A dastardly villain known as The Sheikh threatens to wipe out the city of Beirut (and all 650,000 of its citizens) in this reasonably entertaining West German thriller from director Manfred Kohler, perhaps best known today for co-writing Harry Kumel's erotic vampire epic Daughters of Darkness. Frederick Stafford plays suave secret agent Richard Blake, on the trail of The Sheikh with the assistance of gorgeous reporter Denise DuPree (Genevieve Cluny). A philanthropist named Omar Abdullah (Willy Birgel), whose cause is rehabilitating criminals, attracts the attention of Blake, and we're off to the races. Babes, bullets, and gadgets--they're all here and shot on location in mod, mod Beirut, at the time an 'international city' and a popular spot for European co-productions. Music lovers should note that Ennio Morricone's score echoes his spaghetti western work but fits nicely into the proceedings, whilst anticipating Theodorakis' percussive Z score by a full year. The English language print misspells his name 'Morricono', though!
6 Reviews
A few standout moments in a generally unremarkable film
gridoon202431 July 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Frederick Stafford's main contribution to the spy genre is his leading role in Alfred Hitchcock's "Topaz". A few years earlier, he played the French James Bond, OSS 117, twice. In between those two films, he also made the more obscure "Agent 505 - The Trap Door Falls In Beirut" - so is this film a buried treasure? Not quite. It's rather unremarkable on the whole. But there are some moments that stand out: the customary nightclub number does not involve singing or dancing, but a blindfolded woman shooting light bulbs! A man hangs from the bottom of a flying helicopter - almost 30 years before Jackie Chan did something similar in "Police Story III". And the villain's demise is pretty bloody. Stafford is a capable lead and Geneviève Cluny is cute. But the film is still only average. ** out of 4.
Euro Spy Flick with Frederick STAFFORD
ZeddaZogenau19 November 2023
With Love from Beirut: EuroSpy Adventures with Frederick Stafford
Remembering the terrible explosion in August 2020, you cannot watch this film without a lump in your throat. Because here, too, the glamorous Beirut is to be reduced to rubble and ashes by a bomb. Richard Blake, the Interpol agent 505, is supposed to prevent this. The superhero is played by Frederick Stafford (1928-1979), who can only be seen here in his second film. The handsome businessman was discovered at his wedding party with Austrian film star Marianne Hold. No joke! In "Topas" the charmer was supposed to make it to the leading role of Hitchcock. Such an unexpected, picture-perfect career demands respect.
From the moment he arrives in Lebanon, the Interpol agent is on guard and lets an unsuspecting tourist (Harald Leipnitz) act as a target for potential opponents. Together with Assi Bobby O'Toole (Chris Howland) and the attractive photographer Denise (Genevieve Cluny), he tries to identify those behind the impending attack. A curious chambermaid (sexy and sassy: Renate Ewert), a shady Arab (Willy Birgel! Exactly him! The guy from "Blaufuchs" (1938) with Zarah Leander) and a lushly built nightclub siren (Gisella Arden) cross his path path marked by many fist fights. An Inspector Bernard (Pierre Richard) from the local police is also investigating the matter. In between, her lover goes to the Roman ruins of Baalbeck. After all, a bit of sightseeing is part of it!
The fun was produced by Wolf C. Hartwig (who of course also wanted to benefit from the EuroSpy wave of success) and the Italian producer Mario Siciliano.
This was to be the last film for the enchanting Renate Ewert (1933-1966). She was found dead by her friend Susanne Cramer in her Munich apartment.
This film is certainly not the most successful example of the EuroSpy wave. But it's definitely worth seeing because of the main actor, Frederick Stafford, and the beautiful shots of Beirut and the surrounding area. Passable entertainment is guaranteed!
Remembering the terrible explosion in August 2020, you cannot watch this film without a lump in your throat. Because here, too, the glamorous Beirut is to be reduced to rubble and ashes by a bomb. Richard Blake, the Interpol agent 505, is supposed to prevent this. The superhero is played by Frederick Stafford (1928-1979), who can only be seen here in his second film. The handsome businessman was discovered at his wedding party with Austrian film star Marianne Hold. No joke! In "Topas" the charmer was supposed to make it to the leading role of Hitchcock. Such an unexpected, picture-perfect career demands respect.
From the moment he arrives in Lebanon, the Interpol agent is on guard and lets an unsuspecting tourist (Harald Leipnitz) act as a target for potential opponents. Together with Assi Bobby O'Toole (Chris Howland) and the attractive photographer Denise (Genevieve Cluny), he tries to identify those behind the impending attack. A curious chambermaid (sexy and sassy: Renate Ewert), a shady Arab (Willy Birgel! Exactly him! The guy from "Blaufuchs" (1938) with Zarah Leander) and a lushly built nightclub siren (Gisella Arden) cross his path path marked by many fist fights. An Inspector Bernard (Pierre Richard) from the local police is also investigating the matter. In between, her lover goes to the Roman ruins of Baalbeck. After all, a bit of sightseeing is part of it!
The fun was produced by Wolf C. Hartwig (who of course also wanted to benefit from the EuroSpy wave of success) and the Italian producer Mario Siciliano.
This was to be the last film for the enchanting Renate Ewert (1933-1966). She was found dead by her friend Susanne Cramer in her Munich apartment.
