But soon he finds that she has been kidnapped and Oktober gives a couple of hours to him to give the location of the site; otherwise Inge and him will be killed. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. A crisply written story that captured my attention from beginning to end. Summaries In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. No one really cared that Gable did not even attempt an English accent the film was that good. What will Quiller do? What a difference to the ludicrous James Helm/Matt Bond (or is it the other way round?) George Sanders and others back in London play the stock roles of arch SIS mandarins who love putting people down, wearing black tie and being the snobs that they are. Pol dispatches a team to Phoenix's HQ, which successfully captures all of Phoenix's members. 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When a spy film is made in the James Bond vein then close analysis is superfluous, but when the movie has a pretense of seriousness then it'd better make sense. Pretending to be a reporter, Quiller visits the school featured in the article. This isn't your average James Bond knockoff spy thriller; the fact that the screenplay is by playwright Harold Pinter is the first clue. And although Harold Pinters screenwriting for Quiller doesnt strike one as being classically Pinteresque, occasionally his distinct style reveals itself in pockets of suggestive menace where silence is often just as important as whats spoken. Take a solid, healthy chicken's egg out of the hen house or the fridge Now throw out all the substance, and just keep the eggshell. Because the books were written in the first person the reader learns very little about him, beyond his mission capability. After a pair of their agents are murdered in West Berlin, the British Secret Service for some unknown reason send in an American to investigate and find the location of a neo-Nazi group's headquarters. The film starred George Segal in the lead role, with Alec Guinness supporting andwas nominated for three BAFTAs. Sadly, Von Sydows formidable acting chops are never seriously challenged here, and his lines are limited to fairly standard B-movie Euro-villain speak. THE QUILLER MEMORANDUM (3 outta 5 stars) The 1960s saw a plethora of two kinds of spy movies: the outrageous semi-serious James Bond ripoffs (like the Flint and Matt Helm movies) and the very dry, methodical ones that were more talk than action (mostly John Le Carre and Alistair MacLean adaptations). I loved seeing and feeling the night shots in this film and, as it was shot on location, the sense of reality was heightened for me. Quiller asks after Jones at the bowling alley without success and the swimming pool manager Hassler tells him spectating is not allowed. As usual for films which are difficult to pin down . Hall alsopeppered the text with authentic espionage jargon and as you read you get to live the part of Quiller. They don't know how to play it, it's neither enjoyable make-believe like the James Bond movies, nor is it played for real like "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold." Inga is unrecognizable and has been changed to the point of uselessness. The Quiller Memorandum is based on Adam Hall's thriller novel about neo-Nazism in contemporary Germany. My take was, he knows she's one of the bad guys, and same with the headmistress who he passes on the way out. Read more The burning question for Quiller is, how close is too close? Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Also published as "The Berlin Memorandum" (UK title). With a screenplay by Harold Pinter and careful direction by Michael Anderson, the movie is more a violent-edged tale of probable, cynical betrayal by everyone we meet, with the main character, Quiller (George Segal), squeezed by those he works for, those he works against and even by the delectable German teacher, Inge Lendt (Senta Berger) he meets. aka: The Quiller Memorandum the first in a series of 19 Quiller books. Write by: See production, box office & company info, Europa-Center, Charlottenburg, Berlin, Germany. Read our extensive list of rules for more information on other types of posts like fan-art and self-promotion, or message the moderators if you have any questions. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) - IMDb Required fields are marked *. She claims she turned in the teacher from the article, and points out the dilapidated Phoenix mansion. International in its scope its contributors include scholars from Australia, Quiller . When their backs against the wall, its him they turn to. This demonstration using familiar breakfast food items serves to stimulate the American spys brainwaves into serious operative mode. Quiller meets his controller for this mission, Pol, at Berlin's Olympia Stadium, and learns that he must find the headquarters of Phoenix, a neo-Nazi organization. The Quiller Memorandum strips the spy persona down to its primal instincts, ditching the fancy paraphernalia in favor of a rather satisfying display of wits and gumption. Just watched it. The sentences are generally clipped and abrupt, reminiscent of Simon Kernicks style wherenot a word is wasted, but predating him by a generation. Alec