The Mind of Stefan Miklos - Recap

Jim goes into a theater and picks up his briefing tape. He’s informed that Walter Townsend is an American intelligence officer who is actually a double-agent. The U.S. has fed him false information to give to his superiors. However, Townsend’s American contact, George Simpson, has discovered the information is false and reported that Townsend is defecting. However, Simpson’s superiors don’t trust him and send their beset intelligence officer, Stefan Miklos, to investigate Townsend. The IMF must convince Miklos that Townsend’s fake information is the real thing.

In the briefing, Jim warms the team that Miklos is flawless and invulnerability, and his only weakness is himself. Jim figures that Miklos must assemble the parts of the puzzle they’ve set up for him, and warns he has a photographic memory. Townsend and Miklos are friends but they’re sure Miklos won’t let that weaken him. They plan to make sure the real Simpson and the real Miklos never meet. Rollin then demonstrates his ability to use his left hand to strike a book of matches. They also have a duplicate of Miklos’ lighter that doesn’t work. Jim warns that Barney and Willy have to be finished with “the statue” before Miklos gets from the airport to the art gallery.

Cinnamon goes to the art gallery while Jim visits as a gas mine inspector and has the owner (Miklos’ contact) let him in the back. Jim then releases some gas from a hidden vial so he can bring Willy and Barney in as repairmen.

After Townsend leaves his apartment, Rollin sneaks in and bugs his phone. He then opens Townsend’s safe using a sound-detection device. Once in the back room, Barney starts sawing through the wall.

Miklos and his man Vincent head for the art gallery while Barney slips into the wall and gets underneath the case holding the statue. Cinnamon is in the gallery and uses a ring with a bit of radioactive material to indicate to Barney where to use acid to burn up. He then removes the bottom of the statue and removes the cylinder that hides Miklos’ contact information for Simpson. He gives it to Willy, who substitute’s Rollin’s photo for Simpson’s along with false date. Willy goes out while Barney puts the cylinder back, but Willy spots Miklos and warns Barney by radio. Miklos prepares to take the statue, just as Barney works to reseal the bottom. He manages to do so with barely a second to spare.

Rollin goes to Simpson’s glassware shop and pretends to be Miklos, giving the proper passwords. He demands Simpson’s proof against Townsend, and Simpson says it’s with another agent, Willoughby. Rollin demands he bring it.

Miklos gets the information out of the statue and memorizes both the photo and the info, then destroys it. Meanwhile Cinnamon returns to buy a painting while Willy and Barney leave, making sure to be seen by the security camera. Simpson nervously waits for Willoughby to arrive with the data and probes Rollin’s knowledge to make sure he’s the real thing. Rollin passes with ease, and then Willoughby arrives. Jim calls Rollin to warn him Miklos is on the way. Rollin has Jim take Simpson and Willoughby to a safehouse. They leave with Jim and Miklos arrives… to find Rollin as Simpson. After verifying that Rollin is left-handed, Miklos demands to see the evidence against Townsend and Rollin says he’ll need time to get it from Willoughby.

Miklos goes to Townsend’s apartment and breaks in, then searches the place. They open the safe and find the papers Rollin planted: incriminating pictures of Townsend’s family and Miklos. There’s also a photo of Cinnamon sending her love. Cinnamon then makes a call and asks for Townsend, then hangs up. She then leaves some ash in her fireplace along with a single piece of unburned scrap. Miklos gets her address from the photo and he goes there to find she has packed her bags. He finds the scrap of paper and goes through her purse finding a matchbook the IMF has planted. He also finds a compact with a locker key in it and makes an impression of it in putty. Miklos then calls the number on the scrap, which Barney answers as a stock company clerk. Miklos makes an appointment to check out Cinnamon’s returns.

Miklos calls Rollin-as-Simpson for papers to identify himself as an IRS agent to meet with Barney. Rollin then calls Simpson and tells him to be at Townsend’s apartment at 3 p.m. to set a trap. Simpson is there when Townsend arrives and tells him that he’s been relieved and is going home. Simpson then tells Townsend to be at the airport where the locker is and pick up his new codes at 4:30 p.m.

Miklos visits Rollin-as-Simpson to get his papers and makes the switch with the non-working lighter, then loans him the rigged set of matches. Miklos then meets with Barney who tells him that she’s cashed in her stocks and converted them into a cashier’s check. Miklos’ man Vincent follows Cinnamon to the airport, while Barney sneaks into Townsend’s apartment while he takes a shower. There Barney puts a miniature mike into Townsend’s shirt collar and sets his watch back 30 minutes.

Miklos goes to the airport and opens the locker where Cinnamon has put her case, and finds passports to Rio for her and Townsend. He and Vincent hide while Townsend and Cinnamon both arrive at the lockers. Barney listens in on Townsend’s hidden collar mike while Miklos confronts Townsend. Cinnamon yells for a guard and Willy shows up to run interference, and Miklos leaves with Townsend.

Back at Townsend’s apartment, Townsend tries to explain his innocence while Miklos destroys all of the incriminating papers. The team listens in while Jim wonders if he was too subtle for Miklos to pick up. Miklos prepares to shoot Townsend with a silenced pistol when Townsend says he got there at 4:30… by his watch, when it was actually 5. Miklos catches on then notices the matchbook, which has had matches removed by a left-handed person. And another similar matchbook was at Cinnamon’s apartment. Rollin is left-handed so Miklos believes she’s linked to Rollin-as-Simpson. Miklos recites the code from the papers in the statue and Townsend points out that info is false. Miklos then remembers that the painting in Cinnamon’s apartment was the one she bought at the art gallery.

Miklos and Townsend go to the art gallery and review the security tapes. They spot Cinnamon in the art gallery, then notice Barney as a repairman, who Miklos knows as the stock accountant. He also recognizes repairman Willy as the security guard at the airport. Miklos determines they switched the information in the statue, and he also spots Jim on the tape. Miklos now believes a U.S. operative planned the entire operation and used a defecting Simpson. He now concludes that the plan is to discredit Townsend so that Miklos’ superiors won’t accept the information. To prove his theory, Miklos calls Rollin-as-Simpson and meets with him to get the proof. Rollin has “Willoughby” come in: it’s Jim, who Miklos recognizes from the security tape. Now Miklos is sure that the whole thing is a plant, but he lies to Rollin-as-Simpson and promises to dispose of Townsend to make the Americans think he's fooled.

Miklos leaves with Townsend, noting that he’s now convinced that Townsend’s information is valid and they have to get him out of the country. He leaves Rollin-as-Simpson and Jim-as-Willoughby to be disposed of by the Americans because of their failure to discredit Townsend. Miklos shows a trace of sympathy for Jim’s supposed “failure,” but notes he’ll be destroyed because of it.

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