Operation Diplomat

A neat example of the brisk storytelling of writer Frances Durbridge – a British crime eminence in 1953 – Operation Diplomat is also a prime example of the skilful directing of John Guillermin, who tells that story at speed. He’d later go on to direct successes like The Towering Inferno and 1978’s Death on the Nile, where an ability to keep the story moving while giving each of a vast array of stars their moment in the spotlight would turn out to be vital. Here, Guillermin is in the British B-movie phase of his career. And though he doesn’t have to corral herds of actors and swing his cameras around exotic locations and impressive … Read more