"Flight from Vienna" is a decent Cold War story. However, it has a measly overall score under 5 on IMDB...mostly because its production values are terrible. It's a shame....but still worth seeing.
Col. Sandor Kosice (Theodore Bikel) is a high ranking member of the secret police in Communist-controlled Hungary. The story begins with his running across the frontier into Austria for freedom. Why he's leaving his home country isn't really talked about in the film. However, when he goes to the British for political asylum, they are apprehensive as they have no idea if he's serious or not...and he is naturally suspect because of his role in the Hungarian government. So, they suggest he do them a favor to prove his sincerity.
The film has two big problems. First, there is no real suspense since in the opening scene you see Kosice is alive and well...so in the flashback that follows, you know he'll survive and will prove loyal to the West. Second, the film is cheap....super cheap! Again and again, stock footage is used and the barest of money was obviously spent on what they actually filmed. Overall, an interesting Cold War story...but one that should have been so much better.
