I watched it the other night, its a pretty good movie and what we now call “political correctness” is part of the plot where people refuse to see what is right in front of them.
Exactly. Also notice that the villain consistently and instinctively attempts to lay off the blame for each "accident" on the hero, thereby further confusing the situation. Lauren Bacall's character falls for it every time.
I remember seeing this movie when I was a kid — the ‘tell’ Herb Lom’s character showed with the pigskin briefcase. He didn’t want to touch it... I can remember that scene from the flick as clear as a bell today and nothing else clearly about the movie.