- The Poppy Is Also a Flower
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The Poppy Is Also a Flower 
Directed by Terence Young Produced by Euan Lloyd Written by Jo Eisinger
Ian Fleming (story)Narrated by Grace Kelly Starring Stephen Boyd
Senta Berger
Yul Brynner
Angie DickinsonMusic by Georges Garvarentz Cinematography Henri Alekan Distributed by ABC (US TV broadcast)
Astral Films (US theatrical)Release date(s) 1966 Running time 80 minutes (TV)
100 minutes (theatrical)Language English The Poppy Is Also a Flower (1966) is an ABC made-for-television spy and anti-drug film. The film was directed by Terence Young and stars Senta Berger, Stephen Boyd, Trevor Howard, Rita Hayworth, Angie Dickinson, Yul Brynner, and Marcello Mastroianni. Grace Kelly (as Princess Grace of Monaco) narrates.[1]
The film was also known by alternate titles Poppies Are Also Flowers, The Opium Connection and Danger Grows Wild (in the UK).
Contents
Plot summary
In an attempt to stem the heroin trade at the Afghanistan-Iran border, a group of narcotics agents working for the United Nations inject a radioactive compound into a seized shipment of opium, in the hopes that it will lead them to the main heroin distributor in Europe.
Cast
- Senta Berger - Nightclub Wrestler
- Stephen Boyd - Benson
- Yul Brynner - Col. Salem
- Angie Dickinson - Linda Benson
- Georges Géret - Supt. Roche
- Hugh Griffith - Tribal chief
- Jack Hawkins - Gen. Bahar
- Rita Hayworth - Monique Markos
- Trevor Howard - Sam Lincoln
- Trini López - Himself
- E. G. Marshall - Coley
- Marcello Mastroianni - Insp. Mosca
- Amedeo Nazzari - Capt. Dinonnio
- Anthony Quayle - Capt. Vanderbilt
- Gilbert Roland - Serge Markos
The International Crew
Part of the production of this film took place overseas. Iran was the main scene for many desert and border scenes. The crew spent several weeks on location and the local cinematographers joined the team to accomplish the production. Famous Iranian cinematographers cooperated with this project, including Maziyar Partow.
Backstory
The film is based on an idea by Ian Fleming, the James Bond creator. Funded in part by a grant from Xerox, it was produced by the United Nations and the stars received a salary of $1.[2] Terence Young left the direction of Thunderball to make the film.
The Poppy Is Also a Flower was the last of four television movies commissioned by the United Nations, to publicise its missions and roles in world peace and diplomacy. The film was originally 80 minutes in length for its ABC telecast (minus commercial time for the 90-minute slot), later expanded to 100 minutes for theatrical release. Interestingly, Astral Films released the theatrical version into American theaters in 1967.
See also
- Carol for Another Christmas (1964 TV film, also produced for the United Nations)
References
- ^ "NY Times: The Poppy Is Also a Flower". NY Times.com. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/38718/The-Poppy-Is-Also-a-Flower/details. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
- ^ The Euan Lloyd Interview Cinema Retro Issue #1
External links
(some of the information in these links were also used as sources for this article)
- Poppies are also Flowers at the Internet Movie Database
- CommanderBond.net: "Ian Fleming’s Last Story: 'The Poppy Is Also A Flower'"
- TVParty: "The UN Goes to the Movies"
The films of Terence Young 1940s 1950s They Were Not Divided • Valley of Eagles • The Tall Headlines • The Red Beret • That Lady • Storm Over the Nile (with Zoltan Korda) • Safari • Zarak • Action of the Tiger • No Time to Die • Serious Charge1960s Black Tights • Too Hot to Handle • Duel of Champions • Dr. No • From Russia with Love • The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders • The Dirty Game (with Christian-Jacque, Werner Klingler, and Carlo Lizzani) • Thunderball • The Poppy Is Also a Flower • Triple Cross • The Rover • Wait Until Dark • Mayerling • The Christmas Tree1970s Cold Sweat • Red Sun • The Valachi Papers • The Amazons • The Klansman • Foxbat (with Po-Chih Leong) • Bloodline1980s Screen-
playsOn the Night of the Fire (with Brian Desmond Hurst and Patrick Kirwan) (1939) • Dangerous Moonlight (1941) • Secret Mission (with Basil Bartlett and Anatole de Grunwald) (1942) • On Approval (with Clive Brook) (1944) • Hungry Hill (with Daphne Du Maurier) (1947) • The Bad Lord Byron (with Paul Holt, Laurence Kitchin, Peter Quennell and Anthony Thorne) (1949) • Atout coeur à Tokyo pour OSS 117 (with Pierre Foucaud) (1966)Works by Ian Fleming James Bond novels Casino Royale (1953) · Live and Let Die (1954) · Moonraker (1955) · Diamonds Are Forever (1956) · From Russia, with Love (1957) · Dr. No (1958) · Goldfinger (1959) · Thunderball (1961) · The Spy Who Loved Me (1962) · On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1963) · You Only Live Twice (1964) · The Man with the Golden Gun (1965)Short story collections Other novels Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1964)Non-fiction Other works Trout memo (attributed, 1939) · The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (consultant, character creation, 1964) · The Poppy Is Also a Flower (story idea, 1966)Categories:- 1966 films
- American spy films
- 1960s drama films
- American television films
- Xerox
- United Nations media
- Drug rehabilitation
- Works by Ian Fleming
- Films directed by Terence Young
- 1960s drama film stubs
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