''British Intelligence'' is a 1940 spy film set in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It was directed by Terry O. Morse and stars

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established h ...

and

Margaret Lindsay Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...

. The film, also known as ''Enemy Agent'', was released in the United States in January 1940. The

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

B picture A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

was based on a 1918 play ''Three Faces East'' written by Anthony Paul Kelly and produced on the stage by

George M. Cohan George Michael Cohan (July 3, 1878November 5, 1942) was an American entertainer, playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, singer, dancer and theatrical producer. Cohan began his career as a child, performing with his parents and sister in a vaudev ...

. Two film adaptations of ''Three Faces East'' in 1926 and

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...

preceded ''British Intelligence''.Jacobs 2011, p. 244.

Plot

During World War I, Franz Strendler, a master German spy has cost the British dearly. In desperation, they send for their best agent, currently undercover in Germany. Pilot Frank Bennett is sent to pick him up, but the Germans are forewarned and Bennett is shot down. Luckily, he survives and is rescued by friendly soldiers. While recovering in a hospital, Bennett is tended by a pretty nurse, Helene Von Lorbeer. He tells her he loves her, but she informs him she is leaving, and they will not see each other again. However, after Bennett falls asleep, she kisses him on the cheek. Von Lorbeer turns out to be a spy herself. She is recalled to Germany to receive a high honor sent personally by the

Kaiser ''Kaiser'' is the German word for "emperor" (female Kaiserin). In general, the German title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (''König''). In English, the (untranslated) word ''Kaiser'' is mainly ap ...

and to undertake a new mission. Posing as a refugee named Frances Hautry, she infiltrates the London household of Arthur Bennett, a cabinet minister, and, coincidentally, Frank's father. She takes her orders from Valdar, the

butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some a ...

. Valdar later secretly reports to Colonel Yeats, the head of

British Intelligence The Government of the United Kingdom maintains intelligence agencies within three government departments, the Foreign Office, the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence. These agencies are responsible for collecting and analysing foreign and do ...

. When Bennett's secretary, also a German spy, taps out a secret message in code on her typewriter, Yeats is present and recognizes it. Since only Hautry is also in the office at the time, he sets a trap for her. A captured spy named Kurz seemingly escapes from the British and flees to Hautry's bedroom. She hides him in her closet, but then betrays him when Yeats and his men show up. Afterwards, she tells Valdar that she knew "Kurz" was an imposter. Frank Bennett unexpectedly shows up, his squadron and others having been recalled to London for some reason. He is surprised to find his former nurse there and under a different name. Hautry is forced to reveal that she is loyal to the British. However, Valdar overhears their conversation. That night, the British

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

meets in Bennett's home. It is the moment Valdar has been waiting for. He forces Hautry at gunpoint down in the cellar, where he has set a bomb to blow the house up under cover of a Zeppelin bombing raid. Hautry tells Valdar that she had no choice but to make up a story to allay Frank's suspicions. Convinced when she shows him the award she was given, Valdar finally reveals that he is Strendler. Fortunately, Valdar has been under surveillance. Yeats and his men rush to the cellar door. When Valdar escapes through the coal shute, Hautry unlocks the door and informs Yeats about the bomb, revealing that she is a double agent. Valdar rushes to his hideout to transmit the stolen British plans for the spring offensive, pursued by the British, but, ironically, a Zeppelin bombs the location and kills him and his confederates before he can send his information.

Cast

as Valdar *

as Helene Von Lorbeer *

Bruce Lester Bruce Lester (6 June 1912 – 13 June 2008) was a South African-born English film actor with over 60 screen appearances to his credit between 1934 and his retirement from acting in 1958. Lester's career divided into two distinct periods. Betwee ...

as Frank Bennett *

Leonard Mudie Leonard Mudie (born Leonard Mudie Cheetham; April 11, 1883April 14, 1965) was an English character actor whose career lasted for nearly fifty years. After a successful start as a stage actor in England, he appeared regularly in the US, and made ...

as James Yeats *

Holmes Herbert Holmes Herbert (born Horace Edward Jenner; 30 July 1882 – 26 December 1956) was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952, often as a British gentleman. Early life Born Horace Edward Jenner, (some sou ...

as Arthur Bennett * Austin Fairman as George Bennett * William Bailey as British Intelligence agent (uncredited) *

Glen Cavender Glen Cavender (September 19, 1883 – February 9, 1962) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 250 films between 1914 and 1949. Biography Glen Cavender was born in Tucson, Arizona, and died in Hollywood, California. He start ...

as Under Officer Pfalz (uncredited) *

Carlos De Valdez Carlos De Valdez (19 March 1894 – 30 October 1939) was a Peruvian-American film actor who appeared in around forty American films.Pitts p. 169 De Valdez died in the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles at the age of 45. Partial filmography * '' ...

as Von Ritter (uncredited) *

Clarence Derwent Clarence may refer to: Places Australia * Clarence County, New South Wales, a Cadastral division * Clarence, New South Wales, a place near Lithgow * Clarence River (New South Wales) * Clarence Strait (Northern Territory) * City of Clarence, a loca ...

as Milkman (uncredited) *

Arno Frey Arnold Frey (11 October 1900 – 26 June 1961) was a German actor who portrayed the Nazi villain Dr. Lang in the Frank Buck movie ''Tiger Fangs'' (1943). Biography Frey arrived in the United States in October 1926, according to the New Yor ...

