Henri Pachard's riff on "The Maltese Falcon" is a rather light picture, shot on film on location in Europe but far from a super production. I found it a diverting trifle, different from the American-made competition.
The title statue is a black statue with some gold touches, imitating the Maltese version but with wings spread. It's over 3,000 years old and sought by the priestesses of an ancient cult as a fertility object, thought to give its possessor amazing sexual powers.
There's plenty of thievery and lots of irony in Raven Touchstone's screenplay, with some okay performances including Jon Dough as a smug bad guy. Small-time crook Mike Horner and his girlfriend Bionca get the last laugh. Sexy heroines Shanna McCullough, Tracey Adams and Lynn LeMay are all goddesses, in more ways than one.
Pachaard shot this film back to back with "Licensed to Thrill", featuring the same cast.
