A rich Arab sheik's diamonds--valued at a cool $300,000,000--are stolen from a fiery Lebanese plane wreck in this reasonably enjoyable spy thriller. When Her Majesty's Government become concerned that the loss might actually be part of a plot to undermine the value of sterling, they hire professional photographer, amateur lady-killer, and undercover agent Steve Norton (Richard Harrison, more charismatic than usual) to get to the bottom of things. The proceedings are fairly predictable sub-Bond carryings on, but there's a groovy Robby Poitevin score--including a great nightclub scene reminiscent of the one featured in 1966's Tecnica di un Homicido--as well as a super opening credit number called Diamonds, Diamonds, sung by the enigmatic 'Raul'. Noting terribly special, but a reasonable way to wile away 90 minutes on a cold winter's night.
3 Reviews
Utterly forgettable spy entry wastes good cast
gridoon20247 September 2010
"Hot Diamonds In Cold Blood" is one of the weakest Eurospy movies out there, and this is coming from someone who enjoys this particular genre considerably more than the average person. What makes it even more disappointing is that it has an experienced genre cast; 3 exceptionally beautiful women (Diana Lorys, Alida Chelli, Rosalba Neri) are largely wasted in brief and underdeveloped (figuratively speaking of course, wink wink) parts, while both the hero and the villains are pretty bland. And there are also a few too many underwater sequences - the kiss of death for almost any action movie, since they are usually so murky and slow. The music score is about the only thing that drives this film forward. *1/2 out of 4.
ONE OF THE BEST EURO-SPY MOVIES OF THE 1960S
larryanderson19 July 2021
In a 2020 interview, actor Richard Harrison said "he thought this movie was one of his best efforts". I totally agree. I first saw this movie in Italian in 1978 and have since found two addition copies in English. Edited together they make up a pretty good story. Perhaps the "other" negative reviewers have not seen a complete version? Steve Norton chases around Europe trying to get back millions of stolen diamonds. Living life in the fast-lane with gals and fancy hotels, he chases lead after lead in Malaga, London and Rome. He even has time to S. C. U. B. A. Dive. This is a very enjoyable movie to watch.
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