The Spy in Black (1939)

Director:

Michael Powell

Writers:

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

Release Date:

7 October 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller | War

Tagline:

Is this beauty friend or foe...as U-Boat terror at sea is directed by unknown master spies on land? Out of Europe's blackout of peace flashes the inside story of ruthless submarine warfare and incredible world-wide espionage!

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Scotland | U Boat | Submarine | Espionage | Spy

Cast

Conrad Veidt	...	Captain Hardt
Sebastian Shaw	...	Lt. Ashington / Cmdr. David Blacklock
Valerie Hobson	...	Frau Tiel / Jill Blacklock
Marius Goring	...	Lt. 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 (Walter) Ratter - ferry captain
Hay Petrie	...	Engineer
Grant Sutherland	...	Bob Bratt
Robert Rendel	...	Admiral
Mary Morris	...	Chauffeuse
Margaret Moffatt	...	Kate

Also Known As:

U-Boat 29 (USA)

Runtime:

82 min | USA:77 min | Argentina:80 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved | UK:U | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Denham Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Irving Asher Productions

Trivia:

The password that Hardt is to use for his contact is the opening line of Heine's poem Die Lorelei, in which a beautiful woman who lures sailors on the rocks is used as a symbol of homesickness. When his crew joke about him spouting love poetry to a woman in the dark, they miss half of the point.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the plotters arrive at the cottage to change over the teachers, the car pulls in. But when they go to dump the body, the car is facing the opposite direction.

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.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Arena: A Pretty British Affair" (1981)

An Intriguing Little Thriller with a Difference

Just wanted to second the other user's comment.

I saw this last night as part of a Michael Powell/Emeric Pressberger retrospective underway at the American Cinemetheque. There are some unlikely aspects to the plot, but on the whole this is well crafted WWI thriller with a remarkable level of moral complexity, especially given that it was made and released just as England was entering a second war against Germany.

The protagonist (hero?) (played by the extraordinary Conrad Veidt) is a German officer on a spy mission and he is, in many respects, a quite admirable character. For the first half of the film, it's almost entirely from his point of view. It's hard to imagine Hollywood filmmakers EVER having the confidence that Powell and Pressberger clearly had in the intelligence of their audience, allowing them to actually like and admire an enemy agent.

While "The Spy in Black" eventually does come down squarely on the side of the English, the agents of the Kaiser come off only as perhaps a hair more ruthless than those fighting for king and country.

Of course, the Germany that England would be fighting within a few a few months would be far, far worse. This film is a potent reminder that while World War II might have a morally clear "good" war because of the vast evil of the Nazis, World War I was a horse of a far grayer color.

With sophisticated, occasionally black humor, this is a neat bit of old-fashioned movie entertainment with some genuinely intriguing differences. Enthusaistically recommended.