Review of Sebastian

Sebastian (1968)
7/10
Something From The 60's
2 March 2009
Warning: Spoilers
I haven't seen this movie for at least 25 years so my rating is obviously a shot from the hip. I do recollect enjoying its slightly quirky idea at the time.

Featuring Dirk Bogarde, Britain's prettiest closet gay, as yet another handsome heterosexual; he gives his usual competent turn as a cryptologist-par-excellence who is so obsessed with his craft that he can't even concentrate on sexy Susannah York (though we all know the real reason).

The movie is an interesting and light-hearted take on the business of code-breaking. Bletchley Park meets swinging sixties. Groovy, baby. It's an unpretentious little relic that seems to have been largely forgotten. Which is a shame, because it deserves an airing from time to time. It makes a great contrast with the coolly laconic and rather more serious 'Ipcress File'.

Its cast is really quite amazing for such a 'lost' movie. As well as Bogarde and York there's the irreplaceable John Gielgud, Nigel Davenport, Donald Sutherland, and Ronald Fraser. Even the late Alan Freeman, one of the most enduring pirate/BBC DJ's of the late 20th century plays the part - of a DJ. What more can a movie ask?

Worth a watch, if only for such an excellent cast.
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