Just what I expected

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

These international films were big in the '60s, and Triple Cross is no exception. It stars Christopher Plummer, Romy Schneider, Trevor Howard, Yul Brynner, Gert Frobe, and Claudine Auger.Triple Cross is loosely based on the exploits of Eddie Chapman, a successful thief who becomes an agent for the Germans and then an agent for the English, though he keeps working for the Germans.The story is even more fascinating because it's true, but somehow, the film falls flat. Instead of being on the edge of your seat, you relax on the couch. Its pace was somewhat slow, the editing jumpy, and the film is short on action.Christopher Plummer is a wonderful actor, but one gets the feeling that Eddie Chapman was scrappier and lower class than he's portrayed here. The beautiful Romy Schneider is wasted.The film is directed by Terence Young, responsible for some wonderful films: Wait Until Dark and some James Bond films, and then some not as successful, such as one of the worst films ever made, Bloodline, and another bomb, Mayerling. So one can say he was inconsistent. Unfortunate.There are apparently two books on Chapman which are probably more interesting.

I love war movies, and especially WWII ones. Also, a theme of a double agent who was involved in some very high levels of power of 2 sides, and was into some very high levels of authorities seems a very captivating plot. Plus, come a great cast of outstanding actors, such as Christopher Plummer as Eddie Chapman, Romy Schneider as Countess, Trevor Howard as British Intelligence Officer, Gert Fröbe as Col. Steinhager, Claudine Auger as Paulette, Yul Brynner as Col. Baron Von Grunen - so, the final result may seem a thrilling watch. Well, it was not, sadly. The very good and promising start of a movie gave us some large hope for better, but then, the film fell onto a trap of slow tempo, very predictable twists and very trite clichés. Plummer is good here yes, cool, polishes, withdrawn, sarcastic ( as he later would prove as a Duke Of Wellington in a great, sadly underestimated 1970's Waterloo), but he cannot save this otherwise plodded and oftentimes messy array of unexpected comic twists, unconvincing drama, very poorly depicted personal conflicts. Generally, the movie makes you yawn and wait for a quicker ending. Yul Brinner is not bad here, too, but this highly comic, artificial accent brings all down to a pure farce. My opinion? Not that bad, sure, but not good at all, either. A very middle-of-the-road run, a very medium try at the highly potential story.

To anyone interested in the true story of Eddie Chapman I suggest that they round the book "Agent Zigzag".This film is an attempt to do a clone James Bond film complete with inappropriate 60s song blaring out over the credits.The first problem is that Christopher Plummer is totally miscast as Eddie Chapman.A couple of years later it would be Michael Caine who would have been chosen.The story veers so far from the true Chapman story as to be a complete fiction.There was no countess in the real story.It really is absurd particularly when she appears in a different haute couture creation in every scene.Chapman actually got very friendly with his German spy master,not as shown in the film.He was kept in a secret house in Hendon whilst in the UK.Along with his mistress.A lot of damage was done to a dummy factory,not to De Havillands itself.So in the end this tiresome fabrication ends up falling flat on its face.

When I saw the cast of this movie and the Director, I kind of expected to see a tale of intrigue and action. That is not achieved here. Still the film has it's moments. I think the problem here is the adaption of the real life story. It could have been adapted better for the screen than it is.Still, it is watchable though I think Christopher Plummer is the biggest weakness in the cast. He never seems to get totally into this effort. He seems too smug to really play this role properly. There are major connections here with the film Goldfinger as Gert Frobe played the Bond nemesis.This if the script had been done better has enough star power to be another "Great Escape" but misses making that level. Still, Yul Brenner playing a Nazi is one of the most interesting twist of role for him. The film opens with safes being blown up. It fails in the beginning to stimulate the viewer with an interesting story.Sometimes, the structure of a film loses the interest of the viewer. This film is a prime example of that.