Attack of the Robots (Cartes sur table) – Kino Lorber/Redemption Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: France,1966
Director: Jesus Franco
Writers: Jean-Claude Carrière, Jesus Franco
Cast: Eddie Constantine, Françoise Brion, Fernando Rey, Sophie Hardy, Alfredo Mayo, Ricardo Palacios, Marcelo Arroita-Jáuregui, Vicente Roca, Gene Reyes, Manuel Vidal, Mara Kelly, Dina Loy, Aida Power, Jesus Franco

Release Date: July 16th, 2019
Approximate Running Time: 92 Minutes 38 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC
Rating: NR
Sound: LPCM Mono English, LPCM Mono French
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.95

"At once an homage to classical Hollywood thrillers and a playful riff on the newly-popular James Bond films, Attack of the Robots (Carts sur table) stars Eddie Constantine as a wise-cracking superspy investigating a series of assassinations being performed by ruthless killers with bronze skin and horn-rimmed glasses. The trail of these mindless automata leads him to the lair of a seductive villainess (Françoise Bryon, L 'Immortelle) who has formulated a computer-powered plot to overthrow the governments of Europe. Constantine, who was popular in France for his two-fisted Lemma Caution films (including Jean-Luc Godard’s Alpha Ville), had begun to tire of playing the hardboiled detective, and welcomed the opportunity to take a more light-hearted approach to the genre film." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 2/5

Attack of the Robots comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 18.7 GB

Feature: 18 GB

Attack of the Robots has been previously released by Gaumont on DVD in 2010 and on Blu-ray in 2018. Gaumont is the company that provided Redemption Films with the source used for this transfer. The source used for this transfer is in great shape. Image clarity, contrast, and black levels look strong throughout, and unfortunately, there are compression artifacts that are more noticeable on larger displays/television screens.

Audio: 4/5

This release comes with two audio options: a LPCM mono mix in English and a LPCM mono mix in French. Both audio mixes sound clean, clear, and balanced throughout. Included with this release are removable English subtitles for the French language track. It should be noted that there is a brief exchange of dialog that is only in French, and when watching the English language track, this brief exchange occurs at forty-seven minutes and two seconds and ends at forty-seven minutes and eighteen seconds. With that being said, the provided English subtitles do not automatically play for this brief dialog exchange, and you can only manually turn them on.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a trailer for the film (3 minutes 23 seconds, LPCM mono French with English subtitles) and an audio commentary with Tim Lucas, co-author of Obsession: The Films of Jess Franco.

Summary:

Attack of the Robots is a Sci-Fi/Spy/Comedy hybrid that was directed by Jess Franco in 1966. Attack of the Robots also marked Jess Franco’s second pairing up with actor Eddie Constantine, who also starred in the Jess Franco film Residence for Spies, also made in 1966. Actor Eddie Constantine is most remembered for his portrayal of private detective Lemmy Caution, a character he would return to a total of fourteen times over a thirty-eight year period. The screenplay for Attack of the Robots was written by Jean-Claude Carrière, who also wrote the screenplay for Jess Franco’s The Diabolical Dr. Z.

Attack of the Robots Visually and story-wise, it bears many similarities to The Diabolical Dr. Z. Both films feature mad scientists who have ambitions of conquering the world through their mind-controlled killers. Being that both films were also made around the same time, it does look like they used some of the same props and sets. Jess Franco’s direction and use of black and white photography is reminiscent of the style employed for many of Universal’s horror films from the 1930’s. Fans of Jess Franco’s later films are sure to be surprised just how far removed some of his earlier films are stylistically.

The plot is very simple, even if some of its ideas, like the killers’ skin color changing from very dark to pale when they die and how they all have the same rare blood type, may seem farfetched. Luckily, Jess Franco approaches the plot in a tongue-in-cheek way that makes you forget some of its imperfections. Attack of the Robots, like most of Jess Franco’s earlier films, has an enthusiasm and a lighthearted approach to them, making them more accessible than his later films.

In the lead role, Al Pereira is Eddie Constantine. Al Pereira is a man who has walked away from being a spy. He reluctantly comes back when his hand is forced by the various players involved. Though Al Pereira is a super spy like James Bond, His weapons and gadgets are not as effective, and some are even defective. His logic and ability to get out of trouble are not very strong. One has to wonder how he lasted as long as he has. Performance-wise, Eddie Constantine perfectly captures his character’s essence.

Playing Al Pereira’s nemesis is Spanish actor Fernando Rey as Sir Percy, an eccentric scientist. Fernando Rey is convincing and diabolical in his role. Other main players include Françoise Brion as Lady Cecilia Addington Courtney, who works for Sir Percy, and Sophie Hardy as a spy named Cynthia Lewis. Both women play a part in trying to find out what Al Pereira’s mission is, and they are both more than willing to sacrifice their bodies to find out what they need to know. Overall, the acting is more than satisfactory all around, as all the performances and Jess Franco’s direction create an infectious mood where one can’t help but enjoy themselves. Ultimately, Attack of the Robots is an uneven film that is anchored by Eddie Constantine’s memorable performance.

Attack of the Robots gets a strong release from Redemption Films that could have been so much better if not for the compression artifacts.

Written by Michael Den Boer