as German junior officer (uncredited) *

Lawrence Grant Percy Reginald Lawrence-Grant (30 October 1870 in Bournemouth, Hampshire, England – 19 February 1952 in Santa Barbara, California, USA) was an English actor known for supporting roles in films such as ''The Living Ghost'', '' I'll Tell ...

as Brigadier General (uncredited) *

Carl Harbaugh } Carl Harbaugh ( – February 26, 1960) was an American film actor, screenwriter and director. Biography On Broadway, Harbaugh performed in ''The Greyhound'' (1912) and ''The Bludgeon'' (1914). He was married to Frances Lawson Bouis (? - ...

as German soldier (uncredited) *

Winifred Harris Winifred Vera Emily Harris (17 March 1880 – 18 April 1972) was a British actress with a substantial career in America. She appeared in New York plays beginning in 1914 and acted in numerous plays up to 1934. She left Broadway plays for films tho ...

as Mrs. Maude Bennett (uncredited) *

Leyland Hodgson Leyland Hodgson (5 October 1892 – 16 March 1949), also known as Leland Hodgson, was an English-born American character actor of the 1930s and 1940s. Born in London on 5 October 1892, Hodgson entered the theater in 1898. In his early 20s, Ho ...

as Lord Sudbury (uncredited) *

Stuart Holmes Stuart Holmes (born Joseph Liebchen; March 10, 1884 – December 29, 1971) was an American actor and sculptor whose career spanned seven decades. He appeared in almost 450 films between 1909 and 1964, sometimes credited as Stewart Holmes. Biog ...

as Luchow, German soldier (uncredited) *

Morton Lowry Morton Lowry (born Edward Morton Lowater;Lancashire Birth Records, Volume 8c, pg. 1257. 13 February 1914 – 26 November 1987) was a British actor. He is best known for his film roles as John Stapleton in ''The Hound of The Baskervilles'' (1939 ...

as Lt. Borden (uncredited) *

Lester Matthews Arthur Lester Matthews (6 June 1900 – 5 June 1975) was an English actor. In his career, the handsome Englishman made more than 180 appearances in film and on television. He was erroneously credited in later years as Les Matthews. Matthews pla ...

as Henry Thompson (uncredited) * Frank Mayo as Brixton, intelligence agent (uncredited) *

Paul Panzer Paul Wolfgang Panzerbeiter (November 3, 1872 – August 16, 1958), known professionally as Paul Panzer, was a German-American silent film actor. He appeared in more than 330 films between 1905 and 1952. Biography Panzer was born in Würzburg. ...

as Peasant (uncredited) *

Ferdinand Schumann-Heink Ferdinand Schumann-Heink (born 9 August 1893 – 15 September 1958) was a prolific character actor with over 65 films to his credit. Though most of his films were uncredited roles, he wrote the screenplay for the 1930 film '' Mamba''. During ...

as German officer (uncredited) *

Hans Schumm Hans Josef Schumm ''(né'' Johann Josef Eugen Schumm; 2 April 1896 Stuttgart – 2 February 1990 Los Angeles) was a German-born-turned- American actor, notably, a prolific and critically acclaimed Hollywood screen character actor who appeared ...

as German senior officer (uncredited) *

Evan Thomas Evan Welling Thomas III (born April 25, 1951) is an American journalist, historian, and author. He is the author of nine books, including two ''New York Times'' bestsellers. Early life and career Thomas was born in Huntington, New York, and r ...

as Maj. Andrews (uncredited) *

Maris Wrixon Mary Alice "Maris" Wrixon (December 28, 1916 – October 6, 1999) was an American film and television actress. She appeared in over 50 films between 1939 and 1951. Early years Wrixon was born in Billings, Montana, and raised in Great Falls, ...

as Dorothy Bennett (uncredited)

Production

Warner Bros. began principal photography on ''British Intelligence'' in mid-March 1939. Morse's remake of ''Three Faces East'' "... is clearly one of those cheap and fast quickies the studios - in this instance, Warner - ground out at the onset of war, as the sheerest propaganda." Aerial sequences from the 1930 film '' The Dawn Patrol'' were used in the film.

Reception

''British Intelligence'' was typical of prewar American propaganda films, similar to other Warner Bros. productions. Some later reviewers saw it as a clumsy attempt to portray German aggression in Europe at the start of World War II. "As a balm to 1940 audiences, the film includes an early comedy scene in which German military protocol is upset by a clumsy corporal (Willy Kaufman) who bears a startling resemblance to a certain Nazi dictator." Other reviewers have been more positive. The ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' notes that "this is an intriguing thriller... the wilful obscurity of the storyline is part of its appeal, along with Karloff's sinister geniality."

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Aylesworth, Thomas G. ''The Best of Warner Bros.'' London: Bison Books, 1986. . * Evans, Alun. ''Brassey's Guide to War Films''. Dulles, Virginia: Potomac Books, 2000. . * Jacobs, Stephen. ''Boris Karloff: More Than a Monster''. Sheffield, UK: Tomahawk Press, 2011. . * Mank, Gregory William. ''Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff: The Expanded Story of a Haunting Collaboration.'' Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2009. .

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:British Intelligence (Film) 1940 films 1940s spy films American propaganda films American spy films Remakes of American films American black-and-white films American films based on plays Films directed by Terry O. Morse Films set in London Warner Bros. films Western Front (World War I) films World War I spy films Films scored by Heinz Roemheld 1940s American films