Counter-Espionage

This is my favorite among all the Lone Wolf films TCM has been showing lately, starring WARREN WILLIAM as the master sleuth who's always one step ahead of Scotland Yard. This fast-paced adventure is directed by Edward Dmytryk in taut and suspenseful style.

Audiences always enjoyed watching the Nazi menace get its comeuppance in these sort of stories. Here FORREST TUCKER and MORTON LOWRY are cast as baddies who are helping the Nazis get hold of top secret plans for the destruction of England.

The man who gets his hands on the plans is, of course, The Lone Wolf, who, along with assistance from the ever humorous ERIC BLORE (his loyal valet), must get to the bottom of the spy ring's plans in order to acquit himself of the suspicious Scotland Yard inspector (THURSTON HALL) and his cronies. For a change, HILLARY BROOKE has a sympathetic role as a woman who at first suspects The Lone Wolf of being on the wrong side of things, but soon discovers the truth.

It's a pleasure seeing MORTON LOWRY, a fine supporting actor, given a role with some dimension to it in strong support, and FORREST TUCKER doing well with his Nazi officer role. Easily one of the most enjoyable of all the Lone Wolf films, primarily because the plot is a lot less cluttered than usual and easy to follow.

Lone Wolf, an ace detective who was a jewel thief, functions to safeguard British military objectives during WWII from Nazi German espionage agents as The Blitz is on

Immerse yourself in London fogs and the Blitz-spirit as the Lone Wolf, as played by the inimitable Warren William with his dulcet tones, hunts down Nazi spies, but the good guys think he has stolen plans to sell to the Nazis. We, as the viewer, know this isn't the case. This is a highly enjoyable wartime comedy thriller with a tautly drawn plot, vivid wartime atmosphere and some good tension. Lone Wolf shows his guile when finding the hide-out of some German spies by retracing his steps he made when taken to the hide-out blindfold. There's plenty of subterfuge, treachery and cloak and dagger.

Warren William is the Lone Wolf, Michael Lanyard, in "Counter Espionage" from 1942.

Michael has the difficult assignment of stopping German spies from stealing valuable information from the British government. That's the Mcguffin, of course.

The police suspect Lanyard of actually working with the Nazis.

Eric Blore provides the comic relief, and Hillary Brooke is the suspicious daughter of a murdered man who had these important plans in his safe.

I love Warren William, so it's always great to see him. Look for Lloyd Bridges in an uncredited role as a waiter, and Forrest Tucker has a small role.

The film stars Warren William as the Lone Wolf, an American jewel thief who is working for the British as a double agent. He gives the appearance of working for the Nazis (including a very young, early appearance of Lloyd Bridges as a Nazi waiter; probably his debut, although he is uncredited.

While I was watching the film, I said to myself, that waiter looks and sounds a lot like Lloyd Bridges. And when I got around to doing this review, I found out it was.

Eric Blore does his usual good job as a nervous Englishman, and Our Miss Brooks, I mean Hillary Brooke does a good job playing the daughter of the officer who gives the Lone Wolf his assignment. The actual footage of some of the Blitz bombing is sobering. The film absolutely captures the atmosphere of the time period,

Enjoyable wartime mystery featuring the Lone Wolf as a double agent in London. Ninth in the series, and written in 1942, this entry is directed by Edward Dmytryk (his second in the series). The plot revolves around the theft of plans for a beam device and whether they will be sent to Berlin by a new radio photo transmitter. The Lone Wolf uses sound as the means to learn the secret hide out of the spy ring and scenes of the Blitz are used to show audiences the devastation being doled out on America's British allies. Despite the predictability of the story line, the film is more than a bit enjoyable, and one of the best of the series.

Warren William stars as the suave former jewel thief Michael Lanyard with his faithful sidekick and butler, Eric Blore. Also features Hillary Brooke as the love interest and Forrest Tucker as one of the Nazi spies. Although not credited, it certainly appears that a young Lloyd Bridges also appears albeit with a mustache. If true, he would have had a busy year since he also appears to be listed in over twenty other movies in 1942.