A Call to Spy

Good to see the role of women as spies in WWII highlighted here. Am somewhat surprised by the very high ratings given here. It was a good movie but not one you'll be thinking about greatly once the credits have rolled. Possibly this is because the film lacks a truly persistent sense of danger. One would normally expect to encounter several 'on the edge of the seat' scenarios in a film about spies and Nazis and the notorious Klaus Barbie. But this was something I barely experienced throughout. The overall acting was always understated and little more than adequate. It was not bad nor was it terrific. Despite some good production values the lack of intensity is the most obvious deficiency made even more apparent when considering the subject matter. The 7 stars is a generous assessment.

This excellent film is based in substantial part upon the book A Woman of No Importance , a biography of Virginia Hall. She was an American ex-pat who spoke fluent French and had lived in France, Turkey and Italy in the run upwto WW2. From a well to do Baltimore family she had tried to attain a diplomatic position for America to no avail during this time which was according to the book and hardly to be doubted due to the fact that she was female and disabled. She had a hunting accident in the 1930s where she shot herself in the foot and lost part of a leg below the knee and had. prosthesis. Fast forward, volunteering being recruited by and joining the newly created British Special Operations Executive(SOE) she was instrumental in developing a part of the very nascent French resistance movement in 1941-1942 and then doing the same just before or after DDay when she went back to France. I do not want to spoil the story which is incredible. Read the book which I thought was inspiring first, then watch the movie. The movie also covers the story of Vera Atkins, and there's a biography of her, as well as Noor a female spy. Parenthetically for me, the story of these three women, and there were many, who risked everything when everything was at stake is refreshing. Why? Because what they did and their courage when they were up against it, makes the current nonsense of American nonsense pale in comparison. Get out and vote and kudos to those on the front lines fighting it out for justce now. These women are an inspiration to that. Search out Marta Gellhorn's interview on you tube. She told it like it was, and like it is.

This movie, "A Call To Spy", is inspired by real events and real allied spies in World War Two. It was the early 1940s, the German Nazi threat was nearing its height, the allies needed to do something bold and surprising. Churchill requested a secret army of attractive female spies be created to conduct sabotage and build resistance in occupied France.

This is the story of those spies and how they were trained, how they went about their missions. The movie is very authentic looking and the mood is just right. The story focuses on Virginia Hall who was a real spy and whom the Nazis considered the most dangerous of all Allied spies. Most of the actors are people I have never heard of which I believe adds to the impact, not being distracted by an actor's fame or prior roles.

Good movie, a nice addition to the WW2 stories. My wife and I watched it at home on DVD from our public library.

I was a bit skeptical about Stana Katic being cast in a war film, but I have to say she does a great job in this movie. This is a strong female movie with good casting and very good acting. I personally enjoy historic films and I liked this one.

The BBC, in their wisdom, covered this same topic as a series (1987-1990) called Wish Me Luck - a very well-made drama centered on the work done by civilian volunteers for the SOE in WWII France. I watched it on Amazon a year or so back but it is now currently unavailable to stream. If it ever does come back, watch it perhaps in conjunction with this movie and the other movie people have mentioned in their reviews (Female Agents) which I have yet to see.