Underground

When I saw this as a kid I found it a grim.vivid & gripping introduction to the wartime "underground" movement in an occupied territory courtesy Warner Bros as did Martin Kosleck's ruthless Gestapo officer and the silent struggle of one German brother to stick to his convictions in direct opposition to the other,an enemy where discovery meant certain torture & death. It has never been shown on UK TV - certainly not by TCM. I distinctly still recall the relief when this feature in the cinema was quickly followed by the next week's trailer in contrasting brilliant technicolour for Greer Garson in "Blossoms In The Dust"! Only a few years ago I finally tracked down the video which I believed never existed in the States & did not hesitate to have it sent over. It is in pretty good condition & brought back those memories. Barely a year later,(1941), 2 Cities Films in Britain released its blander & lighter version, "Freedom Radio" which starred two of Britain's then leading stage stars, Clive Brook ("Cavalcade") and Diana Wynyard which has had TV showings. In this version the ethical differences & attitudes in defying the gestapo were between husband & wife and various Nazis played(as was then usually the case)by other well known British faces with English accents.

Quite honestly, I never had heard of this film before. And, having just watched it, much to my regret. It was made before U. S. entry into World War II. Yet, Hollywood was quite aware of the evils being perpetrated by the Third Reich. Coincidentally, the case is dominated by actors born in Europe. The story is not that new. Two brothers are on different sides of the spectrum in Berlin: one is a leader of the resistance movement, the other is a wounded German who maintains strong loyalty to the Reich. The film centers on how their worlds and visions collide, with a backdrop of the Nazis' trying to find and silence the resistance's radio broadcasts. The acting is first-rate all around. I suspect this would have been a 'bigger' film if Warner Brothers had used the 'A' team. All in all, a very good little movie.

"Underground" is a good propaganda movie that came out of Warner Brothers in 1941. It's lacking major stars, but the story is certainly A list. Philip Dorn and Jeffrey Lynn star as German brothers on opposite sides. Dorn is a member of the underground, which uses a traveling illegal radio to broadcast to the people, while Lynn is a returning soldier who has lost his arm. He becomes interested in an attractive violinist, Sylvia (Kaaren Verne) who performs in a tavern, unaware that his brother knows her from the underground and that they are both members. This leads to problems as the Nazis close in.

Vincent Sherman does an excellent job of directing. The rest of the cast includes Martin Kosleck a a nasty Nazi, and Mona Maris as his assistant, also an underground member. The Dutch Dorn gives a very good performance, as does Lynn. The ending of the film is quite touching.

As someone on this site pointed out, the Germans let the Nazis come into power and didn't do much in the way of resistance. There was a strong French resistance, as well as the Yugoslav Partisans, the Polish Home Army, the Soviet partisans, the Italian CLN, the Norwegian Resistance, the Greek Resistance and the Dutch Resistance. One doesn't hear much about German resistance. Warner Brothers probably just assumed it was active.

A good movie.

This movie was made before the US entry into WWII. But, the story line clearly indicates the concerns we had with the Nazi party in Germany and their blatant disregard for the well being of their citizenry. There are no war scenes and only a couple of short action sequences but, despite this, the story moves at a very comfortable pace. Very good acting all around with Philip Dorn excelling as the leader of an underground group striving to keep the citizens informed as to the real aims of their Nazi leaders. He does this via a clandestine illegal radio operation which, of necessity, must continually move to various locales to transmit. Jeffrey Lynn plays Dorn's brother, a German soldier who, minus most of his left arm, returns home but is still a loyal German who is unaware of his brother's underground activities. This story is a good one and avoids most of the cliches that permeated many similar WWII movies. Martin Kosleck plays his usual role, that of an officious German officer but, even he, tones down his role and does not appear as menacing as he later became in other similar films. I enjoyed this 95 minute story and definitely recommend it to all fans of the suspense melodrama genre.

We now have all the answers, but this picture was released before WWII became a world war. It is likely there were rumors and inklings about underground movements but this may have been the first picture about a German resistance movement brought to the attention of the movie-going public. Imagine the surprise and amazement of American audiences trying to fathom the concept that Germany was not a monolith.

"Underground" is the tense and suspenseful story of two brothers on opposite sides of the war. Jeffrey Lynn is a Nazi officer discharged and returning home after losing an arm in combat and Philip Dorn is his older brother who is a member of the underground. We learn of the consequences to a resistance member if caught and of the attendant paranoia prevalent among members. Secrecy is necessary and required, under penalty of death.

The storyline is absorbing and the direction is spot-on throughout. The two stars are at their best, and this may be one of Jeffrey Lynn's best roles. The supporting roles are filled with competent German character actors who may be unfamiliar to many of us. "Underground" is a memorable rendering of a theme which has become very familiar to us over the years since the war. Well worth the time, which is only 95 fast-moving minutes.