''Background to Danger'' is a 1943 World War II spy film starring George Raft and featuring

Brenda Marshall Brenda Marshall (born Ardis Ankerson; September 29, 1915Some question exists regarding the exact date of her birth. An article in the December 31, 1939, issue of the '' Salt Lake Tribune'' says that she was born November 29, 1915. – July 3 ...

Sydney Greenstreet Sydney Hughes Greenstreet (December 27, 1879 – January 18, 1954) was a British-American actor. While he did not begin his career in films until the age of 61, he had a run of significant motion pictures in a Hollywood career lasting throu ...

, and

Peter Lorre Peter Lorre (; born László Löwenstein, ; June 26, 1904 – March 23, 1964) was a Hungarian and American actor, first in Europe and later in the United States. He began his stage career in Vienna, in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, before movin ...

. Based on the 1937 novel '' Uncommon Danger'' by Eric Ambler and set in politically neutral Turkey, the screenplay was credited to

W. R. Burnett William Riley Burnett (November 25, 1899 April 25, 1982) was an American novelist and screenwriter. He is best known for the crime novel ''Little Caesar'', the film adaptation of which is considered the first of the classic American gangster ...

, although

William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, based on Lafayette County, Mississippi, where Faulkner spent most o ...

and

Daniel Fuchs Daniel Fuchs (June 25, 1909 – July 26, 1993) was an American screenwriter, fiction writer, and essayist. Biography Daniel Fuchs was born to a Jewish family on the Lower East Side, Manhattan, but his family moved to Williamsburg, Brooklyn whi ...

also contributed. The movie was directed by Raoul Walsh. The film was designed to capitalize on the runaway success of '' Casablanca'', which had also featured Lorre and Greenstreet. The Russian operative positively portrayed by Brenda Marshall shows an exaggerated degree of cooperation, and the film has a slight pro-Soviet bias akin to Warners' ''

Mission to Moscow ''Mission to Moscow'' is a 1943 film directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the 1941 book by the former U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union, Joseph E. Davies. The movie chronicles the experiences of the second American ambassador to the Soviet ...

'' from the same year. Walsh called the film "a quickie".

Plot

In 1942, Nazi Germany attempts to bring neutral Turkey into the war on its side by staging an assassination attempt on Franz von Papen, its own ambassador to the country. Much to the annoyance of Colonel Robinson (

), von Papen survives and the Russians that his

agent provocateur An agent provocateur () is a person who commits, or who acts to entice another person to commit, an illegal or rash act or falsely implicate them in partaking in an illegal act, so as to ruin the reputation of, or entice legal action against, th ...

was trying to frame have solid alibis, forcing him to turn to another scheme to inflame Turkey's traditional rivalry with Russia. Meanwhile, American machinery salesman Joe Barton ( George Raft) boards the Baghdad-Istanbul Express train at Aleppo and is attracted to another passenger, Ana Remzi (

Osa Massen Osa Massen (born Aase Madsen Iversen, 13 January 1914 – 2 January 2006) was a Danish actress who became a successful movie actress in Hollywood. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1941. Background and early career Bo ...

). Worried about being searched by customs agents once they reach the Turkish border, she asks Joe to hold on to an envelope containing some securities, all that remains of her inheritance. Joe obliges, but when he later examines the envelope, he finds maps of Turkey with handwritten annotations on them. When they stop in

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

, he goes to her hotel to return her property, only to find she has been fatally wounded. He hides when someone else approaches the room. He watches unobserved as Soviet spy Nikolai Zaleshoff (

) searches the dead woman's luggage. Then, Joe exits through the window. Leaving the scene, he is seen by Tamara Zaleshoff (

), Nikolai's sister and partner in espionage. Turkish policemen take Joe in for questioning, but actually that they are German agents. They take him to their leader, Colonel Robinson. Robinson wants the maps. Joe refuses to cooperate, and is taken away to be interrogated by Mailler (

Kurt Katch Kurt Katch (born Isser Kac; January 28, 1893 – August 14, 1958) was a Polish film and television actor. He appeared in ''Quiet Please, Murder'', ''The Purple V'', ''The Mask of Dimitrios'', ''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'', among many o ...

