Three British spies and a French resistance fighter sneak into occupied France to gather information about the German forces for a planned invasion.Three British spies and a French resistance fighter sneak into occupied France to gather information about the German forces for a planned invasion.Three British spies and a French resistance fighter sneak into occupied France to gather information about the German forces for a planned invasion.
Fritz Wendhausen
- General von Reichman
- (as F.R. Wendhausen)
Yvonne Andre
- Martine
- (as Yvonne André)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaEarly in the film, Stewart Granger appears briefly opposite James Mason. They would subsequently co-star in "The Man in Grey" (1943), "Fanny by Gaslight" (1944) and "The Prisoner of Zenda" (1952).
- GoofsWhen the air-raid siren sounds and the cast come out into the courtyard of the chateau via the flagstoned porch, the sound is that of feet clomping on a wooden set.
- Crazy creditsThe cast list in the opening and closing credits was followed by a line "etc. etc. etc.", as if to acknowledge collectively any uncredited extras.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Terence Young: Bond Vivant (2000)
Featured review
British propaganda film
Apparently, as the film "Zero Hour" inspired "Airplane!", this routine propaganda film, "Secret Mission" from 1942 was the inspiration for a British comedy, "allo, allo." The film stars James Mason, Roland Culver, Michael Wilding, and Karel Stepanek.
Mason plays Raoul, a member of the Free French Army (and his accent is appalling) who returns to France to get German intelligence. He brings with him Captain Red Gowan and Major Peter Garrett (Roland Culver and Hugh Williams). Raoul brings him to his family's home, which his sister Michele (Carla Lehmann) is not happy about. The three also enlist the aid of a Cockney (Wilding) who is married to the owner of a café.
The story is pretty absurd, though done with a straight face. First of all, Red and Peter walk around this French village in trench coats like no one is after them, and they stick out like sore thumbs. They bluff their way into German headquarters as champagne salesmen and these dumb Germans give them a lot of info about troops, and leave them alone in the commandant's office so they can take a look at the map and write down targets.
The saving grace of the film is that it focuses on a family and the effect of war, and there, it does a decent job. These films were meant to keep people going during the war. I'm sure at the time no one noticed the more amusing parts. Evidently someone did later on, though.
I'd call this mildly entertaining, and if you know the show on which it's based, you'll love it. Kind of like seeing Zero Hour after you've seen Airplane!
Mason plays Raoul, a member of the Free French Army (and his accent is appalling) who returns to France to get German intelligence. He brings with him Captain Red Gowan and Major Peter Garrett (Roland Culver and Hugh Williams). Raoul brings him to his family's home, which his sister Michele (Carla Lehmann) is not happy about. The three also enlist the aid of a Cockney (Wilding) who is married to the owner of a café.
The story is pretty absurd, though done with a straight face. First of all, Red and Peter walk around this French village in trench coats like no one is after them, and they stick out like sore thumbs. They bluff their way into German headquarters as champagne salesmen and these dumb Germans give them a lot of info about troops, and leave them alone in the commandant's office so they can take a look at the map and write down targets.
The saving grace of the film is that it focuses on a family and the effect of war, and there, it does a decent job. These films were meant to keep people going during the war. I'm sure at the time no one noticed the more amusing parts. Evidently someone did later on, though.
I'd call this mildly entertaining, and if you know the show on which it's based, you'll love it. Kind of like seeing Zero Hour after you've seen Airplane!
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Secret Service slår till
- Filming locations
- D&P Studios, Denham, Uxbridge, Buckinghamshire, England, UK(studio: made at D&P Studios)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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