User reviews

This is an unusual film from the highly-rated Robert Hamer containing two superb performances from Eric Portman and the statuesque Guy Rolfe. Rolfe is a revelation in that he is in no way overshadowed by Portman and his physical presence dominates his scenes. The script matches the performances and the locations, direction, lighting, and camera-work ensure is it wholly convincing throughout. Set in France just before and during the Great War, there are some truly tense and suspenseful scenes and the film holds you from start to finish. It is a picture which, because of its unusual atmosphere and setting, together with the performances and story-line, stays with you. The last two scenes are touching and beautifully played. Why more was not made of Guy Rolfe's talent and presence by giving him more prime roles in his career is a mystery to me. Try not to miss this one.

A well cast and well paced police drama set in Paris just prior to WWI featuring Eric Portman as the professional and unemotional detective Fernand Maubert and his adversary the aristocratic gentleman thief and bank robber Philippe Lodocq played by the exceptionally tall Guy Rolfe. In some scenes I'm sure his lover, the demure Madeleine (Nadia Gray), is standing on something so as to kiss him. As the Hun approaches Paris, the French government tempts Philippe with a pardon and a wad of cash to do a little espionage. The film ends well with an unexpected twist. British film buffs should look out for a young George Cole (aka Arthur Daley)in the dual role as a trainee detective and actor. Also Arthur Lowe (Dad's Army) appears as a nervous town clerk. Note: This is not a film for those trying to quit smoking. In every scene every man smokes furiously and towards the end even the fair Madeleine lights up.

This is a slow-paced but solid film about a police inspector, played by the calm and unruffled Eric Portman (the spider) and his quarry, a master thief and safe cracker (the fly), who is played by Guy Rolfe. Rolfe was excellent in another film which he made this same year, PORTRAIT FROM LIFE (1949, see my review). He is just as good in this one as well, though playing a very different type of character, and one far less sympathetic. Robert Hamer directed this, one of only 14 films which he directed. He retired from the screen at age 49 and died at age 52, hence the small number of his films. He is best remembered for directing KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS (1949), this very same year, with Alec Guinness. The love interest in this story is played by the Romanian actress Nadia Gray, who has both men in her thrall but has a wild passion for Rolfe which at first he does not return. This was only her second film, the first being a French film in this same year which has never been reviewed on IMDb and may be lost, or at least lost to memory. Portman finally catches the elusive Rolfe and send him to prison, but then a wartime situation arises which requires a crucial document to be stolen from the safe of The German Legation in Switzerland. Portman recruits Rolfe for this task and the thief thus uses his safe-cracking and building-climbing skills to get the document and fight the Germans. It is a good film, well made, but somewhat slow. It would not have seemed so in 1949, perhaps, but things have speeded up now.

Were it not for the the totally wooden efforts of the very tall Guy Rolfe ("Lodocq") this could have been a really good little crime drama. As it is, though, it's still a good story with two distinct parts - the first sees police chief "Maubert" (Eric Portman) trying to apprehend a successful safe-cracker, the second sees him team up with his erstwhile nemesis to work together to thwart the Bosch in France during the early stages of the Great War. Good sharp writing, tensely directed with enjoyable contributions from Nadia Gray ("Madeleine"), Edward Chapman as the no nonsense Interior Minister and a young George Cole as Portman's sergeant sidekick "Marc". It is a little more than just a routine crime caper; it tries to demonstrate that all things being equal even a criminal and a policeman can work together when the fate of their nation is in jeopardy. Robert Hamer manages to keep a sense of fun and jeopardy prevailing for much of this characterful film. A shame Rolfe's talent couldn't raise to the same heights as his head - but still, a good watch this.

Paris at the outset of the impending doom, which would erupt into World War One. Suave, sophisticated, smart talking but savage Guy Rolfe strives to stay one step ahead of dapper, unflappable chief of police, Eric Portman, who, as the title implies, bides his time, awaiting the appropriate moment to catch his prey.

It all starts to go horribly wrong for Rolfe, when a routine, dead of night caper, involving a spot of tight rope walking and an assault on the north face of the Eiger results in the death of both his accomplice and a police officer. Soon afterwards, Portman nails his man, but it's all so civilized and well....well-mannered. It's like watching a game of chess. Could you imagine Bogart serenely accompanying the arresting officer on a gentle stroll, exchanging pleasantries, popping into a bar for a convivial, 'fair cop guv' drink, before continuing to the station to face charges and jail? NO WAY! Given the slenderest opportunity, he'd have unleashed the knuckle sandwich from Hell and disappeared into the night.

