Poppies Are Also Flowers, also known as The Opium Connection, is a 1966 espionage thriller film produced by the United Nations. It features an ensemble cast of international stars, including Senta Berger, Trevor Howard, Rita Hayworth, Yul Brynner, Stephen Boyd, Angie Dickinson, Marcello Mastroianni, and Eli Wallach. The film is directed by Terence Young, best known for directing several James Bond films.
The story begins when a group of UN narcotics agents, led by Mike Whittaker (played by Howard), intercept a shipment of opium being smuggled from Iran to Europe. To track down the main heroin distributor, they devise a plan to inject the opium with a radioactive compound, so they can trace the source of the drugs once they are distributed in Europe.
Meanwhile, in Istanbul, a mysterious woman named Maxine (played by Berger) is conducting her own investigation of the heroin trade. She has a personal stake in the matter, as her sister was a heroin addict who died from an overdose. Her investigation leads her to cross paths with Whittaker and his team, and they team up to uncover the larger network of drug trafficking.
As they delve deeper into the underworld of international drug smuggling, they encounter a variety of characters, including a wealthy drug lord (played by Brynner), a corrupt customs officer (played by Wallach), and a beautiful model (played by Dickinson) who may be involved in the drug trade.
The film features exotic locations, suspenseful action sequences, and a message about the dangers of drug addiction and the need for international cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking. Poppies Are Also Flowers was produced with the support of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and was meant to raise awareness of the global drug problem.