The Saint Lies in Wait

Directed by Christian-Jaque, this French-Italian spy comedy adapts the Simon Templar novel of the same name credited to Leslie Charteris. The story follows a French con man who plays both sides, selling confidential documents to German and American intelligence services in order to secure a comfortable future for his daughter Sophie. When the papers turn out to be forgeries and the deception is exposed, he turns to the famous adventurer Simon Templar, known as the Saint, for help. Jean Marais stars as Templar, with Jess Hahn as his associate Hoppy Uniatz, alongside Jean Yanne and Danièle Évenou. The film was shot at the Billancourt Studios in Paris and reached French cinemas in October 1966, at a time when the British television series about the Saint, starring Roger Moore, was enjoying peak popularity.