). Before the Germans get very far, Joe is rescued by Nikolai. When the Zaleshoffs reveal that they are Soviet agents, Joe agrees to fetch them the documents. Unfortunately, he finds his hotel room has been ransacked and the documents stolen. Joe, it turns out, is also a spy (for the United States). When he reports to his boss, McNamara (

Willard Robertson Willard Robertson (January 1, 1886 – April 5, 1948) was an American actor and writer. He appeared in more than 140 films between 1924 and 1948. He was born in Runnels, Texas, and died in Hollywood, California. Biography Robertson first ...

), he is assigned an assistant, Hassan (

Turhan Bey Turhan Bey (born Turhan Gilbert Selahattin Şahultavi, 30 March 192230 September 2012). was an Austrian-born actor of Turkish and Czech-Jewish origins. Active in Hollywood from 1941 to 1953, he was dubbed "The Turkish Delight" by his fans.. Aft ...

). The two men head to

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

. There, Robinson has bribed a newspaper publisher to print an article claiming that the documents are secret Russian plans for the invasion of Turkey. When Joe barges in by himself, he is quickly taken prisoner. The Zaleshoffs have also been captured. Joe and Tamara get away, but Nikolai is killed during the escape. Joe kidnaps a German embassy official and learns where Robinson has gone. Joe heads to the newspaper. There he forces the Nazi ringleader at gunpoint to burn the maps. Robinson is handed over to the Turkish police and then to his greatly displeased superior. He departs by airplane, knowing he is doomed for his failure. Joe and Tamara head to Cairo for their next assignments.

Cast

* George Raft as Joe Barton *

as Tamara Zaleshoff *

as Col. Robinson *

as Nikolai Zaleshoff *

as Ana Remzi *

as Hassan *

as "Mac" McNamara *

as Mailler

Production

Development

The film was based on the 1937 novel ''Uncommon Danger'' by Eric Ambler. It was published in the US under the title ''Background to Danger''. Film rights were bought by Warner Bros. The film was going to star Jeffrey Lynn then he was withdrawn and replaced by Ronald Reagan and

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

. Lew Seiler then Jo Graham was assigned to direct. Philip MacDonald was assigned to write the script.

George Raft

In June 1942, the film became a star vehicle for George Raft. It was Raft's first film for Warners since ''Manpower''. He had turned down a number of movies at the studio including ''The Maltese Falcon'' and ''All Through the Night''. Raft insisted on the script being changed so that his character was an undercover American agent instead of an ordinary man.Everett Aaker, ''The Films of George Raft'', McFarland & Company, 2013. p. 104 This was common behavior from Raft at the time. Writer W.R. Burnett, who had also written ''Scarface'' said "I was always afraid that I'd have to face Eric Ambler after what we did to that. The point of ''Background to Danger'' was that this man was a salesman and suddenly things begin to happen to him that he can't understand. And he gets involved in all this espionage. But Raft wouldn't do it unless he was an FBI man. The whole story went out the window... He said he didn't want to be any ribbon salesman. I think he wanted to be on the side of the law for a change." John Collier was brought in to work on the script. Jerry Wald was assigned to produce and Raoul Walsh to direct.

Shooting

Filming started September 1942. In November 1942 Raft would buy out his contract with Warners.

Reception

The film was a box office success.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Background To Danger Films directed by Raoul Walsh 1943 films 1940s spy thriller films American spy thriller films American black-and-white films Films based on British novels Films based on thriller novels Films scored by Friedrich Hollaender Films set in 1942 Films set in Istanbul Films set in Ankara Films set in Syria Warner Bros. films World War II films made in wartime World War II spy films