''The Traitor'' is a 1957 British

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by Michael McCarthy and starring

Donald Wolfit Sir Donald Wolfit, KBE (born Donald Woolfitt; Harwood, Ronald"Wolfit, Sir Donald (1902–1968)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edn, January 2008; accessed 14 July 2009 20 April 1902 ...

Robert Bray Robert E. Bray (October 23, 1917 – March 7, 1983) was an American film and television actor known for playing the forest ranger Corey Stuart in the CBS series ''Lassie'', He also starred in ''Stagecoach West'' and as Mike Hammer in the mo ...

, Jane Griffiths and Anton Diffring.

Premise

A former resistance fighter tries to discover the traitor who has betrayed his colleagues in the German resistance during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Cast

as Colonel Charles Price *

as Major Shane * Jane Griffiths as Vicki Toller *

Carl Jaffe Carl Jaffe (21 March 1902 – 12 April 1974) was a German actor. Jaffe trained on the stage in his native Hamburg, Kassel and Wiesbaden before moving to Berlin, where his career began to develop. In 1933 Jaffe changed his stage name to Fra ...

as Professor Stefan Toller * Anton Diffring as Joseph Brezina * Christopher Lee as Doctor Neumann *

Oscar Quitak Oscar Morris Quitak (born 10 March 1926) is a British stage, film and television actor. Quitak's stage work includes roles at the Old Vic and the National Theatre; as well as the original West End and Broadway productions of the musical '' Pi ...

as Thomas Rilke *

Karel Štěpánek Karel Štěpánek (29 October 189925 December 1980) was a Czech actor who spent many years in Austria and generally played German roles onscreen. In 1940 he moved to Britain and spent much of the rest of his career acting there. Partial filmo ...

as Mayor Friederich Suderman * Frederick Schiller as Alfred Baum *

Rupert Davies Rupert Davies FRSA (22 May 191622 November 1976) was a British actor. He is best remembered for playing the title role in the BBC's 1960s television adaptation of '' Maigret'', based on Georges Simenon's novels. Life and career Military s ...

as Clinton, the butler *

John Van Eyssen John Van Eyssen (born Matthew John Du Toit Van Eyssen, 19 March 1922 – 13 November 1995) was a South African born actor, agent and film production executive. He moved to Britain following the Second World War, attending the Central School ...

as Lieutenant Bobby Grant * Colin Croft as Theodore Dehmel

Theme music

The film's title music, "Prelude Without A Name", and incidental music were written and conducted by Jackie Brown. The solo pianist was Dennis Wilson.

Critical reception

'' Sky Movies''wrote, "The specially written musical piece, Prelude, which has a vital part to play in the plot's unfolding, is hauntingly appealing. But too much talk tends to spoil the script's surprises." ''

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 ...

'' noted, "Nuance was not Donald Wolfit's strong suit, but he had presence and power in spades. He totally dominates this story with a bluster and conviction that keeps an uninspiring tale of the hunt for a Second World War traitor from falling flat on its face." ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corpora ...

'' concluded, "This is an offbeat espionage whodunit with some nervy moments."

Around the film

* On a very similar plot line, the French filmmaker Julien Duvivier directed in 1959 ''

Marie-Octobre ''Marie-Octobre'' is a 1959 French drama mystery film directed by Julien Duvivier, based on the eponymous novel by Jacques Robert. It is also known as ''Secret Meeting'' The film was remade in 2008 by director Josée Dayan, starring Nathalie Bay ...

'', also known as ''Secret Meeting'', starring

Danielle Darrieux Danielle Yvonne Marie Antoinette Darrieux (; 1 May 1917 – 17 October 2017) was a French actress of stage, television and film, as well as a singer and dancer. Beginning in 1931, she appeared in more than 110 films. She was one of France's g ...

and based on a novel by Jacques Robert published in 1948.

References

Bibliography

* Chibnall, Steve & McFarlane, Brian. ''The British 'B' Film''. Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.

External links

* 1957 films British drama films 1957 drama films Films directed by Michael McCarthy Films set in England 1950s English-language films 1950s British films {{1950s-UK-film-stub