OK CONNERY (1967)
OK Connery (also known as Operation Kid Brother and Operation Double 007) is an Italian comedy spy thriller directed by Alberto de Martini that spoofs the James Bond series – quite literally. It stars Neil Connery, the real-life younger of Sean Connery, as a cosmetic surgeon and hypnotist who is blackmailed and double-crossed into helping the British intelligence agency into uncover a labyrinthine plot involving undercover spies, weaponized electromagnets, uranium bombs, and a terrorist organization called Thanatos. The film co-stars many Bond series alumni – Daniela Bianchi from From Russia With Love, Adolfo Celi from Thunderball, Anthony Dawson from Dr. No, even Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell, the original ‘M’ and Moneypenny! Unfortunately the film received terrible reviews, and ended Neil’s career as an actor almost immediately (he went on to work as a plasterer for most of the rest of his life).
The score is bookended by two versions of a song, “Man for Me,” performed by vocalist Maria Cristina Brancucci – better known as Christy – a frequent Morricone collaborator who here is clearly trying to be Shirley Bassey but has neither the vocal pipes nor the charisma. Morricone’s score is a thinly-veiled parody of John Barry’s spy scores of the period, from the muted brasses and brushed snares of the title cue “Connery,” and subsequent pieces like “Missione Segreta,” “La Preda,” and the actually quite terrific pair “Contrabbando” and “Turbinosamente,” which reprise the main theme as a rollicking action motif.
There are several pieces of fun and upbeat period dance and Europop music (“Allegri Ragazzi”), a lovely lush love theme for acoustic guitar and a sultry string section (“Primo Amore,” and its playful pizzicato variation in “Fiori Galli”), a couple of frantic and aggressive jazz Latin-flavored action sequences (“Varco Nel Muro,” “Verso Il Mare,” “Connery Congiura”) and extended sequences of authentic sounding jazz which makes frequent use of plucked basses, hi-hat cymbals, and more Bond-esque brass to add to the sense of mystery and intrigue. Perhaps the weirdest tracks are the florid bits of French burlesque that play under a comedy action sequence in “Can Can Delle Amazzoni,” and the completely bonkers “Gatto Partante,” which begins with comedy French farce music, ends with a flourish of Dixieland jazz , and has a seductive female vocalist meowing in the middle. Yes, I said meowing.
Overall, though, this is a lesser work from Morricone compared to some of his more ambitious efforts of the period, especially in terms of how much it draws from John Barry’s signature sound. Fans of his more psychedelic bongo-tropicana scores may get a kick out of the more flamboyant sequences, but others will likely want to look to his other better scores in the genre before heading here. The score for OK Connery was fairly obscure until fairly recently; it not was released on CD until 2004, when it finally came out from the Italian label Digitmovies, and then released again as a collectors edition vinyl LP in 2011. Fellow composer Bruno Nicolai is credited as a co-composer on the CD cover, but its not clear which cues he contributed to.
Track Listing: 1. Man For Me (performed by Christy) (3:16), 2. Connery (1:55), 3. Allegri Ragazzi (1:41), 4. Primo Amore (4:34), 5. A Passo d’Uomo (2:36), 6. Varco Nel Muro (1:33), 7. Connery (2:16), 8. Missione Segreta (1:04), 9. Verso Il Mare (1:45), 10. Fiori Gialli (1:14), 11. Gli Enigmi (1:08), 12. Diapositive (1:21), 13. Can Can Delle Amazzoni (1:43), 14. Connery: Congiura (2:39), 15. Contrabbando (1:12), 16. Turbinosamente (1:22), 17. Gatto Parlante (1:11), 18. Missione Segreta (1:41), 19. La Preda (:47), 20. Man For Me (Italian Version) (performed by Christy) (3:01), 21. OK Connery – Seq.1 (1:41) BONUS, 22. OK Connery – Seq.2 (2:00) BONUS, 23. OK Connery – Seq.3 (1:55) BONUS, 24. OK Connery – Seq.4 (1:10) BONUS, 25. OK Connery – Seq.5 (1:23) BONUS, 26. OK Connery – Seq.6 (3:02) BONUS, 27. Man For Me (Instrumental) (3:08) BONUS , 28. Man For Me (Alternative Version) (3:10) BONUS. Digitmovies CDDM-025, 55 minutes 28 seconds.
