A Call to Spy

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.

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 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.

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.

Another puzzle under all the second war movies that completes the resistance machinery agains the German Gestapo.

Some British women took important functions to spy out the Nazis in France. It is well done with atmosphere and costumes. If you are Interested in this genre check it out. It was never boring and the actors played their roles very good. Solid 6/10.