Operation Kid Brother (1967)

This is How Movies Should Be Made

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Sure, Neil Connery is a bit of dud both as an actor and a character. The rest of the movie, though, is a hoot to watch. That isn't something you can say about "real" Bond movies like, say, _The Man with the Golden Gun_. Even Sean Connery could be boring. Can you remember anything about _You Only Live Twice_ aside from a few action sequences? Go ahead, I dare you. Nor is the plot of _O.K. Connery_ any less preposterous than most Bond movies'.If nothing else, it's got Adolfo Celi in a smoking jacket strutting around with a cigar and supervillainous music backing him up. More than worth the price of admission.

MASTER PLAN: Operation Blackmail - controlling the world's gold reserves. A very calculated attempt to copy & make money off the James Bond craze of the sixties, this comes off as a silly joke, maybe intentionally. It's similar to "Licensed to Kill," the 'Charles Vine' Bond cheap copy, but less creative. The plot can be deduced from an alternate title, "Operation Double 007" - that's not a typo - the spy agency of the Bond world requests the services of 007's brother; hence, this is about 007's double (they never completely finish saying '007' out loud, always stopping short of voicing the '7' - ha). 007's brother is played by Sean Connery's real life brother, Neil, with a goatee and a talent for hypnotism. This starts off badly, with Neil Connery, playing a famous genius plastic surgeon, explaining his advanced techniques and how he combines them with Tibetan mind control - it's pathetic drivel - and then some mêlée breaks out. It's groan-inducing. But, the main attraction is for film buffs and Bond fans making all the connections with the real Bond films.All the main actors (besides N.Connery, whose connection to Bond is already explained) in this one are from one or more James Bond movies. Celi, as the main villain, played a similar role in "Thunderball" (Celi, who looks like an overweight banker, was always playing villains or gangsters in the sixties). Bianchi, the femme fatale, was in "From Russia With Love." Dawson was in "Dr.No." Of course, Bernard Lee (aka M) and Lois Maxwell (aka Ms.Moneypenny) were from most of the Bond films of the sixties and seventies. They duplicate their roles from those here, though Maxwell gets a chance to run around shooting a gun, something she never had a chance to do with her 'receptionist' role in the Bonders. The villains seem to be SPECTRE, though they're referred to by another name, Thanatos, who plan to use some kind of magnetic waves to imbalance the world. The other strange and amusing aspect is that some of the main characters are referred to by their real names (Dr.Connery, Ms. Maxwell, etc.) rather than as Mr.Bond - get it? It's goofy, somewhat dull and a curiosity. Hero:3 Villains:3 Femme Fatales:4 Henchmen:2 Fights:3 Stunts/Chases:3 Gadgets:3 Auto:3 Locations:4 Pace:2 overall:3

I thank the heavens for MST3000, otherwise this movie would have been intolerable. It is a communal pain, distributed among the watchers. First of all, the protagonist is Dr. Neil Connery, played by Neil Connery (subtle). Neil is Sean Connery's brother. You would not guess that from the great acting displayed in this movie. This movie is simply an Italian knock-off of a James Bond movie, except you couldn't afford any of the trademarks. They also managed to get some people who actually stared in Bond movies, like Ms. Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell), M (Bernard Lee), and Emilio Largo (from Thunderball played by Adolfo Celi). Thats about where all the similarities to any Bond movie end. Where James Bond has a suave, debonair style and uses various gadgets, his brother Neil, user hypnosis and the Jerry Lewis approach. It's not that he is clumsy, he just seems to be uncomfortable with women. The plot is pretty bad and nonsensical. By far the best part of the movie is the end conflict, where Neil and friends fight "Largo's" minions, who dress like the aliens from V (red vinyl outfits) with the helmets from the fireman of Fahrenheit 451. Not only that, but they are all shooting underwater harpoons. Exciting isn't it ?? This all leads to the duel between "Largo" (aka Thair Beta) and Neil. Harpoons at 20 paces. This movie is bad. Please don't watch this movie, unless you are heavily medicated.

Another touchstone of the Eurospy subgenre, Operation Double 007 better known as Operation Kid Brother, is a fair Bond copy, albeit on a slightly smaller scale, and is as entertaining as any of the legitimate Bond films. This was the first time out for Neil Connery, brother of Sean, and it was the only spy movie in his movie mini-career. He manages just fine as the super surgeon cum super spy although his distinct lack of charisma makes for a rather bland lead performance.Fortunately director Alberto De Martino (Upperseven the Man to Kill (65), Operation Lady Chaplain (66)) keeps this colorful, active film moving at a good clip so we don't have too much time to mull over Connery comparisons. The use of Connery's real name for his character is a strange stroke due no doubt to the forbidden use of the name Bond. It sort of screws up the (weak) attempts at humorous mentions of the Bond mystique when you can't even say the word.Thank goodness Connery is surrounded by exotic locations, beautiful women and villains as good as Adolfo Celi. Celi plays it to the hilt too as Thair, the number two villain of Thanatos who wants to be number one. Celi is deservedly one of the most famous Italian character actors whose talents can be seen in other spy movies such as That Man From Rio (64), Target For Killing (66), and Death Knocks Twice (69). Perhaps the film's finest asset is the presence of the lovely Daniela Bianchi as Maya, a bad girl turned good.You could do worse than this Bondian escapade; there's plenty to look at and laugh at and there's a Morricone/Nicolai score to boot. We should be used to checking our brains at the door by now.