# What are some good spy/Cold War/Assassin movies (NON-BOND) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 13, 2004, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193 "2004-09-13T01:14:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/1 "2004-09-13T01:14:22Z")
No James Bond allowed, since there are already threads about them. (See [The James Bond Film Festival (1954)](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=264712) for links to each of the films.) I have **The Hunt for Red October** playing on the DVD now. I really like the genre. I can think of some other espionage/Cold War films I like: **The Eiger Sanction The Boys From Brazil** (I figure a hunt for Nazi war criminals counts) **Three Days of the Condor The Falcon and the Snowman The Bedford Incident Fail Safe Dr. Strangelove (or “How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love The Bomb”) Leon: The Professional La Femme Nikita** (the real one – I haven’t seen the remake) **The Long Kiss Goodnight The Mechanic Telefon** I think you get the idea. What other films are worth a look? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/2 "2004-09-13T01:23:03Z")
The Day of the Jackal Seven Days in May Fail-Safe The Fourth Protocol ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/3 "2004-09-13T01:45:07Z")
**Ronin** is fantastic, stars Robert DeNiro, and Jean Reno and directed by Frankenheimer. It’s one of the finest films in the genre, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Murcielago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@Murcielago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Murcielago)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/4 "2004-09-13T01:45:22Z")
On the “cloak & dagger”/intrigue side of things, John le Carre’s _Smiley’s People_ and _Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy_ are both out on DVD. Although they were made for TV, the production values and acting are first-rate. Alec Guinness absolutely owns the lead role in both productions. ---
**Author:** ![Atticus\_Finch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ec9cab/32.png) [@Atticus\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atticus_Finch)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/5 "2004-09-13T01:53:17Z")
I quite liked [The Assignment](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118647/). ---
**Author:** ![kellner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c2a13f/32.png) [@kellner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellner)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/6 "2004-09-13T02:08:19Z")
I don’t know what you think about foreign films, but I have two French suggestions. I enjoyed [Le Serpent](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069251/) (The Serpent/Night Flight from Moscow.) Another interesting film by the same director, Henri Verneuil, in a slightly differnt genre is [I… comme Icare](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079322/) (I as in Icarus.) It depicts the work of a member of an investigation commitee after an assassination. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/7 "2004-09-13T02:39:39Z")
The Manchurian Candidate (the original by John Frankenheimer, starring Frank Sinatra) is a creepy Cold War classic. The remake with Denzel Washington is pretty damn good too, surprisingly. For a good assassin film, try The Killer by John Woo, starring the great Chow Yun Fat. And I actually prefer Point Of No Return, the American remake of La Femme Nikita, to the original. Finally, try Nick Of Time, an underrated thriller with Johnny Depp and Christopher Walken. ---
**Author:** ![Papermache\_Prince](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f05b48/32.png) [@Papermache\_Prince](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Papermache_Prince)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/8 "2004-09-13T02:55:23Z")
**The Parallax View** ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/9 "2004-09-13T03:58:24Z")
> [@Murcielago](#): > > On the “cloak & dagger”/intrigue side of things, John le Carre’s _Smiley’s People_ and _Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy_ are both out on DVD. Although they were made for TV, the production values and acting are first-rate. Alec Guinness absolutely owns the lead role in both productions. Another good Le Carre` adaptation is [The Spy Who Came in from the Cold](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059749/) with an excellent lead performance by Richard Burton that shows he could act if he wanted to. Also noteworthy is the most recent version of [The Quiet American](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0258068/). ---
**Author:** ![Gest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9d8465/32.png) [@Gest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gest)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/10 "2004-09-13T04:07:38Z")
The Man Who Never Was No Way Out Stalag 17 (had a spy element) Enemy of the State The Conversation The Bourne Identity (only seen the Damon version) The Assassin (American remake of La Femme Nikita) The Presidio (if only because of Sean Connery) Gotcha (saw it as a little kid. Might even be a crap story but Linda Fiorentino was hot) Christopher Lee was in an EXCELLENT telemovie about the Iraqi supergun project. I was incredibly pissed off that I missed the last half hour due to a business brekkie the next morning. Imdb has nothing on it though. The Fourth Protocol is so good that I’ll have to second it. Firefox Heaps more partly because you cast such a wide net. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/11 "2004-09-13T05:45:34Z")
