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Confidential Agent

  • 1945
  • Approved
  • 1h 58m
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
Lauren Bacall and Charles Boyer in Confidential Agent (1945)
DramaThriller

In 1937, agents from the opposing sides of the Spanish Civil War travel to the neutral UK to secure coal contracts and to undermine each other's efforts.In 1937, agents from the opposing sides of the Spanish Civil War travel to the neutral UK to secure coal contracts and to undermine each other's efforts.In 1937, agents from the opposing sides of the Spanish Civil War travel to the neutral UK to secure coal contracts and to undermine each other's efforts.

  • Director
    • Herman Shumlin
  • Writers
    • Graham Greene
    • Robert Buckner
  • Stars
    • Charles Boyer
    • Lauren Bacall
    • Katina Paxinou
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.5/10
    1.5K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Herman Shumlin
    • Writers
      • Graham Greene
      • Robert Buckner
    • Stars
      • Charles Boyer
      • Lauren Bacall
      • Katina Paxinou
    • 41User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos32

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    Top cast84

    Edit
    Charles Boyer
    Charles Boyer
    • Luis Denard
    Lauren Bacall
    Lauren Bacall
    • Rose Cullen
    Katina Paxinou
    Katina Paxinou
    • Mrs. Melandez
    Peter Lorre
    Peter Lorre
    • Contreras
    Victor Francen
    Victor Francen
    • Licata
    George Coulouris
    George Coulouris
    • Captain Currie
    Wanda Hendrix
    Wanda Hendrix
    • Else
    John Warburton
    John Warburton
    • Neil Forbes
    Holmes Herbert
    Holmes Herbert
    • Lord Benditch
    Dan Seymour
    Dan Seymour
    • Mr. Muckerji
    George Zucco
    George Zucco
    • Detective Geddes
    Art Foster
    • Chauffeur
    Miles Mander
    Miles Mander
    • Mr. Brigstock
    Lawrence Grant
    Lawrence Grant
    • Lord Fetting
    Ian Wolfe
    Ian Wolfe
    • Dr. Bellows
    Gilbert Allen
    • London Bobby
    • (uncredited)
    Harry Allen
    • Miner
    • (uncredited)
    Sylvia Andrew
    • Miner's Wife
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Herman Shumlin
    • Writers
      • Graham Greene
      • Robert Buckner
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews41

    6.51.5K
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    10

    Featured reviews

    8alan-morton

    Rising Damp

    The novel is easily superior and the best parts of the film are direct translations from what Greene wrote; for instance the quiet but grim humour that breaks into the scenes with Boyer and Lorre, or the murdered-child obsession that takes over some of the plot. Where the film deviates from the novel, it tends to the ludicrous.

    However I don't want to suggest that the film is bad in any way. It always looks the part and the story stays in the mind like a good 'un. Some of the minor characters were stock actors who could turn their hand to anything.

    It's a dreadful shame that the film's not available on DVD.
    GManfred

    Fragmented

    I didn't read the book but this must one of Graham Greene's weaker novels. Either that or the Director made a hash out of it, because there is simply too much plot here to make a coherent story. There are several subplots at work that detract from the main storyline - which, truth be told, doesn't seem that interesting or compelling to start with.

    Not much chemistry between the two principals, and Bacall's is the weakest performance in the picture. There are lots of notable character actors who try their best; Peter Lorre, Victor Francen and Katina Paxinou, to name a few. Ultimately, I felt the plot was obscured and Charles Boyer was not a strong presence. I rated it on potential and on the sterling cast.
    8htwhyppe

    Terrific Stuff

    Good old black and white Graham Greene based people in dangerous times doing heroic and mysterious things. Hardly a shot fired or a punch thrown and a hundred time more interesting than the glop that's being minted by Hollywood today. Bacall lights up the screen of course and Boyer is entirely engaging. They don't make movies like this any more.
    8Handlinghandel

    Wonderful and Could Have Been Even Better

    It could have been better had it been directed by someone with more experience. Shumlin didn't do a bad job but it is not a great work of cinematic art.

    It is, however, a beautiful movie. I have loved it since local channels used to show it. Graham Greene is one of my favorite writers of the last century. Some pretty bad movies were made from his novels and stories. (Many love "The Fallen Idol" but I am not among them. I think I saw "Brighton Rock" once many years ago and liked it but maybe I'm simply thinking fondly of the novel.) This is superbly cast. Charles Boyer does not, it's true, come across as Spanish. But he seems to have the perfect temperament for this character -- tired, wary, caring. Lauren Bacall is appealing as the British girl who falls for him. But the supporting players are the best: Katina Paxinou is excellent. Her performance is a little Grand Guignol, but I attribute that to the director. Peter Lorre, whom we first meet as he gives Boyer a lesson in an Esperanto-like universal language, is excellent -- as always.

    And Wanda Hendrix could break the hardest heart. She comes across as a precocious early teenager. The character wants to be helpful. She does her best.

    I recommend this movie highly. Not without reservations. The reservation is, primarily, that it is a little stolid. But the story and acting can scarcely be bettered.
    6Doylenf

    Murky but atmospheric...Boyer and Bacall not quite credible...

    Hollywood always has trouble translating the works of writers like Graham Greene and Ernest Hemingway to the screen. Something always gets lost in the transition--and in this case, that's not good because the plot is murky enough without losing some of the novel's detailed explanation of what's really going on.

    LAUREN BACALL, poised and mature beyond her years as she was in all of her early Hollywood roles, is a bit miscast here as a British girl and seems to know it. Her performance is less credible than most of her chores opposite Bogart. On the other hand, CHARLES BOYER is impressive as a man on a mission who is eventually betrayed. As in all such spy thrillers, this one has a plot line that is better left undisclosed, but suffice it to say that there is plenty to ponder as you watch the story unfold, and some interesting work by a large supporting cast. Set at the time of the Spanish Civil War, it has plenty of plot to follow.

    Wanda Hendrix has a nice bit as a Cockney lass and Katina Paxinou delivers the goods in a malicious role. Too bad the chemistry between Boyer and Bacall is not quite on par with the kind she had with Bogart because their romance never seems quite credible. Neverthelss, she does not deserve the panning her performance received when the film was first released on the heels of two successful films with Bogart.

    A bit dull in the stretches, but atmospheric and worth watching as an interesting example of Warner Bros. noir, the sort of cloak and dagger atmosphere needed to give the story some punch.

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    Related interests

    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Graham Greene, on whose novel the movie is based, said that it was "the only good film ever made from one of my books by an American director."
    • Goofs
      Just after Inspectors try to take Boyer in custody he leaves the house and Charles Boyer is evading Inspectors in the fog, the police car passes him and the stunt rope attached to the back of the car is clearly seen being pulled as it passes. can be viewed in movie starting at min. mark 1:21:00
    • Quotes

      Luis Denard: I've been beaten, robbed, suckered, betrayed - I've failed my mission - I've had enough. But that child was murdered, and for this someone is going to pay.

    • Connections
      Featured in Hollywood contra Franco (2008)
    • Soundtracks
      Tip-Toe thru' the Tulips with Me
      (uncredited)

      Music by Joseph A. Burke

      Lyrics by Al Dubin

      Played and sung in the ship's bar

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    FAQ15

    • How long is Confidential Agent?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 10, 1945 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • Spanish
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Agente confidencial
    • Filming locations
      • London, England, UK(background and establishing shots - archive footage)
    • Production company
      • Warner Bros.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 58m(118 min)
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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