7.5/10
George Peppard's third and final collaboration with director John Guillermin after "The Blue Max" and the Universal thriller "P.J.," "House of Cards" offers an intriguing premise wherein American boxer Peppard is hired to tutor (really protect) the young son of Inger Stevens -- the daughter of a fascist involved in a plot to take over Europe. Exciting location shooting in France and Italy, widescreen lensing and a truly terrific score by Francis Lai make this a memorable late '60s film that's a little talky (Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. scripted under their pseudonym "James P. Bonner") in stretches but Peppard is engagingly laid back and Orson Welles provides sufficient, if brief, villainy. It's a breezy road-trip with Lai's tuneful score offering lovely melodies and punchy action cues, some of them boasting a groovy use of electric guitar and percussion.
"House of Cards" definitely is tied up with some kind of legal wrangling in North America. In addition to the movie's original theatrical release having been delayed by a year in the U.S. (for reasons nobody seems to know the reason behind), the movie has never been released on home video, ever. That means no VHS, DVD or Blu-Ray, and when Kino Lorber tried to tackle the picture last year, they found out there were legal issues preventing them from licensing it from Universal (whom they already worked with on "P.J.").
The good news is the movie has turned up from Australia's Imprint label, and their limited-edition BD boasts a decent, satisfying 1080p (2.35) transfer with clear mono sound. The sole extra is a typical "historian commentary" heavy on the IMDB credits, but the opportunity to see the film in a quality presentation is rare in this country, and makes for a recommended Blu-Ray import (Deepdiscount has it for about $30).
