Peter Sellers plays Aldo Vanucci (aka the Fox), one of the greatest criminals of the world and master of disguise. After Aldo escapes from the Italian prison he was held in, he meets again with his friends and plans to retrieve the "gold of Cairo", a large shipment of gold that waits to be unloaded somewhere in Italy. Aldo devises the perfect plan- posing as a famous director, he finds the ideal coastal village to unload the shipment, and persuades the entire population that he has chosen their village as the set for his new movie. Everybody, including the idiot chief of the local police is so excited, that they can't even imagine that in fact they are helping the Fox to get the "gold of Cairo"...