For the comedic/satric version how 'bout “Our Man in Havana”? Written by Graham Greene, starring Alec Guinness…got Noel Coward in it too…what’s not to love? ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/12 "2004-09-13T06:40:30Z")
**Sniper** with Tom Berenger and Billy Zane was pretty good. There was a TV movie, **Aldrich Ames: The Traitor Within** that was excellent, starring Timothy Hutton and Joan Plowright. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/13 "2004-09-13T07:34:29Z")
> [@Gest](#): > > The Assassin (American remake of La Femme Nikita) I thought that was _Point of No Return_. I quite enjoyed _Spy Game_ with Robert Redford. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/14 "2004-09-13T13:01:25Z")
The Recruit isn’t bad. Surprisingly, Al Pacino gives a loud, ranting monologue at the end. The Saint (Val Kilmer, Elizabeth Shue) - not so good. Folkkes - 80s Roger Moore film where he’s not James Bond but he might as well be. Gest - I looked for Christopher Lees movie (I think it was called ‘Supergun’ or somthing) and didn’t find squat. I did learn that Lee played Scaramonga in The Man With the Golden Gun. Never recognized him. ---
**Author:** ![Gest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9d8465/32.png) [@Gest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gest)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/15 "2004-09-13T13:30:14Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Gest - I looked for Christopher Lees movie (I think it was called ‘Supergun’ or somthing) and didn’t find squat. I did learn that Lee played Scaramonga in The Man With the Golden Gun. Never recognized him. Ahh, so you know it? Fascinating wasn’t it? I used ‘gun’ for my term and turned up zip too. Weird because I’ve never known imdb to miss important stuff. Even weirder is that you didn’t recognise Lee as Scaramanga. Was it the superfluous third nipple? 😃 > [@friedo](#): > > I thought that was Point of No Return. We’re both right it seems. I didn’t catch Big Bad Voodoo Lou’s mention because I was looking for the title it was released under in Australia. Australia often uses different titles for some reason. Airplane became Flying High, possibly because we spell it aeroplane, and Mad Max became The Road Warrior. There are lots of such examples though. I forgot Sneakers (surprised we didn’t rename it runners). Its major component is (industrial) espionage. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/16 "2004-09-13T13:30:49Z")
There are none. It was an ugly time, an ugly era. Let it die, & be forgot. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/17 "2004-09-13T14:02:56Z")
Some seconds: **Spy Game**. For some reason its linked with **The Recruit** in my mind. SG is much better. And \*\*The Spy Who Came in From the Cold[b/]. The best Le Carre adaptation, IMHO. But I haven’t seen it in like 10 years. I read it a couple times and I’m not sure how the movie plays without knowing the story because its a confusing plot. \*\*Spartan[b/] is recently out on DVD. Not Cold War, per se, but something you might want to check out nonetheless. Mamet movie. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/18 "2004-09-13T14:04:28Z")
The President’s Analyst No Way Out are older movies but both capture Cold War paranoia nicely and are terrific entertaINMENT. ---
**Author:** ![Gest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9d8465/32.png) [@Gest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gest)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/19 "2004-09-13T14:08:49Z")
> [@Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor](#): > > There are none. Well, this whole thread has people who disagree. > [@](#): > > It was an ugly time, an ugly era. Past eras were just as ugly without even as much of the beauty. > [@](#): > > Let it die, & be forgot. I don’t know about letting it die but forgetting would be bad. Doomed to repeat and all that. Hopefully we’ve learnt the enemy of my enemy nonsense is just tha… d’oh. :smack: Well, _some_ people have learnt it. I actually believe the only good to come from Bush being elected will be good music and independent cinema because the best art thrives under authoritarian regimes. Utopia would be comfy and nice but very bland and Western culture would consist _only_ of the likes of American Idol and vehicles for the Olsen twins. There’s no great art without some pain and adversity. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2004, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193/20 "2004-09-13T14:32:01Z")
It’s already been mentioned, but to my mind the best by far is **The Day of the Jackal** , directed by Fred Zinneman, based on Frederck Forsyth’s thriller. The other movies based on Forsyth’s books are also verey good ( **the Fourth Protocal** has already been mentioned), but I’m not sure if **The Odessa File** or **The Dogs of War** fit your requirements. The thrillers written by Peter stone are also excellent, and date from the period you’re interested in, but I’m not sure if they fit your definition, either – **Charade** is as suiperb mystery/thriller/romantic comedy. **Mirage** is a darker thriller, with some of the same cast and the same director, Stanley Donen. When Donen did another thriller in the same mold, but without Stone to write the script, the result was awful ( **Arabesque** ). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-spy-cold-war-assassin-movies-non-bond/264193.md?page=2)