The Spy in Black
Michael Powell / GB, 1939 / 83 min.
In this accomplished thriller bursting with tension, depth and flair, a U-boat captain (Conrad Veidt) arrives on the Orkney Islands during World War I to meet a fellow spy. News of a British traitor sets off a cat-and-mouse pursuit over land and sea.
The Spy in Black was the first ever collaboration between legendary film duo Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Powell’s technical mastery creates the tension, to which Pressburger’s script adds form and taste. Both men had fled to Great Britain to escape the tyranny of the Nazis, which adds an unmissable additional layer to this work.
Released on the eve of World War II in August 1939, The Spy in Black was a hit in both Great Britain and the US (where it was known as U-Boat 29) and heralded the formation of one of the most successful duos in British cinema.
Powell and Pressburger worked with one of the biggest actors in German cinema, Conrad Veidt, star of expressionist classic Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (1919). Here too, Veidt is brilliant in the lead role. The supporting cast are just as convincing, unlike the gross caricatures that were common in British films of the period. Actors Valerie Hobson, June Duprez and Marius Goring would all go on to work with Powell and Pressburger again.
Special screenings
Details
Director
Michael Powell
Production year
1939
Country
GB
Original title
The Spy in Black
Length
83 min.
Language
English
Subtitles
NONE
Format
35mm
Part of
The Creative Worlds of Powell and Pressburger
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger enjoyed huge success with films such as The Red Shoes (1948), Black Narcissus (1947) and A Matter of Life and Death (1946). Eye presents the first-ever extensive retrospective of Powell & Pressburger’s work in the Netherlands.
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