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Secret People

  • 1952
  • Approved
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
836
YOUR RATING
Secret People (1952)
CrimeDrama

This tale of intrigue finds Valentina Cortese involved in an assassination plot. She helps the police apprehend the conspirators after an innocent bystander is accidentally killed.This tale of intrigue finds Valentina Cortese involved in an assassination plot. She helps the police apprehend the conspirators after an innocent bystander is accidentally killed.This tale of intrigue finds Valentina Cortese involved in an assassination plot. She helps the police apprehend the conspirators after an innocent bystander is accidentally killed.

  • Director
    • Thorold Dickinson
  • Writers
    • Thorold Dickinson
    • Joyce Cary
    • Wolfgang Wilhelm
  • Stars
    • Valentina Cortese
    • Serge Reggiani
    • Charles Goldner
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.2/10
    836
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Thorold Dickinson
    • Writers
      • Thorold Dickinson
      • Joyce Cary
      • Wolfgang Wilhelm
    • Stars
      • Valentina Cortese
      • Serge Reggiani
      • Charles Goldner
    • 20User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos3

    View Poster
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    Top cast63

    Edit
    Valentina Cortese
    Valentina Cortese
    • Maria
    • (as Valentina Cortesa)
    Serge Reggiani
    Serge Reggiani
    • Louis
    Charles Goldner
    Charles Goldner
    • Anselmo
    Audrey Hepburn
    Audrey Hepburn
    • Nora
    Angela Foulds
    • Nora (as a child)
    • (as Angela Fouldes)
    Megs Jenkins
    Megs Jenkins
    • Penny
    Irene Worth
    Irene Worth
    • Miss Jackson
    Reginald Tate
    Reginald Tate
    • Inspector Eliot
    Norman Williams
    • Sergeant Newcome
    Michael Shepley
    Michael Shepley
    • Manager of the British Pavilion
    Athene Seyler
    Athene Seyler
    • Mrs. Reginald Kellick
    Sydney Tafler
    Sydney Tafler
    • Syd Burnett
    Geoffrey Hibbert
    • Steenie
    John Ruddock
    • Daly
    Michael Allan
    • Rodd
    John Field
    • Fedor Luki
    Charlie Cairoli
    • Themselves
    Hugo Schuster
    • General Galbern
    • Director
      • Thorold Dickinson
    • Writers
      • Thorold Dickinson
      • Joyce Cary
      • Wolfgang Wilhelm
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      While most sources (including this website) list the official release date of this film as 1952, the copyright notice on the title card reads 1951. (Note: This isn't unusual. Countless films released in a particular year, bear the date of the year they were shot or ready for release).
    • Goofs
      The film begins in 1930. A character reads a letter quoting W.H. Auden--"We must love one another or die." But it is from the poem "September ,1939" and was written in the following month.
    • Crazy credits
      Opening credits: "Hidden in each one of us is a secret person, often unknown even to ourselves. The force of circumstances can drive us to a point at which this inner character takes charge and alters the course of our lives."
    • Connections
      Featured in Audrey Hepburn Remembered (1993)
    • Soundtracks
      Valse brillante As-dur Op.34-1
      Written by Frédéric Chopin

    User reviews20

    Featured review
    8/10

    Worth A look If You Can Find It

    It was said that the director Thorold Dickenson and his colleagues viewed Hitchcock's "Sabotage" before starting this film, and I'm not really sure if they learned anything. I do agree with both of the first reviewers for this in that it did have some promise, but it fell short. Perhaps because of the long delay before actual production of the project got under way when Ealing Studios saw it as an unusual product worth tackling.

    Valentina Cortesa did a marvelous job as a foreign refugee living in London who gets caught up in the intrigue unwillingly.This film was one of the only ones that I hadn't seen of Audrey Hepburn's earlier works. Although she only appears in it off and on she is given a broader speaking role than her previous earlier film 'walk-on' parts. She was quite able to act with the best of what this British Film Company had to offer, in a role a bit too understated for me. In fact, the whole film was a little too 'understated', dealing with a bomb plot planned by nationals of a foreign tyranny in 1930's London.

    I would watch this again, as it is now part of my library of hard to find films. I gave it an eight out of ten stars for Cortesa's performance and the early glimpse of Hepburn beyond a one minute spot.One does walk away from this film wishing it was better given it's premise, which is still very much a topic of today as it was then.If you can find a copy I would recommend it.
    • kenmyersproject
    • Jan 31, 2008
    • Permalink

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    FAQ14

    • How long is Secret People?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 29, 1952 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Tajanstveni ljudi
    • Filming locations
      • Ealing Studios, Ealing, London, England, UK(Studio)
    • Production company
      • Ealing Studios
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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