Three Faces East

but is it really fair to downgrade this film because of that? Would you downgrade Star Wars because the creatures were men in rubber suits rather than CGI creations not technologically possible in 1977?

It is WWI, and Constance Bennett plays Frances Hawtree / agent Z-1, assigned to go to England by the Germans. She is to claim that she and the oldest son of Lord Winston Chamberlain and Lady Katherine Chamberlain were in the same POW hospital, fell in love, and that he died before she could escape. (He did actually die.) She brings some of his personal effects back to them. This way she can work her way into their trust, their hearts, and their home and thus abscond with some important allied secrets. Eric Von Stroheim plays Valdar, Frances' superior and contact, and is also masquerading as a butler. "Three Faces East" is the phrase that they use to recognize one another as fellow agents. I can tell you this because Von Stroheim is seen early in the movie receiving a medal from the French army. If he was a soldier there is no way he would now, a short time later, be working as a butler in the Chamberlain estate.

The rest of the movie is a series of double crosses, tricks, and surprises that have stood the test of time as far as keeping you guessing as who is really who and what happens next. Plus one thing that almost trips everything up is a piece of information that was a secret between the dead older Chamberlain son and the younger Chamberlain son, Arthur, who is home recovering from a shoulder wound. I'll let you watch and find out what happens.

Just a couple of things seem a bit silly to me. First, why is this carefully guarded information of Allied troop movements being carried by armed guard via attache case to the Chamberlain estate, then just dumped in the safe where it is completely unguarded at night where anyone could get it? Why isn't it under lock and key and under guard at a military installation, not a private estate which apparently has no security, not even a dog or alarm system? If this is the security set-up, why does Frances/Z-1 even need to be there? Couldn't Valdar sneak downstairs in the middle of the night and get the information himself? Well the answer to the this last question is probably that audiences would much rather look at Constance Bennett for 71 minutes than Erich Von Stroheim.

One more odd thing - Both young Arthur AND Valdar declare their love to Z-1, knowing only the sketchiest details about her. What if the girl has insanity in her family, lay about relatives, or annoying or spendthrift habits? But I digress.

For a well paced tale of wartime intrigue, with good dialogue and good performances, and very good direction that makes you forget that the camera still can't move much at this period in time, I highly recommend it. Plus I just love the final scene - it is not what you are expecting.

This movie looks like it's an earlier version of the Boris Karloff movie "British Intelligence" which was released in 1940, ten years after this one. The Karloff movie was pretty good. In it, a nurse is sent to England to infiltrate the household of a British Cabinet member during the War and she is to make contact with the mysterious "Strengler", who has successfully smuggled information to the German Army about Allied troop movements before the British army even gets a hold of it. Over the course of the film, the nurse/spy must keep her true identity under wraps while spying, but then it turns out that everyone's loyalties may not be to whom they were introduced as being loyal to. While the suspense isn't as taut and thrilling as todays thrillers, it's a competent spy film set during WWI.---and these actors were actually British.

Adapted from a successful play, "Three Faces East" is a clever spy thriller set during WWI. Constance Bennett plays the role of Frances Hawtree aka Agent Z-1, undercover spy for the German Intelligence Service. She is assigned to infiltrate the estate of Sir Winston Chamberlain--First Lord of the Admiralty--and meet with her contact there, where her mission will be explained.

The mansion is populated with a butler of ambiguous intentions named Valdar (Erich von Stroheim), two maids, Lady Chamberlain, their son Arthur, and two members of Chamberlain's staff.

I found the very beginning of the film to be overly dramatic, but the story quickly becomes more believable, and more interesting, when Frances arrives at the Chamberlain estate. What follows is a cat and mouse game, with twists and turns to keep the viewer guessing. The contents of Lord Chamberlain's safe may hold the key to victory in Europe. Try to guess the truth as alliances change and the lines between romance and duty become blurred.

The acting is fine and Erich von Stroheim is delightful. The script is tightly written, moving along at a brisk pace.

While it is true that not all of these very old early talkies, are wonderful, they are still enjoyable. The picture quality is very high, I did not find the sound to be bad. It is a great opportunity to see how motion pictures are progressing. The fact that this movie was released two weeks after my father was born, and he lived 90 years provided an additional incentive for me. What is also fascinating to me is to see and hear actors born in 1862 on screen. 1862 Lincoln was president. I believe this is worth your time. A spy/counter spy movie circa WWI? And yes, she is beautiful.

Remade Ten Years Later and Updated from WWI to WWII as "British Intelligence" with Boris Karloff in the Erich Von Stroheim Role. Nothing Much has Changed. The World is at War (yes again with Germany) and both Actors are Superb in a Complicated Plot of Agents, Double Agents, and Secret Plans.

Von Stroheim Steals the Picture and is Remarkable in a Tailor Made Part where He can Stroke Constance Bennett's Underwear and be Even Creepier than the Role would Assume. Everyone Else Stands Around with a lot of "Harrumphing" and Suspicion.

Not a Bad Early Sound Movie with an Opening that Intrigues and an Ending that Delivers with Some Power. The Story is More Confusing than it Needs to be (so is the remake) but Overall it is Worth a Watch for Erich and Bennett does Look Quite Beautiful. Some Miniature Work is Interesting and the Costumes are Striking.