Callan (4½ Stars)

This film, made in 1974, is a gem that is probably unknown to American viewers, and it's no longer well known in England. "Callan" was an English television series that ran from 1967 to 1972. The film I'm reviewing here is a remake of the 1967 pilot episode as an extended version.

Callan was the original unglamorous secret agent, an anti-hero who was the complete opposite of James Bond. No other television series like this has been made since, although "La Femme Nikita" was heavily influenced by it. David Callan, played by Edward Woodward, was an armed robber. He agreed to work for an organisation known only as "Section" in exchange for his criminal record being wiped clean. Section is a secret organisation that does jobs for the greater good that can't be carried out legally. For instance, as in this film, if Section knows that someone is working as an arms dealer supplying terrorists they don't gather evidence to bring him to trial, they just send an agent to kill him.

And that's Callan's job. He's a killer. Although he's acknowledged as Section's best operative, he causes problems by having a conscience. He isn't happy just turning up for work and doing his job. He wants to know if the victim really deserves to die. For this reason Callan is constantly under surveillance by Section, and he's frequently reminded that he's expendable; he can be eliminated at any time by his fellow agents if they consider him to be a liability.

Callan, as I said above, is the opposite of James Bond in every conceivable way. Instead of riches he lives in a squalid single room apartment in London. He doesn't own a car. His pay is "less than £10,000 a year", and he only remains with Section because he knows that if he tries to leave he'll be killed. Callan never gets together with women, neither for romance nor casual sex. Callan frequently breaks down and cries when an innocent bystander gets killed during a mission.

The television series ran for 44 episodes, 22 in b/w and 22 in colour. Of the b/w episodes only 12 still exist. Incidentally, in the final season of "La Femme Nikita" the influence of "Callan" is acknowledged. Edward Woodward enters the series playing the part of Nikita's father.