This film is certainly not the most successful example of the EuroSpy wave. But it's definitely worth seeing because of the main actor, Frederick Stafford, and the beautiful shots of Beirut and the surrounding area. Passable entertainment is guaranteed!
A poorer Eurospy effort
bensonmum213 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I'll keep this short – if I had to use two words to describe Agent 505: Death Trap Beirut it would be instantly forgettable. Nothing really stands out – the plot is a jumbled mess, the villain's motives are uninspired, the hero is rather bland, a lack of "good" gadgets, and a female lead that, while perky, brings little else to the film. But the main problem is that it's just not as much fun as other 60s Eurospy efforts like the Joe Walker or Dick Malloy movies. I realize that this is an awfully broad generalization, but I usually find West German films of this era lacking in the "fun" department.
The highlight of the movie for me has to be the shots of swinging Beirut in the 60s. What an incredible looking city it was!
The highlight of the movie for me has to be the shots of swinging Beirut in the 60s. What an incredible looking city it was!
I approve of watching!
RodrigAndrisan7 April 2022
It's a more successful Eurospy than many others. Not so much because of Frederick Stafford, who is the same as in any other film, but because of the dynamic way in which it was filmed. The whole movie is a non stop action, unlike many other Eurospy that are full of talk. The actors are not of great class. They are just OK. I think 7 stars is a correct classification.
An excellent Euro-spy movie
shakspryn9 November 2021
The director of this film also directed the very good "Coffin From Hong Kong." This movie has a lot of action, ranging from what you might call big action with many characters, to plenty of one-on-one battles between our hero, the handsome and suave Frederick Stafford, and various glowering bad guys. You know who comes out on top in those contests, ha! This film will have a special appeal to fans of Euro-spy because of the colorful scenes of the lively 1960's in Beirut, especially around the big hotel pool, where plenty of young lovelies are lounging in bikinis. Those scenes are absolutely classic 1960's Euro-spy!
Some other pluses for this movie: Stafford has some cool spy equipment; the plot makes sense; there are some interesting surprises and reveals. There was a big one, that I didn't see coming, at all. As I've noticed is often the case in these 1960's Euro-spy movies, the hero has a funny sidekick guy to help him out. These helper-guys are much more involved in the story than I recall ever being the case in a Bond movie, but I don't find that a drawback. The version I saw was dubbed in English--there were a few lines in German, no big deal--and the print looked simply terrific--strong, vibrant colors. Good use was made of some historic ancient ruins in Beirut, or near there, I suppose. The score was by the famous Morricone, who scored some big movies. The music was good at times, but too often I thought it rather over-dominated the scene; I wish the director had dialed that down more often.
One point I want to make: this is a totally fun movie to watch! In terms of 1960's Euro-spy, this is a home run. No one should come to any Euro-spy movie with the idea of comparing it to a Bond movie. The 1960's Bond films had: big budgets; a uniquely charismatic lead actor, in Sean Connery; perfect, exciting music; and they had that great run of five top movies in the 1960's, where you felt like you were part of the Bond "family," with the beloved familiar characters of M, Q, Moneypenny, and of course "James" himself. No lower-budget Euro-spy movie could compete with all that, but at their best they do provide good entertainment, with humor, action, twists and turns, beautiful women (does anyone doubt that Rosalba Neri--not in this movie, by the way--would have made an outstanding "Bond girl"?) and intrepid heroes. Fortunately for those who enjoy unpretentious, fun entertainment, there are plenty of good 1960's Euro-spy movies to see; and there are also a fair number of outstanding ones that are excellent in every way--like this one.
Some other pluses for this movie: Stafford has some cool spy equipment; the plot makes sense; there are some interesting surprises and reveals. There was a big one, that I didn't see coming, at all. As I've noticed is often the case in these 1960's Euro-spy movies, the hero has a funny sidekick guy to help him out. These helper-guys are much more involved in the story than I recall ever being the case in a Bond movie, but I don't find that a drawback. The version I saw was dubbed in English--there were a few lines in German, no big deal--and the print looked simply terrific--strong, vibrant colors. Good use was made of some historic ancient ruins in Beirut, or near there, I suppose. The score was by the famous Morricone, who scored some big movies. The music was good at times, but too often I thought it rather over-dominated the scene; I wish the director had dialed that down more often.
One point I want to make: this is a totally fun movie to watch! In terms of 1960's Euro-spy, this is a home run. No one should come to any Euro-spy movie with the idea of comparing it to a Bond movie. The 1960's Bond films had: big budgets; a uniquely charismatic lead actor, in Sean Connery; perfect, exciting music; and they had that great run of five top movies in the 1960's, where you felt like you were part of the Bond "family," with the beloved familiar characters of M, Q, Moneypenny, and of course "James" himself. No lower-budget Euro-spy movie could compete with all that, but at their best they do provide good entertainment, with humor, action, twists and turns, beautiful women (does anyone doubt that Rosalba Neri--not in this movie, by the way--would have made an outstanding "Bond girl"?) and intrepid heroes. Fortunately for those who enjoy unpretentious, fun entertainment, there are plenty of good 1960's Euro-spy movies to see; and there are also a fair number of outstanding ones that are excellent in every way--like this one.
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