Guinness plays spymaster Pol, Quillers minder. Quiller leaves the Konigshof Hotel on West Berlin's Kurfurstendamm and confronts a man who has been following him, learning that it is his minder, Hengel. From that point of view, the film should be seen by social, architectural, and urban landscape historians. The Berlin Memorandum, renamed The Quiller Memorandum, was published in 1965 by Elleston Trevor, who used the pseudonym Adam Hall. After they have sex, she unexpectedly reveals that a friend was formerly involved with neo-Nazis and might know the location of Phoenix's HQ. The Quiller Memorandum, based on a novel by Adam Hall (pen name for Elleston Trevor) and with a screenplay by Harold Pinter, deals with the insidious upsurge of neo-Nazism in Germany. But Quiller is an equal to a James Bond, or a George Smiley. The book and movie made a bit of a splash in the spy craze of the mid-sixties, when James Bond and The Man From Uncle were all the rage. Alec Guinness gets to play a Smiley prototype but brings too much Noel Coward to the table. This film has special meaning for me as I was living in Berlin during the filming and, subsequent screening in the city. The film had its world premiere on 10 November 1966 at the Odeon Leicester Square in the West End of London. ago Just watched it. Amazon.com: The Quiller Memorandum eBook : Hall, Adam: Books And, the final scene (with her and Segal) is done extremely well (won't spoil it for those who still wish to see itit fully sums up the film, the tension filled times and cold war-era Germany). There was also a TV series in 1975. Be the first to contribute. I listened to the audio version narrated by Andrew B Wehrlen and found it an utterly engaging tale. George Segal is a fine and always engaging actor, but the way his character is written here, he doesn't really come across as "a spy who gets along by his brains and not by his brawn"; he seems interested almost exclusively in the girl he meets, not in the case he's investigating, and (at least until the end) he seems to survive as a result of a combination of his good luck and the stupidity of the villains. Quiller admits to Inge that he is an "investigator" on the trail of neo-Nazis. Is there another film with as many sequences of extended, audible footsteps? It's not often that one wishes so much for a main character to get killed, especially by NAZI's. The only really interesting thing is the way we're left spoiler: click to read in the end. Quiller continues his subtle accusations, and Inge continues her denial of ever meeting Jones. Quiller, a British agent who works without gun, cover or contacts, takes on a neo-Nazi underground organization and its war criminal leader. Quiller, an agent working for British Intelligence, is sent to Berlin to meet with Pol, another operative. The goal of /r/Movies is to provide an inclusive place for discussions and news about films with major releases. As a consequence I was left in some never-never land and always felt I was watching actors in a movie and never got involved. closing theme, This page was last edited on 26 January 2023, at 11:13. In the mid-Sixties, the subgenre of the James Bond backlash film was becoming a crowded market. The third to try is Quiller, an unassuming man, who knows he's being put into a deadly game. Quiller manages to outwit his opponent yet again, leading to his arrest. For Quiller, it's a question of staying alive when he's not in possession of all of the facts. I also expected just a little more from the interrogation scenes from the man who wrote "The Birthday Party". Quiller drives off, managing to shake Hengel, then notices men in another car following him. Quiller enters the mansion and is confronted by Phoenix thugs. The former was a bracingly pessimistic Cold War alternative to freewheeling Bondian optimism that featured burnout boozer actor Richard Burton in an all-too-convincing performance as burnout boozer spy Alec Leamus. 1966's The Quiller Memorandum is a low-key gem, a pared-down, existential spy caper that keeps the exoticism to a minimum. He was the author of. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. This one makes no exception. Set in 1950s Finland, during the Cold War, the books tell the story of a young police woman and budding detective who cuts against the grain when, John Fullertons powerful 1996 debut The Monkey House was set in war-torn Sarajevo and was right in the moment. Michael Anderson directs with his usual leaden touch. Oktober informs Quiller that if he does not disclose secret information this time, both he and Inge will be killed. A much better example of a spy novel-to-film adaptation would be Our Man in Havana, also starring Alec Guinness. Elleston Trevor (pictured) himself was a prolific, award-winning writer, producing novels under a range of pen names nine in total! People tend to like it because "it's not like the Bond movies"; well, it's not - it's like "The Ipcress File", except that "The Ipcress File" was a genuinely smart and atmospheric movie, while "The Quiller Memorandum" is a clumsy, dated spy thriller full of pseudo-hip dialogue and plot holes. It keeps the reader engrossed right up to the last couple of lines. What Adam Hall