best known for her portrayals of Emma Peel in The Avengers and Countess Teresa di Vicenzo in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service....
as Sonya Winter - Telly SavalasTelly SavalasAristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...
as Lord Bostwick - Curd JürgensCurd JürgensCurd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens.-Early life:...
as General von Pinck - Philippe NoiretPhilippe NoiretPhilippe Noiret was a French film actor.-Biography:Noiret's father was in the clothes trade. Philippe was an indifferent scholar and attended several prestigious Paris schools, including the Lycée Janson de Sailly. He failed several times to pass his baccalauréat exams, so he decided to study...
as Monsieur Lucoville - Warren MitchellWarren MitchellWarren Mitchell is an English actor who rose to initial prominence in the role of bigoted cockney Alf Garnett in the BBC television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part , and its sequels Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health , all of which were written by Johnny Speight...
as Herr Weiss - Beryl ReidBeryl ReidBeryl Elizabeth Reid, OBE was a British actress of stage and screen.-Early life:Born in Hereford, England in 1919, Reid was the daughter of Scottish parents and grew up in Manchester where she attended Withington and Levenshulme High Schools.-Career:Reid applied for and was accepted in a revue in...
as Madame Otero - Clive RevillClive RevillClive Selsby Revill is a New Zealand-born British character actor best known for his performances in musical theatre and on the London stage.-Early life and stage career:...
as Cesare Spado - Kenneth GriffithKenneth GriffithKenneth Griffith was a Welsh actor and documentary filmmaker.-Early life:He was born Kenneth Reginald Griffiths in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Six months after his birth his parents split up and left Tenby, leaving Kenneth with his paternal grandparents, Emily and Ernest, who immediately adopted...
as Monsieur Popescu - Vernon DobtcheffVernon DobtcheffVernon Dobtcheff is a French and British actor.Dobtcheff was born in Nîmes, France, to a family of Russian descent. He attended Ascham Preparatory School in Eastbourne, Sussex, England, in the 1940s, where he won the Acting Cup...
as Baron Muntzof - Annabella Incontrera as Eleanora Spado
- Jess ConradJess ConradJess Conrad OBE is an actor and singer from England.-Career:Having started his career as a repertory actor and film extra, Jess Conrad was cast in a television play "Bye, Bye Barney" as a pop singer...
as Angelo - George CoulourisGeorge CoulourisGeorge Coulouris was a prominent English film and stage actor.-Early life:Coulouris was born in Manchester, England, the son of Abigail and Nicholas Coulouris, a merchant of Greek origin. He was brought up both in Manchester and nearby Urmston and was educated at Manchester Grammar School...
as Swiss Peasant