Harry Dean is a career burglar set on stealing a piece of priceless art from the world's wealthiest man, Mr. Shahbandar. With the help of exotic showgirl Nicole Chang, he concocts the perfect scheme for how the robbery should go and lays it out point by point. However, when the team tries to execute the plan, perfection and reality don't quite match up, and Harry's vision begins to unravel in this twisty tale of a heist gone wrong.
Writing
Script structurally audacious—shows plan, then shows reality.
Acting
Caine plays against type as bumbling dreamer; MacLaine owns every frame.
Production
Lavish Hong Kong and Middle East locations scream 1966 glamour.
Director
Ronald Neame
Shirley MacLaine
Nicole
Michael Caine
Harry
Herbert Lom
Shahbandar
Roger C. Carmel
Ram
Arnold Moss
Abdul
John Abbott
Emile
Richard Angarola
Colonel Salim
Maurice Marsac
Hotel Clerk
Jan Arvan
Airport Official (uncredited)
Noel De Souza
Head Porter (uncredited)
Tanya Lemani George
Lighter Fluid Saleswoman (uncredited)
Vic Tayback
Plainclothes Officer at TWA Counter (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The screenplay by Jack Davies and Alvin Sargent originated as a 1962 unproduced TV script.
The film's structural gimmick—showing fantasy before reality—influenced later heist films but rarely with this much wit.
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