I saw that there was a couple of Nazi films on TNT last night and decided to give them a viewing. Sometimes these old black and whites can really have interesting stories. This was true to my expectations.
This was a Jules Dassin film. He was one of the most important directors in post-WWII America. Unfortunately he got caught up in the Red Scare led by Senator McCarthy and was blacklisted. he moved to Europe, where he continued to make movies.
His most influential film was the heist movie Rififi, which inspired a genre of movies including Ocean's Eleven and Mission: Impossible.
The movie stars Conrad Veidt, who is himself a very interesting character. Most movie goers would remember him as Gestapo Maj. Strasser in the classic Casablanca. This is interesting because he was a staunch anti-Nazi who was himself chased out of Germany under threat of assassination. He was to play Dracula in 1931, but Bela Lugosi got the job. His performance in The Man Who Laughs, was used as the basis for "The Joker" in the early Batman.
Veidt give a good performance as a twin whose brother is a Nazi agent. he kills him and takes his place to fight against the Nazi underground in America.
It is not a terribly exciting film, but it was suspenseful, and a chance to see one of the great American directors and a great German/British actor.
This was a Jules Dassin film. He was one of the most important directors in post-WWII America. Unfortunately he got caught up in the Red Scare led by Senator McCarthy and was blacklisted. he moved to Europe, where he continued to make movies.
His most influential film was the heist movie Rififi, which inspired a genre of movies including Ocean's Eleven and Mission: Impossible.
The movie stars Conrad Veidt, who is himself a very interesting character. Most movie goers would remember him as Gestapo Maj. Strasser in the classic Casablanca. This is interesting because he was a staunch anti-Nazi who was himself chased out of Germany under threat of assassination. He was to play Dracula in 1931, but Bela Lugosi got the job. His performance in The Man Who Laughs, was used as the basis for "The Joker" in the early Batman.
Veidt give a good performance as a twin whose brother is a Nazi agent. he kills him and takes his place to fight against the Nazi underground in America.
It is not a terribly exciting film, but it was suspenseful, and a chance to see one of the great American directors and a great German/British actor.