L'arme à l'oeil

I am satisfied with EYE OF THE NEEDLE. There are many plots and twists without great special effects or action. Anyway, the film shows a spy story set in the second World War and that is well directed. The picture and camera work is not as perfect as in today's big blockbusters but it doesn't shock because it is well compensated with historical details and facts from that war time. It's interesting seeing Donald Sutherland in this role as a lover and villain. He is for me one of the great actors that made many enjoyable thrillers. All in all a watchable movie that has a better class than these disappointing thrillers of nowadays and once again a DVD from the house of MGM that works for an entertaining Saturday evening. My wife and me vote 7/10 that matches exactly the actual vote of 7/10.

So, at first I had trouble deciding if this film was great or just another war film that would be forgotten about as the years progressed. It was a tough decision that required a day of thought. There were definitely scenes in this film that would embarrass even the most novice movie goer, yet there is something about the story and the humanistic approach to a non-human element that seeps from this film's pores. The scene that stands out the most in my mind is when Sutherland is running to the rain to catch Lucy. You can obviously tell that he is on a sound stage and water is being thrown in his face. His acting and the way that that particular scene was set up was appalling. It made me laugh instead of feel any sort of suspense or fear. It forced credibility for Sutherland's character right out the door. There were several other scenes that just didn't seem to fit in this film that made you question the theatrical release of this film or if it was a straight-to-television production. If you can get through these few lapses in the director's train of thought, then you will be able to see the powerful story that lies within.

When I first saw the box to this film I didn't know what to expect. To my utter enjoyment, Eye of the Needle is one of those gems hiding in a mud puddle. After you wipe it off (look away from the DVD cover), you will begin to see the beauty of this film. As we begin our story, we see Sutherland as a normal person, but as the film advances, our idea and interpretation of his character blows our mind. When most war films simply believe in keeping you in your theater seats by showing graphic images of battle and chaos, this film goes in the completely other direction. This is a story between two people and the small battle that they fight for their beliefs. I mentioned earlier that I felt this was a very humanistic film. The reason for that statement is because we witness the human element to war. Billy is the perfect example of a man who has lost a portion of his life, yet is too depressed to see the happiness in front of him. Normally in war films this comes late story, but in Eye of the Needle it is shown right up front. Next, we hardly ever are given a very human side to the villain in these stories. Normally, they kill without remorse, but again, not in this film. What we witness are two humans caught between a hard place with nobody else to turn to.

While war is being raged overseas with thousands of troopers, it is impressive to see stories like this that revolve around just two people. These two people can have the same effect on the war as a brigade of soldiers. I never saw their reaction to each other coming. I wasn't expecting a message in this film. I brief history lesson about the day to day activities surrounding this dark cloud of our world's history. Also, I wasn't expecting to see such powerful acting from Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan. Together they created more sparks on screen than most duos today.

What they create is better and more realistic than most Hollywood jargon.

It is impressive to see this in a war film. I cannot stress that enough. This film surprised me and I am normally not a huge war fan. I think the reason that it stood out was because director Richard Marquand develops two amazing characters and places them in a war torn country, only to uproot them again into a place of beauty and nature. We go from one spectrum to the next with Marquand and it works. Ken Follett, who wrote the novel that this film is based, has done a great job of taking a world that is huge and bringing it down to just these two characters. It is not often that you see that in a war film, especially one made in 1981.

Overall, I flip-flopped my decision all around until I finally made a choice. This film was amazing. I can look past the low-budgeted scenes that make this film dated in the 80s, and see the amazing truth behind the characters and story. This is one of the most impressive stories that I have seen come from Hollywood. I could literally watch this film again and probably catch more that I missed the first time. This isn't your average spy film; this is instead a film about humans and the comfort we need in our lives. Also, I must end with this note, if any villain (without saying who) can use his trademark kill six times in forty minutes, you should realize that this film is going to be a great ride.

Grade: **** out of *****

Eye of the Needle is an oddly structured but nonetheless extremely effective film which in many ways is quite old fashioned in tone and feel,with the addition of a little 'modern'sex and violence. For almost the first half,the film is a fairly conventional but quite gripping spy thriller,as a German agent causes havoc in World War 2 England. There are few surprises,but Donald Sutherland is mesmerising to watch {even if his accent wavers} and the plot at least sounds almost plausible. The keen eyed,however,may spot mistakes in the period detail.

Then Sutherland is washed up on a Scottish island inhabited by a crippled man and his frustrated wife,and the film changes into an incredibly tense mixture of romance and thrills. Sutherland and Nelligan's affair may be basically sexual,but there is real chemistry between them and a real sense of desperation,of two lonely people throwing themselves together. The last half hour is real edge-of-the-seat stuff,perhaps almost bordering on psycho-thriller,but it really works.

Throughout the film Sutherland remains the villain and does do some nasty things,but it's a measure of his performance that occasionally we do come close to sympathising with him. Acting-wise though the film really belongs to Nelligan,a tragically underused and beautiful actress who has to go through the motions of loneliness and frustration,than lust,then fear,and eventually heroism,and does so superbly.

Aided tremendously by the last ever score from the legendary film composer Miklos Rozsa,who provides a moving love theme and some especially thrilling music for the last section of the film,Eye of the Needle perhaps shouldn't really work as well at it does,but that's a measure of it's quality.

This film really does deserve more merit than it seems to get.

Sutherland is a bit odd, with most of all a bizarre accent that almost seems to change from scene to scene. Whilst this is perhaps expected from an international spy in deep cover, it doesn't seem to sit well.

Nelligan steals the show with a wonderful performance, but the real surprise for me was Cazenove. It doesn't take a lot of imagination to see him as the newly qualified, sparkling eyed flyboy, but his portrayal of the embittered, loveless amputee was a joy to watch - clearly a talented man.

The film wraps up a great story with wonderful acting, a great collection of WW2 military hardware and breathtaking scenery. Well worth a watch.

This film about a German agent trying to escape from Britain might seem to offer limited scope for interest, but Sutherland's menacing performance and the events on the island turn it into something approaching a study in psychopathy, laden with uncertainty and fear. The vulnerability of Lucy (Kate Nelligan, a sensitive and intelligent but definitely pre-feminist woman helps to give the film an added poignancy. Sutherland's performance is such that we are always fascinated by the damaged and ruthless character he portrays. Those who dislike war films may find themselves surprised by this film.