writers_reign This is perhaps best described as Swinging Sixties preserved in amber past its sell-by date. The presence of Lilli Palmer sold it to me and whilst she's the best thing in it by a mile she is also so NOT Swinging Sixties and floats above it serenely. Romantic leads Dirk Bogarde and Susannah York have all the chemistry of Moishe Dayan and Golda Meir and it's no better with Bogarde and his mistress (soon to be discarded in favour of York) Janet Munro. The only female besides Palmer who seems to have a clue is Margaret Johnston as a sort of den mother. Johnny Gielgud is on hand to lend a bit of class and Nigel Davenport totally lacks credibility as Head of inept security. Apart from that it's a gem.

MartinHafer I am sure that my summary above is confusing and I'll need to decode what I am talking about here. If you are looking for a quintessential 1970s film that is completely soaked in what the 70s looked like and sounded like, it's hard to find that better represents it than "Saturday Night Fever". And, when it comes to the 60s, I think "Sebastian" is THE quintessential film of that decade as well-- beginning with the weird opening credits and continuing throughout. Whatever you think of these sorts of films, they are all style, music, glitz, attitude, morals and pizazz--like films created less by scriptwriters and more by fashion designers and pop artists. This isn't at all a complaint--just an observation about style. In "Sebastian", you get all of what made the late 60s so goofy--the clothing, the colors, the sounds, the editing...everything. I think the film looks like a joint project by Peter Max and Twiggy!Sebastian (Dirk Bogarde) is a mathematical genius. He spends the beginning of the film recruiting more ladies to join his giant government think tank--ladies who can think outside the box and have quick minds. Throughout this process and once they begin their jobs, it soon becomes obvious that Sebastian just ain't normal--he lacks many social skills and is a very independent thinker. This ends up causing problems with the government, as he resists their attempts to control his department and rid it of 'undesirables'. Oddly, however, a new woman to the department, Rebecca (Susanna York) is intrigued by Sebastian and decides very quickly she wants to seduce him--even though his personality is seriously quirky and flawed to say the lest (he shows some signs of Asperger's). The film is about this affair as well as Sebastian's frustrations dealing with folks outside his department who are meddlers...and along the way is another plot, more sinister, involving an old mistress.So is all this any good? Well, I'd say that the setup for the story is quite good and very intriguing. However, over time the film seemed to lose momentum. Part of it was because occasionally the film showed a bit of a misogyny--such as when Sebastian slapped his new girlfriend across the face. Overall, it's not a bad film but promised to be so much more at the start.

daisy2mae2 My husband was watching a movie today and I had to comment to him as I was passing by that I really liked one of the actors in it and very much enjoyed one of his other movies.I had to check him out on IMDb: Dirk Bogarde to find the title that I had trouble retrieving from the depths of my mind (thank goodness for IMDb).I am also one of those who saw it many years ago and it keeps popping back to mind. I liked the actors, the characters, the mood, the somewhat psychedelic feel of the 60s and really wish they would bring it out on DVD so that I can see it again and keep the title nearer the forefront of my brain!

curlew-2 Covers an area of espionage seldom seen in spy movies: cryptography and cryptoanalysis. The whole production is given a faint brush of the surreal and it works, especially with Dirk Bogarde's performance as the title character driven by obsessions (and often overwhelmed by them). That the film also manages to work on an occasional comedic level is an additional tribute to all concerned. Keep your eyes open for a pre-M*A*S*H appearance by Donald Sutherland.