The Saint Lies in Wait (French: Le Saint prend l'affût, Italian: Il santo prende la mira) is a 1966 French-Italian comedy crime film directed by Christian-Jaque and starring Jean Marais, Jess Hahn and Jean Yanne. It is an adaptation of a French only Simon Templar novel Le Saint prend l'affût (1960), credited to Leslie Charteris, but in fact ghostwritten. It was shot at the Billancourt Studios in Paris. The film's sets were designed by the art director Jean Mandaroux. At the time the British television series The Saint starring Roger Moore was at the height of its popularity.
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Synopsis
Simon Templar is staying at a Scottish castle with his friend Hoppy Uniatz, but is called into action when another friend Oscar Chartier involves him in a complex scheme to steal secret documents. His adventures take him to Paris and Sicily and he becomes the protector of Oscar's daughter Sophie.
Cast
Jean Marais as Simon Templar
Jess Hahn as Hoppy Uniatz
Jean Yanne as Mueller-Strasse
Danièle Évenou as Sophie Chartier
Raffaella Carrà as Mrs Anita Pavone
Tiberio Murgia as Tonio Cotone
Henri Virlogeux as Oscar Chartier
Claudio Gora as Cesare Pavone
Nerio Bernardi as esare Pavone, le Commandatore
Darío Moreno as Slimane
Maria Brockerhoff as Monica
Roger Carel as The professor
Reinhard Kolldehoff as Schmutz
Henri Guégan as un homme de main allemand
Carlo Pisacane as Agatino Camaleonte
Siegfried Rauch as Johnny K.W. Mest
Katia Christine as Mary
Production
The film was known under the title The Saint Lies in Wait (USA), Il santo prende la mira (Italy), Der Lord mit der MP (West Germany), As Aventuras de o Santo (Portugal).
During the making of the film, the stunt arranger Gil(bert-Yves) Delamare was killed doubling for Marais. A doyen of French stunt drivers, Delamare was skidding a Renault Floride S convertible for a twilight scene on a new patch of freeway when its back axle snapped rolling him and his passengers into a barrier. He was mortally injured when he struck his head on the windscreen. The stunt passengers were thrown clear and survived.