Like b-westerns, many 60's European spy films have a number of interchangeable elements--from this film's opening scene of the hero in bed with a lovely lady and getting a phone call from the head of the spy service for whom he works, to the inevitable electronic gadget or invention of some eccentric scientist the intelligence services must protect, to the double-and-triple crosses where we aren't sure who is working for whom until the explanatory denouement. Director Tulio Demicheli was responsible two of my favorite Italian Westerns: THE BIG GUNDOWN with Lee Van Cleef and Tomas Milian, and GUNMEN OF THE RIO GRANDE with Guy Madison (in GREAT FORM!!!) as Wyatt Earp, and he's effective here although this film does not reach the heights of those two. Brett Halsey is an actor with a lot of charm, and he is perfect for the smirking yet tough role of agent "George Farrell." I won't go into further details except to say that I, unlike the other reviewer, enjoyed the music (the lounge-flavored organ improvisations are Walter Wanderly-like, and there are a few fine bossa-nova pieces worked into the club scenes), and there are some lovely location shots of Lisbon included. If you like this kind of fare, ESPIONAGE IN LISBON is an above-average entry, with a colorful and attractive star. If you don't like dubbed 60's European spy films, you probably wouldn't have read this far already. Check it out if you are a fan of the genre.
