Confessions of a Nazi Spy

According to the host of "Turner Classic Movies", this movie is based on F.B.I. files. I also learned that the theatrical release of "Confessions of a Nazi Spy" almost resulted an international incident that might have caused America's premature entrance into World War II, two years before the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. I've seen documentaries about the activities of the German-American Bundt and can tell you that this movie has the frightening ring of authenticity. Well worth seeing if you can't get a hold of documentaries on the subject.

Exciting espionage picture from Warner Bros. that holds the distinction of being the first explicitly anti-Nazi movie made in America. Star Edward G. Robinson doesn't appear until nearly midway through the film. The first half of the movie is about the various characters involved in a Nazi spy ring. Robinson plays an FBI agent who catches one German-American (Frances Lederer) acting as a spy and uses him to try and nab bigger Nazi fish.

Fascinating from a historical perspective but also gripping entertainment. It was based on a real case, which might explain why it has this realistic feel to it that you don't often see in pictures of the time. For example they don't even catch all the bad guys in the end. I'm surprised the Code allowed that as it usually called for all evil-doers to be punished. The newsreel-style narration is also a nice touch. The cast is good with (mostly) solid performances from everyone. Frances Lederer is hammy but he grows on you after awhile. Paul Lukas and George Sanders play Nazis. Sanders is good and Lukas is fantastic in the film's meatiest role. Robinson is also great in an understated performance. Given that this is WB we're dealing with, there's of course a wonderful supporting cast featuring the likes of Joe Sawyer, Dorothy Tree, and many German actors (some of whom used fake names to protect their families back in Germany).

"You guys are worse than gangsters" shouts one man when he's thrown out of a German American Bund meeting for expressing a dissenting opinion. There's some humor in that, I suppose, since WB was the pioneer of the gangster movie. But they would also make some of the best ant-Nazi war films during WW2. In many ways, this could be seen as their first step in that direction.

In 1939, most Americans really could have cared less about the war clouds in Europe. In hindsight, most Americans felt our intervention in WWI was a mistake and now a strong sense of isolationism permeated the country. Because of this, most American films ignored that there was a Nazi Germany or took a very neutral attitude (such as in IDIOT'S DELIGHT and CHARLIE CHAN AT THE OLYMPICS). However, by about 1939, a few domestic film studios finally began showing the Nazis as "the bad guys" and CONFESSIONS OF A NAZI SPY was one of the first. Even the wonderful STORM WARNING (probably the best Hollywood anti-Nazi films made before America joined the war) didn't appear for another year. Because of this, CONFESSIONS OF A NAZI SPY is a very brave film--showing the Nazis as evil and bent on warfare against America.

The film is an espionage film and the first half is told solely from the viewpoint of Nazi agents living in America. The star of the film. FBI agent Edward G. Robinson, doesn't even appear until about the midway point--at which point the US government springs into action to root out these traitors. It is all told in a very realistic and believable manner--mostly because it was based on a real pre-war case in the US. Exciting, well acted (with many underplayed roles despite how easily the whole thing could have been portrayed) and stirring--this is a great film.

By the way, although the film was made in 1939, the version just recently shown on Turner Classic Movies must have had additional pieces added sometime after 1939--as they talk about the fall of Norway and Holland--something that did not occur until 1940.

Not a bad film, particularly in its historical importance. Reportedly, the Warner brothers and Edward G. Robinson all fought to make this film, which was made at a time when Americans, remembering the devastation of WWI, were still wary about entering another European conflict.

Structured a little strangely -- we don't get enough of our favorite character, Robinson's, who is a prototype of the thirties G-Man. He has some great lines, particularly when cutting down the bad guys. It's interesting to see him on the right side of the law for once, and equally interesting to see Paul Lukas, best known for playing the anti-Nazi hero of Watch on the Rhine, playing a German sympathizer.

An almost-unrecognizable George Sanders steals the show (doesn't he always?) as a hardcore Nazi soldier.

The movie is heavy-handed propaganda which becomes almost comical with its over-dramatic narration and failure to recognize the irony in its supposed hate of propaganda. The narrator does offer up the movie's most hilarious line, describing how the Germans manufacture "mass stupidity."

Confessions of a Nazi Spy (1939)

*** (out of 4)

Better than expected propaganda film from Warner is probably more historically interesting than entertaining but there's still enough good stuff here to make it stand up well in today's times. The film centers on an FBI agent (Edward G. Robinson) who is trying to track down and break a Nazi ring working inside the United States. Watching this film today the subject matter is rather heavily handled and preachy. I'd go even further to say that the director and screenwriter are constantly beating their subjected over the head of the viewer but one has to remember that the Nazi movements in America were pretty much kept quiet back in the day and this film bravely threw them under the bus a few times. One has to applaud the film for trying what it did in 1939 and I'm sure the movie opened the eyes of many people (even though I've heard it wasn't a hit for the studio). The story told here is a pretty good one that will certainly grab your attention and keep you going throughout the film. The documentary-style telling doesn't work overly well but that doesn't matter too much. Robinson turns in a good, quiet performance as the main FBI guy. He doesn't shout or get too worked up, which is something I haven't seen from him in his earlier films. I really enjoyed how Robinson played the character and it really paid off in the end. Francis Lederer, George Sanders, Paul Lukas, Henry O'Neill and Joe Sawyer add nice supporting performances.