BY LEE PFEIFFER
Russian Roulette (originally titled Kill Kosygin!) starts out promisingly enough but ultimately ends up being unsatisfying and misguided. Produced
by Elliott Kastner, who was an old hand at making good, populist
entertainment, the production was shot entirely in Vancouver. George
Segal plays a renegade cop (were there any other kind in the 1970s?) who
has been suspended from the local police force for various infractions.
Suddenly, he is recruited by Canadian secret intelligence to help
thwart a reputed plot to assassinate Soviet Premier Kosygin, who is due
to arrive in a matter of days for a high profile conference. Segal
learns that he is being set up in an elaborate and confusing plot that
involves traitorous KGB agents who want to kill their own premier in
order to prevent him from initiating an era of detente with the West.
Their plan involves kidnapping a local dissident (Val Avery), drugging
him and using him as a human bomb who will be dropped on Kosygin's
limousine from a helicopter! (I'm not making this up.) Along the way,
Segal finds he's being set up as a dupe and is framed for murder. The
entire tired affair ends in a race against time with Segal going
mano-a-mano with a KGB killer on the roof of a landmark hotel that
Kosygin is en route to (the only sequence that affords the slightest
hint of suspense). Absurdly, Kosygin's motorcade is permitted to
continue racing to the hotel despite the fact that hundreds of people
are watching a running gun battle taking place on the roof.
The
film was directed by Lou Lombardo, who made a name for himself as an
editor of great talent after supervising the cutting of The Wild Bunch. As
director, he keeps the action flowing but the plot absurdities soon
distract from some otherwise interesting angles and performances. The
fine supporting cast includes Gordon Jackson, Denholm Elliott, Nigel
Stock and Louise Fletcher, but their characters are rather boring. The
film also throws in Christina Raines for sex appeal but she comes across
as the dullest leading lady in memory, barely registering much emotion
even when finding a dead body in her bathroom. (Although most of us
would find such a development a bit disturbing, Lombardo cuts to a scene
of Segal and Raines enjoying a spot of breakfast tea- while the man's
body remains on the bathroom floor.) Segal is always enjoyable to watch
and his wiseguy persona is in full bloom here, but the production is
amateurish on all levels considering the talent involved. Maybe everyone
involved just wanted a paid getaway and had a desire to visit
Vancouver. (It should be mentioned that director Lombardo was said to be
battling drinking problems during production and that the finale of the
film - the only truly effective scene- was directed by Anthony Squire,
who did not receive screen credit.)
The film is currently streaming on Shout! Factory TV. The app and subscription for this service are also available through Amazon Prime video.