Where 'Spider and the Fly' scores some Brownie points is as a 'twofer'. The cop vs robber scenario is only half the story. As the Great War rages, Rolfe rots remorselessly in a prison cell until Portman identifies him as a potential hot property in the allied effort and presses for his release.

Despite the presence of love interest Nadia Gray, the movie never really sparks, seems oddly devoid of passion. Everyone is so ensconced in prim, proper Edwardian style decorum, that 'Spider and the Fly' remains a tepid, torpid plodder, most notable for brief, early appearances by Hattie Jacques, Arthur Lowe and Campbell Singer - familiar faces on British T. V. during the 1960's and 70's.

Police inspector Eric Portman (Maubert) is permanently on the case of gentleman thief Guy Rolfe (Philippe), who is a character similar to David Niven's gentleman thief in the original "Pink Panther" film. The film is set in France just before World War 1 and we watch Portman and Rolfe play out a cat-and-mouse game as various robberies are carried out. Nadia Gray (Madeleine) plays the love interest for our two male leads. She is part of Rolfe's crooked network and Portman is constantly at her to shatter Rolfe's alibis. An undercover operation finally finds Rolfe caught in the act but the outbreak of war leads to new priorities and Portman asks for his old adversary to be released from prison to assist France in stealing some important documents from Switzerland. The film then turns into a buddy-buddy movie as these two characters work together to complete their mission. Can they succeed?

I really enjoyed this film. The acting is good and Portman (representing detection) and Rolfe (representing crime) are extremely likable in their roles and play off each other with a camaraderie that will have you relishing in them working together in the latter part of the film. The dialogue is good throughout and not one scene is wasted. An amusing occasion occurs when Portman arrests Rolfe and they go into a bar on the way to jail to share a cognac together. Portman pays way in excess of the cost of the drink and when this is pointed out by the barmaid, he replies that it is for the glasses as well at which point both Portman and Rolfe smash their glasses onto the floor. It's amusing and it strengthens the bond between them. I dare you to try it next time you have a drink in a bar.

There are a couple of twists at the end which are quite moving. It's a good film to keep and watch again.

Sadly though he was an alcoholic which affected his career and cut short his life.This is a rather slow paced film but it does manage to hold ones attention.It is notable that not one actor affects a French accent and they are all smoking all the time.

Robert Hamer's next film after 'Kind Hearts and Coronets' was this super-stylish precursor to the same director's 'Father Brown' five years later; which feels like an adaptation of a novel but was actually an original screenplay. Continuing his fascination with criminality and deception while studying the bond that develops between a gentleman thief and a detective against a French backdrop, in his tragically sparce career before he drank himself to death aged just 52 he also made two other films with French settings, one of them even called 'To Paris with Love'. It also anticipates 'The Dirty Dozen' and numerous other war films in it's proposition that criminals constitute a valuable resource in wartime.

In answer to an earlier correspondent, Guy Rolfe's career never really took off because health problems made him difficult to work with; although he fortunately enjoyed a late career resurgence in the 'Puppetmaster' series.

Robert Hamer was the great director of an episode of "Dead of night" and the famous "Kind heart and coronets". The problem is that "the spider and the fly" is real slow, not because of the script enough rich of strange situations and dialogues, but because of a total lack of actors direction, the three main actors are desperatly unexpressive. They are shot from far, and there's a puzzling scene in which two characters are turning back the camera, then the camera shoots too many long time the door when the character has already gone out. Eric Portman and Nadia Gray look really empty, and Guy Rolfe who has a terrific frightening face is too much shot from far, he would have needed close shots. What a pity because Guy Rolfe's character of some kind of Arsène Lupin is really interesting and the end is gripping.

The movie is located in France, mainly Paris, but also Versailles and in the end in Switzerland, I rekon some of the locations are real places in Paris or Versailles but there might be some studio scenes for the Café Michel we often see (serving the inevitable absinthe). Robert Hamer also directed Alec Guiness in 1955 in France in "To Paris with love", in colour on the Champs Elysées. There might be some other good surprises in Robert Hamer's filmography of only 14 movies.

A committed and cunning detective (Portman) is out to catch his nemesis and a man he respects - sophisticated burglar, Rolfe. During his investigations he falls in love with Rolfe's confederate (Gray), who in turn worships Rolfe. This triangle of love and crime comes to a head when WWI breaks out and Rolfe's skills could now become very useful.

Enjoyable thriller / drama focussing on 3 people who rather like / love each other, but how will it all get resolved. The characters are perhaps a bit cold and underdeveloped but the acting, particularly from Portman is strong and it has a playful, sometimes witty script.

