Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- paranoid
- grounded
- morally gray
- classic spy movie night
- cold war cinema marathon
What critics said
Critics generally found the film competently performed but familiar, with Burt Lancaster and Alain Delon providing gravitas that the conventional spy-thriller material lacks.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The CIA secretly contracts Scorpio to kill Cross because Cross intends to leave with sensitive knowledge, turning agency loyalty into the central threat.
Cross and Scorpio are mentor and protégé, veteran and successor, and each recognizes himself in the other during their pursuit.
Cross plans to quit while McLeod and the agency seek to replace and eliminate him through the younger Scorpio.
The film moves through Washington, Paris, Vienna, safe houses, and intelligence networks while treating assassination and agency politics in a grounded 1970s register.
Films like Scorpio, and why
The Day of the Jackal
shared cold war espionage, professional assassins, political paranoia, and morally conflicted veteran operatives
The Parallax View
shared 1970s spy thriller atmosphere, institutional betrayal, surveillance, and fugitive intelligence agents
The Kremlin Letter
shared cold war intrigue, shifting loyalties, political assassination, and grounded international espionage
Three Days of the Condor
shared older professional operative threatened by changing intelligence institutions and betrayal within the agency
Movie Details
- Director
- Michael Winner
- Release Date
- 1973-04-11
- Runtime
- 114 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (124)
Cast
- Burt Lancaster
- Alain Delon
- Paul Scofield
- John Colicos
- Gayle Hunnicutt
- J.D. Cannon
- Joanne Linville
- Mel Stewart
- Vladek Sheybal
- Mary Maude
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Scorpio about?
- A veteran CIA assassin races to escape his own agency after his protégé is hired to replace and eliminate him.
- What is Scorpio like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Scorpio as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Scorpio violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Scorpio as mild.
- What did critics think of Scorpio?
- Critics generally found the film competently performed but familiar, with Burt Lancaster and Alain Delon providing gravitas that the conventional spy-thriller material lacks.
- Which films are like Scorpio?
- Films with a similar feel include The Day of the Jackal, The Parallax View, The Kremlin Letter, and Three Days of the Condor.
- How long is Scorpio?
- Scorpio runs 114 minutes.
- Where can I watch Scorpio?
- In United States, Scorpio streams on fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus.