did extremely wellwas toget us readers inside the mind of an undercover operative. Quiller (played by George Segal) is an American secret agent assigned to work with British MI6 chief Pol (Alec Guinness) in West Berlin. In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. He accepts the assignment and almost immediately finds that he is being followed. One of the most interesting elements of the novel is Quiller's explanation of tradecraft and the way he narrates his way through receiving signals from his Control via coded stock market reports on the radio, and a seemingly endless string of people following him around Berlin as he goes about his mission. The Quiller Memorandum Reviews. He first meets with Pol, who explains that each side is trying to discover and annihilate the other's base. In the 60's, in Berlin, two British agents that are investigating a Neonazi ring are murdered. It's a more realistic or credible portrayal of how a single character copes with trying to get information in a dangerous environment. [3], In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "Clearly, 'The Quiller Memorandum' is claptrap done up in a style and with a musical score by John Barry that might lead you to think it is Art. Harold Pinter was nominated for an Edgar Award in the Best Motion Picture category, but also didn't win. But admittedly its a tricky business second-guessing his dramatic instincts here. Quiller is released. I had to resist the temptation to fast forward on several occasions. An American agent is sent to Berlin to track down the leaders of a neo-Nazi organization, but when they . The West had sent a couple of agents to find out their headquarters, but both are killed. But how could she put up with the love scenes with the atrocious Segal? In the process, he discovers a complex and malevolent plot, more dangerous to the world than any crime committed during the war. The Quiller Memorandum | film by Anderson [1966] | Britannica Watchable and intriguing as it occasionally is, enigmatic is perhaps the most apposite adjective you could use to describe the "action" within. It is very rare that I find anyone else who is even aware of the Quiller books and yet they are as your reviewer mentions, absolutely first class. Languid, some might say ponderous mid-60's British-made cold-war drama (it could scarcely be called a thriller, more "The Spy Who Came In From The Cold" than, say "Thunderball") that for all its longueurs, does have some redeeming features. The Quiller Memorandum certainly couldnt compete on an aesthetic level with a film like Spy Who Came in from the Cold: No actor, certainly not George Segal, is going to one-up Richard Burton in the anti-Bond department. Lindt (Berger) is a school teacher who meets Quiller to translate for him. Submissions should be for the purpose of informing or initiating a discussion, not just to entertain readers. The original, primary mission has been completely omitted. And the legendary John Barrycomposer of the original Bond themeprovides appropriately haunting incidental music here. An almost unrecognizable George Segal stars in "The Quiller Memorandum," set in Berlin and made 40 years ago. When Quiller refuses to talk, Oktober orders his execution. It was time for kitchen-sink alternatives to the Bond films upper-crust Empire nostalgia, channeled as it was through a tuxedoed, priapic Anglo toff committing state-sponsored murder in service of Her Majestys postcolonial grudges. Older ; About; Pol tells Quiller the fascist underground is far more organized and powerful in Germany than people believe. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. . Alec Guiness and George Sanders have brief roles as Segal's Control and Home Office head, respectively, and both rather coldly and matter-of-factly pooh-pooh over the grisly death of Segal's agent predecessor. (UK title). Reviews of The Quiller Memorandum Letterboxd As such, it was deemed to be in the mode of The Ipcress File (1965) and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965). His job is to locate their headquarters. Quiller Series by Adam Hall - Goodreads Neo-Nazi plot Von Sydow (one of the few actors to have recovered from playing Jesus Christ and gone on to a varied and lengthy career) is excellent. Slow-moving Cold War era thriller in the mode of "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold," "The Quiller Memorandum" lacks thrills and fails to match the quality of that Richard Burton classic. They are not just sympathisers though. Whats left most open to interpretation is Inges role in all this: was she a Janus-faced Nazi mole who used sex as a weapon to lead Quiller into a trap? This repackaging includes some worthwhile special features like an isolated score track and commentary by film historians Eddy Friedfeld and Lee Pfeiffer of Cinema Retro magazine to go with the new format. The book is more focused on thinking as a spy and I found it to be very realistic. Unfortunately, the film is weighed down, not only by a ponderous script, but also by a miscast lead; instead of a heavy weight actor in the mold of a William Holden, George Segal was cast as Quiller. George Segal was good at digging for information without gadgets.