The 'gentleman crook' and his ongoing battle of wits with a police detective has proved to be of immense appeal. Raffles had his Inspector Mackenzie, Lupin his Inspector Ganimard and Simon Templar his Inspector Teal. Here it is the mercurial Ledocq of Guy Rolfe versus the earthy Inspector Maubert of Eric Portman. Although on opposite sides of the law theirs is a very interesting relationship based on mutual admiration and is further complicated by their being rivals for the enigmatic Madeleine of Nadia Gray. However, a cruelly ironic twist of Fate thwarts them both.........

Films set in Europe featuring English actors seldom ring true but this is a glorious exception. Both Portman and Rolfe, whose career alas was hampered by tuberculosis, are first class. Excellent support from Edward Chapman and Maurice Denham. It is of course the lovely Miss Gray who supplies the exotic touch.

Based by writer Robert Westerby on a story related to him by a member of the French police, this film is atmospherically shot by Geoffrey Unsworth and marks an impressive editorial debut by Seth Holt.

Although no doubt considered a 'minor' work of Robert Hamer this is extremely entertaining. It typifies Hamer's flair, distinctive visual style and what one critic astutely called 'his bitter intelligence'.

Eric Portman is a French police inspector who is used to committing the professional bank robber Guy Rolfe, he has done that a number of times and knows him well, so when in 1916 in the middle of the war a special burglar job is needed in the German legation in Berne, Switzerland, Eric recommends Rolfe, who gets the job. The complication is that they both love the same woman, a certain Madeleine (Nadia Gray), a fact which involves some unforeseen circumstances.

The story is very thought-provoking, there is a toch of tragedy to it as well, Portman and Rolfe are both at their best, and they team very well together.

Eric Portman plays a police officer desperate to get Guy Rolfe behind bars in "The Spider and the Fly" from 1949.

Eric Portman is Fernand Maubert, a French police officer around World War II. He is being heavily criticized because he is unable to catch a very efficient robber, Philippe Lodocq (Guy Rolfe) who always seems to have an alibi when there's a robbery.

If things weren't bad enough, both men are in love with the same woman (Nadia Gray). She is madly in love with Philippe, who at first uses her; later, however, he realizes that he does love her.

Happily for Maubert, he is able finally to catch Philippe and throw him in prison for six years. War breaks out, and Maubert, working with the government, is summoned and given an assignment. Maubert knows just the man to carry it out.

I don't know if I gave this an 8 because I've seen so mediocre films lately, or if this was really good. I think this was really good, particularly because of the performances of Portman and the elegant, handsome Guy Rolfe. I only knew him from the film "King of the Khyber Rifles" but was too busy looking at Tyrone Power to notice him.

The lesson of the film is that, for the good of a country, opposing forces can work together. Given the situation in the U. S. today, I found it timely.

There's are two twists at the end, both of which add to the film.

Recommended, especially if you're not familiar with Guy Rolfe.

I really enjoyed watching this film and I was engaged from the outset.... The film itself is well made and well written but the film is lifted by its stars.... in particular Guy Rolfe.... but also Éric Portman as the police inspector and as the love interest Nadia Grey... the film could have been a bit slushy with the romantic angle or a convoluted crime story or indeed a jingoistic flag waver... but the film succeeds in finding the right balance of all these genres... but out of all this, for me, it is Guy Rolfe who pulls this balance out with his performance followed a close second by Eric Portman..... please don't misunderstand I am taking nothing away from me script or the direction.... but Guy Rolfe really is a quality actor.... and here he shines... it's just a shame that his career was not as rewarding as his talent should have made him.... but I understand that was in the main due to him developing a disease just after this film and being forced out of possible roles by being unavailable for at least a year or more.... indeed he was lucky to survive it let alone be able to return to work as an actor.... but that time away sadly lost him the opportunity to take advantage of his increasing plaudits amongst those who cast or recommend any actors to those in film that make those decisions. There was an actor immediately thought of while watching this film, that being Conrad Veidt....both of these actors absolutely ooze charisma and screen presence like very few of their contemporaries do and indeed even into more recent films with the actors that were to follow.... I have only recently started watching a lot of films from this era and into 50's and 60's as well as later films that I grew up seeing.... but I am struck by just how much Guy Rolfe is so engrossing whenever he is in a scene especially when sharing that scene with Eric Portman, they both compliment each other's character and you cannot help but want to see more of them together in other films that were equally as well directed or produced but sadly lacked the presence of such fine actors as these.... as I am certain that those films would have been much more successful than they were or certainly much more well remembered...! I would recommend this film to anyone out there who's only reason for watching is to enjoy and be entertained.... a definite 9 for the leads alone...!