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The Two-Headed Spy
Wartime thriller with film noir elements based on a true story as written in A.P. Scotland's autobiography "The London Cage". The plot has greatly exaggerated the actual events of A.P. Scotland's experiences, including the addition of a fictional love interest.
Release : | 1959 |
Rating : | 6.9 |
Studio : | |
Crew : | Director, Producer, |
Cast : | Jack Hawkins Gia Scala Erik Schumann Alexander Knox Felix Aylmer |
Genre : | Thriller War |
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Awesome Movie
It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.
How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.
Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.
Colonel Alex Scotland did serve with the German Army between 1903 and 1907.However during the Second World War he was in charge of the London interrogation centre of Prisoners of war.He wrote about his experiences in The London Cage.So entertaining as this film is it is a fiction.In any event how valuable would such a source be when the Allies had Ultra and were reading the messages from Hitler's headquarters.
THE TWO-HEADED SPY is a WW2 true story from HOUSE OF WAX director Andre de Toth. The tale is about a high-ranking Nazi officer who secretly worked as a spy for the British, and who spend most of his time trying not to be found out. The plot is a perfect one for the cinema and the film is full of all the suspense and intrigue that you'd expect, building to a couple of set-piece moments that prove moderately exciting. Jack Hawkins is well cast as the sympathetic lead, and there's a fine cast of supporting players to lend him a hand, from the sultry Gia Scala to a well-utilised Felix Aylmer and even a young Michael Caine at one point.
The opening scene of "the two-Headed Spy" has a script that dedicates the film. It reads, "To those men of the Intelligence Service who worked in secrecy. Who struggled and died in darkness. To those lonely and courageous men who risked their lives daily in the enemy camp. This picture is dedicated. And, to one of those men, Colonel A. P. Scotland, O.B.E., British Intelligence Service, whose exploits over the past half century inspired this story. We wish to express our thanks."Indeed, the background of Alexander Scotland is very interesting. Here was an early implementer of interrogation methods, as well as a highly experienced spy. That's a story worth looking into. Scotland served as adviser for this film. While he had posed as lower ranking German officers and NCOs in World War I and at other times, he said he never was a high-ranking German official. Yet, when one notices some similarities in this film, it does raise a question. This film stars Jack Hawkins in a fictitious plot as just such a British spy. Gen. Alex Schotland was a British agent who served in the German Army of WW I. But, unlike most in the espionage business, after the war he didn't come out. He stayed in Germany, kept his military affiliation and identity, and when the Nazis began a rise to power, he jumped on the train. This is a very good and interesting look at how such high level direct espionage might have looked. One quickly comes to the conclusion that the best way to advance and get on the good graces inside the Nazi hierarchy was to agree with Hitler and promise that his every command could be carried out. Especially, if that went against the reasoned, experienced generals, regardless of how bad was Hitler's position. Anyway, that's how Schottland does it here. A distant romantic connection is provided by Gia Scala who plays Lili Geyr, a renowned German singer and entertainer of troops. The story has an interesting ending. Scala made a few very good films and had a promising career in movies and television. But, she suffered from depression and began drinking heavily. She underwent frequent psychiatric treatment. On April 30, 1972, she died from an overdose of alcohol and sleeping pills.
First of all, thanks to DavidGPS of GB for rectifying what we already knew - that Germany pioneered magnetic tape in the late 1930s. Now lets get to this little-known Jack Hawkins film. Andre DeToth made some excellent movies in his time, but this true story was as gritty as it got in 1958. There are some very hard to stomach scenes of a tyrannical and evil police state at war - not for the squeamish or children, by any means. Among the greatest of WWII movies, Hawkins depicts General Schottland, a British native of German decent who came back to the Fatherland during WW1 and fought in the German ranks. As a result, he was able to infiltrate the German High Command and even became trusted by Hitler. As he became a valued and important source of information to the British, he also endangered himself and all those who helped him. There were some really great WWII movies, but this one has you on the edge of your seat and riveted to the screen for the entire duration. Definitely my favorite Jack Hawkins movie of all time, and hats off to DeToth for daring to be so bold as to show how ruthless these bastards really were.