Entertaining WWI Spy Film
"But your wife, she'll wonder what happened to her poor little General." -- Peter Lorre to John Gielgud


This most enjoyable film made in Britain before Hitchcock came to Hollywood certainly deserves more accolades than it has gotten over the years. It really isn't that far behind 39 Steps, The Lady Vanishes, and Young and Innocent in either quality or entertainment. Set during the first world war, Somerset Maugham's novel of spies sent to ferret out and eliminate another spy has romance and humor and some real excitement in Hitchcock's hands.

John Gielgud comes home from the war and discovers he's been reported dead. He discovers it was intentional, his cover so he can become Ashenden, and eliminate a very dangerous German spy causing the good guys a lot of trouble. While it's deadly serious business, it gets a bit more pleasant when he discovers in Switzerland that the beautiful and elegant Elsa Carrington (Madeleine Carroll) is to pose as his wife and help him in his mission.

Hitchcock counters the more serious business with a likable Robert Young as Marvin, pursuing romance with Elsa despite her marital status. It is handled with great charm and a sense of fun. Ashenden's other partner is General, played in an over-the-top manner by Peter Lorre. He is more comical than sinister, spending most of his time trying to romance anything in a dress, and quite upset that Ashenden has the fake wife while he has nada.

Elsa falls for her pretend husband, of course, and when the amoral General mistakingly kills the wrong man, a crisis of conscience occurs for both she and Ashenden, who decide to break off this ugly business and go back. But when he and General discover who the real spy is, they must pursue him because Elsa is in danger. The train station scene and everything that follows is classic Hitchcock. While it doesn't have quite the tension of 39 Steps, or the charm of Young and Innocent, it has a blend between the two which is very enjoyable.

Perhaps because it is set during WW I it doesn't connect as much as it should for some viewers. It is quite fabulous in its own way, however, and fans of Hitchcock's early British films will certainly find it appealing. Fans of the lovely Madeleine Carroll will be pleased to discover she is much more in the center of things from the very beginning than in 39 Steps, in which she is also marvelous. A real winner.

Secret Agent
Only for fans of Hitch. Very dated for today's audience. Slow pace and confusing character development, especially Peter Lorre's "General". Stiff portrayals and a surprising lack of suspense. Where's a Macguffin when you need one?

Best full length DVD I have found.
This is the best quality DVD I have yet to find of this movie.
Still..one night scene on a lake briefly becomes hard to watch.
However, the copy is still acceptable in quality until a restored release, if it ever happens, is released.
The DVD appears full in length.
The movie has all the early Hitchcock touches:
the crafted use of sound in pivotal scenes, (as his teacher, Lang, did, most notably in his Testament of Dr. Mabuse),
the use of minature models, (which I enjoy, especially when obvious but still well done. It is sooo much better then mismatched stock footage insertions),
and the use of excellent and interesting actors. Here we have a young pre-Sir John Guilguld, as well as a young Peter Lorre in his second role for Hitchcock (having just flown in from America after doing the remake of the Hands of Dr. Orlac in Hollywood), to play a cartoon skirt chasing mustachioed Mexican contract killer working for the government character...really. Presumably, this time Lorre understood the actual meaning of his script, (unlike two years earlier in The Man Who Knew Too Much). Dialogue is weak and a major flaw of the movie. A must for both Lorre fans, and Hitchcock fans.
I remain, frustrated from waiting for an American DVD copy of Young and Innocent with the full 90 minutes. The American copy had two Una O'Conner scenes removed, for a total of a 1/9th shortening of the movie. There IS a full length version available on an English PAL DVD.

Interesting early Hitchcock
This reviewer now understands why some folks get excited about transfers from VHS to DVD. This viewer's VHS tape was in wretched condition, grainy and virtually impossible to understand. The good news is that the plot was not hard to follow, given some intense concentration. On the eve of WWI, the British Secret Service fakes the death of a young John Gielgud. JG is the spook sent to Switzerland with instructions to assassinate a German agent, whose identity is a mystery. Peter Lorre tags along for "backup". On arrival, JG finds he has been assigned a wife of convenience, beautiful Madeleine Carroll. They make friends with an affable tourist, Robert Young. Warning! One of the 4 is the German spy, whose identity is NOT divulged here. Complications arise when an innocent man is fingered as the spy-and eliminated! That leaves the real bad guy free. What happens? A good review reveals no resolutions but the windup takes place on a train in the finest cloak and dagger tradition; shades of such classics as "Sleeping Car to Trieste", "Night Train to Munich", "The Lady Vanishes" and even "From Russia With Love". "Secret Agent" is neither a true classic nor among Alfred Hitchcock's finest work but it is entertaining and a worthwhile period piece. Viewers should take caution to get their hands on a restored version. Those who do may wish to add a star to the rating above.

Interesting, "But".

Interesting story, Hitchcock touch is evented. Madeleine Carroll is a standout, but did not buy into John Gielgud as the lead.