Maroc 7 is one of those films that has a number of elements, individually of interest, but collectively failing to come together effectively.The mysterious Simon Grant (Gene Barry) breaks into the home of fashion magazine editor Louise Henderson (Cyd Charisse) in order to get material to blackmail her into letting him accompany her on a fashion layout photo shoot in Morocco. Apparently he believes she was involved in a series of jewel thefts and he wants to get his share of the next caper. They are accompanied on the trip by her top model Claudia (Elsa Martinelli), shifty photographer Raymond Lowe (Leslie Phillips) and model wrangler Freddie (Angela Douglas). They are also accompanied by several models, including one, Vivienne, played by Tracy Reed. In Morocco they meet cynical police Inspector Barrada (Denholm Elliott), his attractive assistant Michelle Craig (Alexandra Stewart) and dubious antiquities expert Professor Bannen (Eric Barker).The plot involves secret maps, robbing tombs and multiple double crosses. It doesn't really generate a lot of excitement but does have the decided attraction of being fast moving. They do try to enhance the ending with a fun plot twist. A major attraction is the colorful setting in Morocco, which is shown to great advantage.Similarly the acting is professional, I don't think there is any bad performances per se, but it doesn't generate much emotional involvement. Perhaps the combination of 1940's Hollywood (Berry, Charisse) with 1960's swinging London was simply never going to be a comfortable fit. Although the photo shoot scenes, obviously dated to the 1960's (although I have no objection to miniskirts), provides some visual flair to match the Moroccan scenery. Denholm Elliott creates the most interesting character, while Elsa Martinelli and Alexandra Stewart are attractive love interests.Leslie Phillips also produced the movie and he talked briefly about that experience on the commentary track for the British DVD release of Very Important Person (1961). Apparently he was interested in directing and thought that producing a movie would be a step in that direction. While he didn't say what, if anything, he enjoyed about producing, he was very clear about disliking all the financial management that went with producing. He mentioned, in passing, that the budget of Maroc 7 was approximately half a million dollars. According to IMDb this is the only movie he produced and he never directed any films (although his commentary referenced extensive theater directing). As an aside I would be interested in knowing whether the name of Alexandra Stewart's character, Michelle Craig, was an "inside joke" on Leslie Phillips' Doctor In Love co-star Michael Craig.The quality of the print, in the German DVD release version I saw, could best be described as acceptable. In truth, having seen the movie on TV several times over the years, I have never really seen a pristine print of the film. The deterioration is regrettable given the colorful scenery in Morocco.Overall the film is an acceptable time waster, although the elements are more workmanlike than inspired.

Loaded with pretty girls, exotic locations, and double-crosses, "Maroc 7" keeps your attention, but never builds too much excitement. Despite being filmed on location in Morocco, the cinematography makes the picture look cheap (or maybe I just watched a bad print), and the director has the bad habit of filming his "big" scenes in near-complete darkness, making it a pain to try and see what's going on. The male lead, Gene Barry, is a bit too old and a bit too smarmy for his "smooth ladies' man" role, but Alexandra Stewart is simply gorgeous and Elsa Martinelli is not far behind. The 60's were certainly a great decade for screen babes, and there is perhaps no other genre demonstrating that point more clearly than these spy capers. (**)

Although by no means a spy thriller ,"Maroc 7" has its eye on Hitchcock and too many James Bond movies.The action takes place in Morroco ,like the first part of "the man who knew too much" and the final scene between Gene Barry and Elsa Martinelli resembles a "North by Norwest" in miniature ,complete with (Morrocan ) rocks.Martinelli,Cyd Charisse and Alexandra Stewart are given here the royal treatment of beauties in the tradition of the James Bond Girls.Gene Barry,although American, looks very British ,like Sean Connery ,and he does not take seriously this story of an invaluable medallion (which used to belong to none other than Cleopatra 's and Marc Antony's daughter Salome no less).No masterpiece ,but fun to watch ,and Morocco is the real star of the film.

This is no masterpiece, but it's not as bad as I was expecting. The story is quite compelling and you have to stay watching to see how it all turns out - an outcome you certainly can not guess because these characters have more guises than the Mission Impossible 2 team! Good if you like these types of 60s British films, or if you're just a curious Cyd Charisse fan. Though she's not playing a beautiful young dancer, but a still beautiful and still very young-looking fashion editor, who doubles as a jewel thief in her spare time.