I hope you’ll join us this summer for a 2-month-long deep dive into Early Espionage/Spy Noir. We’ll begin on Tuesday, July 2, with an emphasis on Good Spies.
For a quick start, take a look at Five Graves to Cairo (1943) on Internet Archive and Eyes in the Night (1942) on YouTube. You can watch the trailers below.
These films are unmistakably associated with politics, and have at least one main character whose real identity is unknown to the political enemy. The character is engaged in secret activity against that enemy, typically a rival nation. For example, in Eyes in the Night (1942), a blind man, “Mac” Maclain (Edward Arnold), prevents pro-Nazi fifth columnists from stealing the design for a secret airplane invention.
Head Start
Want to get a head start? Here’s a list of pre-1939 films, both British and American. (The viewing info is correct as of this posting. As always, things may change.)
British Spy Noirs (pre-1939)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 – Full Movie on YouTube)
Sabotage (1936 – Trailer on YouTube; Full Movie on Tubi) [aka The Woman Alone]
Dark Journey (1937 – Full Movie on YouTube)
Secret Agent (1936 – Full Movie on YouTube)
The Secret of Stamboul (1936- Full Movie on YouTube) [aka The Spy in White]
American Spy Noirs (pre-1939):
The General Died at Dawn (1936 – Trailer on YouTube; Full Movie on Internet Archive)
Blockade(1938 – Fulll Movie on Amazon Prime)
Bulldog Drummond in Africa (1938 – Trailer on YouTube; Full Movie on Tubi)
International Settlement (1938 – Full Movie on YouTube)
Mr. Wong, Detective (1938- Full Movie on YouTube.)
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