| Licensed to Love and Kill | |
|---|---|
 Originalfilm poster | |
| Directed by | Lindsay Shonteff |
| Written by | Lindsay Shonteff (as Jeremy Lee Francis) |
| Produced by | Elizabeth Gray |
| Starring | Gareth Hunt |
| Cinematography | Bill Patterson |
| Edited by | Gerry Ivanov |
| Music by | Leonard Young |
Production company | Lindsay Shonteff Film Productions |
| Distributed by | Firebird Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 94 minutes 78 minutes (US) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Licensed to Love and Kill (VHS release titlesThe Man from S.E.X. andUndercover Lover) is a 1979 imitationJames Bond film directed byLindsay Shontef and starringGareth Hunt.[1] It was written by Shonteff (as Jeremy Lee Francis) and produced by his wife Elizabeth Gray.
Secret Agent Charles Bind is called in to investigate the disappearance of Lord Dangerfield, a British diplomat. The trail leads Bind to Dangefield's daughter Carlotta Muff-Dangerfield who is called "Lotta Muff", an ambitious American Senator named Lucifer Orchid, and Bind's counterpart in the forces of evil, Ultra One.
During the production of Henson and Shonteff's previous Charles Bind filmNo. 1 of the Secret Service (1977), a sequel was announced entitledAn Orchid for No. 1.[2] Though initially signed to Shonteff for three films,Nicky Henson was signed by theRoyal Shakespeare Company. Henson was replaced byGareth Hunt who was known for his role as secret agent Mike Gambit inThe New Avengers (1976–77).
Geoffrey Keen repeated his role as Bind'sM type superior Rockwell. The original Rockwell from theTom AdamsCharles Vine films was played byJohn Arnatt who returned to Shonteff's series playing Merlin, theQ type character who issues Bind his secret weapons. Fiona Curzon who plays the female lead had a smaller different role in the previousNo 1. of the Secret Service. Gary Hope had a role as an Army officer in the first Vine filmLicensed to Kill (1965).
Simon Bell wrote the music andDoreen Chanter composed and performed the theme song,Love is a Fine Thing.[citation needed]
Alan Burton inHistorical Dictionary of British Spy Fiction, which cites that "the cycle of spy films began to lose steam in the 1970s", and mentionsLicensed to Love and Kill and its preceding filmNo. 1 of the Secret Service as "the odd picture [that] turned up in the cinema schedules", refers to both films as "crude parodies".[3]