Resisting Enemy Interrogation

Low-budget army training films seldom get nominated for an Oscar. But that is what happened with this longer-than-usual 1944 effort by the Army Air Force, instructing American aircrews in how to resist interrogation when captured.

It starts with quite a good joke. While being driven to the prison camp, the crew are chatting in the back of the van, when the German sergeant turns round and barks at them "You will not talk!" Their leader answers quietly and significantly "No, we will not talk." That is, of course, their brief - just to give their name, rank and number, as decreed under the Geneva Convention. Anything more, however trivial, could be added to the enemy's intelligence jigsaw, perhaps revealingly.

The main theme is that the interrogators will probably be trying methods more subtle than whips or knuckle-dusters. Such as innocent small-talk to relieve the boredom of camp life. What could be wrong with that? And for the officers, perhaps a little drink in the mess? Hmm...

Bit by bit, through careless revelations (even the trees have ears), their mission is revealed, almost in its entirety, though the enemy are still having to guess at the key question - which big city is the bombers' target? How they figure this out is a triumph of ingenuity, which we cannot reveal here.

In black-& white, the uniforms all look the same colour, so we aren't always able to distinguish between captives and captors. (I had always assumed that prisoners could not wear headgear, but it seems they did.) Also it sounded at first as though there was a musical code to indicate penalty-points for an indiscreet statement, but this turned out to be an illusion, rather disappointingly. Meanwhile we are left wondering how the Americans would have known so much about enemy interrogation techniques, unless they were simply replicating their own. And noting that Oscar nomination, this must have played to a large civilian audience, for whom it would have been doubling as a propaganda film. As such, it doesn't leave you hating the enemy as much as it should. But even after 77 years of vast changes in warfare, the message remains just as valid as ever: silence is golden.

...and director Bernard Vorhaus. An American bomber crew, shot down over enemy territory, is captured and brought to a villa for interrogation. There are no torture or other hardcase tactics used. Instead, the Germans use subtle psychological manipulation, electronic surveillance, and other techniques to amass intelligence on future bombing missions. Featuring Lloyd Nolan, Carl Esmond, Arthur Kennedy, Steven Geray, Craig Stevens, Don Porter, James Seay, Peter Van Eyck, and Kent Smith.

This is a military training film that uses fictionalized events to illustrate real-world problems and solutions for air combat crews. It was meant for military use only, but got a screening in New York City that made it eligible for a Best Documentary Feature Oscar. That seems like a stretch, as this is a scripted movie with actors playing parts, and not at all what I would consider a documentary.

It's entertaining in its depictions of the various sneaky techniques used to ferret out info. I liked one scene where the American being subtly questioned catches on and "reveals" info about the US's brand new Flash Gordon fighter jets equipped with disintegrator rays and "magnetic arcs". This was remade as a mainstream feature in 1951 titled Target Unknown, which also featured Steven Geray.

Because this film doesn't appear to have been made for viewing by the public at large, it's very hard to rate it. Instead, I assume that it was a Hollywood film meant as a training aid to show flight crews the importance of keeping quiet and recognizing various means the enemy might use to interrogate them. I am not sure how true all the scenarios are, though they seemed way too subtle and nice for Nazis. I assume in reality, if the Germans really wanted to get these secrets they would probably just torture it out of them. However, soldiers needed to be aware of the mind games that might be played and the consequences to America fliers if they gabbed to their captors.

When seen today, the movie is quite fascinating for historical reasons. Plus, it's neat to see some stars in various roles (such as Kent Smith as a Nazi as well as Arthur Kennedy and Don Porter as American fliers). Considering I am an old movie fan AND a history teacher, it's natural I'd enjoy it. However, even for NORMAL folks, it's pretty entertaining and worth a look.

This film was originally produced and released as a training film for the Army Air Force during WWII. It covers the various (supposed) tactics that the Nazis would use to gather information from American (and other Allied Forces members) pilots and soldiers who are captured. Rather than being a dull, *by the numbers* lesson, however, the filmmakers present a solidly told little story in which the air crew of the mythical B-99 gradually...and presumably unintentionally...give up information that foils the success of a near-future air raid. If you see this, do tolerate a little preaching that occurs at the very end of the film (by an uncredited Lloyd Nolan) since this film WAS intended to teach a lesson; the ending is perfectly suitable for this kind of film. Certainly not on a par with Citizen Kane, but a solid enough piece of film making that deserves to be seen by a wider audience. 7* out of ten.

An American bomber crew is captured and brought to a German interrogation camp. The soldiers are ordered to only give their names, ranks, and serial numbers. The soldiers resist all information gathering at first, but they soon fall prey to the Nazis' subtle and clever methods.

This is filmed like a regular movie with a regular story. It has Hollywood production and Hollywood actors. It is intended for military training and shown to soldiers. It does get turned into a movie after the war. It is actually quite effective in showing the sneaky ways of getting information although they don't show the most brutal methods.