Sol Madrid

Sol Madrid is a 1968 film directed by Brian G. Hutton and filmed in Acapulco. Based on the 1965 novel Fruit of the Poppy by Robert Wilder, it was released in the UK as The Heroin Gang and in Australia as The Secret File of Sol Madrid.^[1] The MGM film starred David McCallum, Stella Stevens, Telly Savalas and Ricardo Montalbán with John Cassavetes being replaced by Rip Torn prior to filming.^[2] It was the final film of Paul Lukas.

Sol Madrid
Original film poster
Directed by	Brian G. Hutton
Screenplay by	David Karp
Based on	Fruit of the Poppy 1965 novel by Robert Wilder
Produced by	Hall Bartlett Elliott Kastner Jerry Gershwin (uncredited)
Starring	David McCallum Telly Savalas Ricardo Montalbán
Cinematography	Fred J. Koenekamp
Edited by	John McSweeney, Jr.
Music by	Lalo Schifrin
Production companies	Hall Bartlett Pictures Inc. Gershwin-Kastner Productions
Distributed by	MGM
Release date	February 7, 1968 (1968-02-07)
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

Half a million dollars is stolen from the mafia by small-time crook Harry Mitchell, who splits it with girlfriend Stacey Woodward and takes off for Acapulco.

The mob sends hitman Dano Villanova to deal with Harry and get the money back. Sol Madrid, an undercover narc, is out to find Harry first, hoping to persuade him to testify against organized crime in court.

Stacey happens to be Villanova's former girlfriend. Things get complicated in Mexico, where a heroin dealer named Dietrich is engaged in criminal activity while Mexican law official Jalisco is on the case. Before she can flee on a yacht, Stacey is taken captive by Villanova and shot up with dope until she becomes an addict.

Harry is caught and killed. Jalisco is not what he seems to be, so Madrid not only must deal with him, but with Villanova and Dietrich as well.

Cast

• David McCallum as Sol Madrid
• Stella Stevens as Stacey Woodward
• Telly Savalas as Emil Dietrich
• Ricardo Montalbán as Jalisco (credited as Ricardo Montalban)
• Rip Torn as Dano Villanova
• Pat Hingle as Harry Mitchell
• Paul Lukas as Capo Riccione
• Michael Ansara as Capt. Ortega
• Michael Conrad as Scarpi

Soundtrack

Sol Madrid
Soundtrack album by Lalo Schifrin
Released	1968
Recorded	November 9 & 10, 1967 MGM Scoring Stage, Culver City, California
Genre	Film score
Length	28:22
Label	MGM SE 4541 ST
Producer	Jesse Kaye
Lalo Schifrin chronology
Cool Hand Luke (1967) Sol Madrid (1968) The Fox (1968)

The film score was composed by Lalo Schifrin and the soundtrack album was released on the MGM label in 1968.^[3] An expanded edition of the soundtrack was released on by Film Score Monthly in 2010 as part of the five CD box set The Cincinnati Kid: Lalo Schifrin Film Scores Vol. 1 (1964-1968).^[4]

Track listing

All compositions by Lalo Schifrin

1. "Sol Madrid (Main Theme)" - 2:00
2. "Fiesta" - 1:35
3. "Stacey's Bolero" - 2:36
4. "The Burning Candle" - 2:25
5. "Adagietto" - 2:50
6. "Sol Madrid (Main Theme)" - 1:55
7. "The Golden Trip" - 2:35
8. "Charanga" - 2:20
9. "El Patio" - 2:25
10. "Villanova's Villa" - 2:10
11. "Bolero #2" - 2:07
12. "Villanova's Chase" - 2:07

Personnel

• Lalo Schifrin - composer, conductor
• Laurindo Almeida - guitar
• Unnamed Orchestra conducted by Robert Armbruster
• George del Barrio - orchestration