The Spy in Black (1939)
"Spy in Black" (original title)

A German submarine is sent to the Orkney Isles in 1917 to sink the British fleet.

Director:

Michael Powell

Writers:

J. Storer Clouston (story), Emeric Pressburger (screenplay),

Stars:

Conrad Veidt, Sebastian Shaw, Valerie Hobson

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Conrad Veidt	...	Captain Hardt
Sebastian Shaw	...	Ashington
Valerie Hobson	...	The School Mistress
Marius Goring	...	Schuster
June Duprez	...	Anne Burnett
Athole Stewart	...	The Rev. Hector Matthews
Agnes Lauchlan	...	Mrs. Matthews
Helen Haye	...	Mrs. Sedley
Cyril Raymond	...	The Rev. John Harris
George Summers	...	Captain Ratter
Hay Petrie	...	Engineer
Grant Sutherland	...	Bob Bratt
Robert Rendel	...	Admiral
Mary Morris	...	Chauffeuse
Margaret Moffatt	...	Kate

Storyline

When a German U-Boat captain is sent on a spying mission to the North of Scotland during World War One, he finds more than he bargained for in his contact, the local schoolmistress.

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Plot Keywords:

german | u boat | captain | submarine | scotland | 

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Taglines:

Women and children first...to die...in U-Boat attack! Suicide submarine crews ravage the high seas...in history's most ruthless slaughter of innocents!

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Genres:

Thriller | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 October 1939 (USA)

Also Known As:

U-Boat 29

Filming Locations:

Denham Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£47,300 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Irving Asher Productions, London Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

St Magnus (the name of the steamer sailing from Longhope for St Romness and Thurso during the closing stages of the film) is the Patron Saint of Orkney. There have been several ships in that area with the name St Magnus.

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Goofs

In the German submarine, the officers refer to depths in feet, and the depth gauge is calibrated in feet. On a German ship, depths would be measured in meters.

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Quotes

The Reverand John Harris: That medal ribbon. I don't seem to recognise it. What is it?
Captain Hardt: The Iron Cross... Second Class.
The Reverand John Harris: Second Class... then you must be a prisoner of war?
Captain Hardt: No.
[draws gun]
Captain Hardt: You are.
The Reverand John Harris: Oh dear.

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Connections

Featured in Arena: A Pretty British Affair (1981)

User Reviews

Clever wartime thriller that has darker tones than much propaganda

During the World War, a German U-boat comes up on the coast of Scotland. At this point Captain Hardt leaves the vessel and travels to a small village to meet his contact. He plans to use the treacherous assistance of bitter Royal Navy Lieutenant Ashington to guide the Germans to the spot of the British fleet. However not all is fair in love and war and Hardt soon finds his operation at risk of compromise.

Of course, much more famous for The Red Shoes and A Matter of Life and Death, this film from Powell and Pressburger should not be over looked. While it is of course propaganda (released as it was in 1939), it is not a flag waving, lets all kill the Nazi's under the bed style film. Instead it stands up in it's own right as an exciting little thriller that makes some good points about the nature of war. The plot is quite straightforward at first but has a few nice twists that I won't spoil, and is generally enjoyable.

The strength of the film for me was the focus on a German Officer and not having him as a stereotypical evil tyrant. While the film doesn't let us wonder who the good guys and the bad guys are, it does at least allow Hardt to be more of a full person and the film better as a result. The ironies of the final action of the film is clear and is even more of a striking comment on war when you look at the `blue on blue' stats for Gulf War 2. Veidt does well in the lead as Hardt and is partly responsible for keeping him a bad guy without over egging the cake. Shaw and Hobson are good but perhaps a little too much of the `Heroic Brits' about them.

Overall this is a good wartime thriller but the unusual tack that it comes at, plus a darker and slightly subversive tone about it helps it stand out, if not from the rest of P&P's work, then certainly from the vast majority of wartime propaganda thrillers made in Britain around the second world war.