How We Stole the Atomic Bomb

An American bomber carrying nuclear weapons crashes into the sea off the Egyptian coast. Franco and his father are fishing nearby; the crew flee in a lifeboat, leaving Franco stranded on the wrecked craft that washes ashore. Franco is left alone with the threat of the weapons in the wrong hands.

Agent 87, a member of the criminal organization SPECTRALIS, abducts Franco to locate the nuclear weapon. The operation is directed by Pasqualino, who forces Franco to reveal or guide them to the bomb's whereabouts. Franco is drawn into a dangerous game of espionage.

At the SPECTRALIS base, Ciccio tries to pressure Franco for information using a torture device. The attempt backfires when Ciccio demonstrates the required torture pose himself, exposing the absurdity of the threat. The failed interrogation plants the seed for an uneasy alliance later.

Franco escapes confinement and reaches a train station in Egypt, where he struggles to communicate due to the language barrier. He tries to buy a railway ticket to Palermo but cannot speak Arabic. A nearby Italian priest helps translate, and Franco buys a cappuccino; Cinzia notices his loud shouting and takes an interest.

Three spies—James Bomb, Modesty Bluff, and Derek Flit—attack Ciccio at the SPECTRALIS base. They are more focused on outdoing each other than on Franco, brawling until Ciccio manages to slip away unnoticed. The chaotic encounter leaves the trio still without the bomb.

Cinzia lures Franco to her hotel room with the promise of a night together, though she works for Dr. Yes. While she is distracted, Bomb, Bluff, and Flit break in to abduct Franco but fail; Ciccio arrives, retrieves Franco, and takes him back to the base.

Franco and Ciccio endure a tense lie-detector session where Ciccio probes Franco about the bomb; Franco insists he knows nothing. Fearing his own safety, Ciccio agrees to team up with Franco to plant a fake bomb that can be found to mislead their pursuers.

Franco and Ciccio contact Cinzia, who believes their claim that they have found the bomb. She arranges a meeting with Dr. Yes at his underground villa outside Cairo, setting up the next phase of their ruse.

Dr. Yes uses the bomb's radiation to revive the mummy Nabuco Sonor, aiming to use the energy to awaken the Queen of the Dead. The experiment advances when a thumb twitch signals progress, confirming the plan might work. Franco and Ciccio's fake bomb is integral to triggering the ritual.

Franco and Ciccio present the fake bomb to Dr. Yes, expecting to be sacrificed to Nabuco Sonor for their deception. They discover the bomb is not real, which foils the mummy-activation attempt for the moment. The ruse buys them time as tensions rise.

The supposed mummy turns out to be Derek Flit in disguise. Flit, aided by Bomb and Bluff, overpowers Dr. Yes's men and abducts Franco and Ciccio, escalating the conflict and leaving Dr. Yes's plans in ruins.

In the desert, Bomb, Bluff, and Flit fall out over who deserves credit for turning Franco and Ciccio over to their superiors. Their squabble is interrupted by a live radio report announcing the United States has claimed there is no nuclear bomb on the crashed plane. The revelation shifts the pursuit away from the two captives.

Franco takes Ciccio aboard his fishing boat to sail back toward Italy after the chaos. While pulling in the nets to cast off, they discover the actual bomb tangled in the nets, proving the danger is far from over.

Weeks later, Franco and Ciccio are aboard a luxurious yacht, living in comfort while the bomb remains in their possession. They use it to blackmail world leaders by telephone, attempting to avert nuclear destruction on their own terms.