The Qwilleran Memorandum is an example of a clever spy movie

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

In the mid-60s and early 70s, as an alternative to Bond, spy movies became increasingly popular in world cinema. These are a series of films about Bond's rival Harry Palmer, "The Kremlin Letter" by D. Houston, "The Suicide Case" by S. Lumet, "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold" by M. Ritt and, of course, "The Quiller Memorandum" (1966) directed by Michael Anderson.

Storyline

The narration of the tape "The Qwilleran Memorandum" begins with an episode in which a stranger slowly wanders through the night West Berlin, lighting a cigarette, he enters a payphone. A shot is fired and he is killed. The victim turns out to be British intelligence agent Jones, who is looking for the founders of a neo-Nazi organization operating in the city. His predecessor colleague was also eliminated. A new operative is sent from London to Germany - the American Qwilleran (George Segal).

Having learned from the taciturn resident (Alec Guinness) about Jones' latest actions, Qwilleran decides to take drastic measures. He begins his search for a secret organization by asking people in public places in order to attract attention to himself. During the investigation, Qwilleran meets an attractive teacher (Zenta Berger), after a conversation with the girl, the agent loses consciousness, and comes to his senses already in the villa, where the tall blond October (Max von Sydow) will conduct the interrogation.

The rarest specimen

The Qwilleran Memorandum is the rarest spy thriller of the 60s, in which the Cold War of the USSR and the USA did not appear in any way. Therefore, the picture was even in the Soviet box office, George Seagal was voiced by A. Demyanenko. The film is based on the novel by the British writer Elleston Trevor (pseudonym Adam Hall) "The Berlin Memorandum". It was the first novel in a series of books about Agent Qwilleran. In the original, the spy was an Englishman, why in the movie he became an American in the service of the British government is unknown.

The future Nobel laureate G. Pinter worked on the script for the film "The Quiller Memorandum". His balanced dialogues are still considered the pinnacle of professionalism. They set the rhythm of the story, affect the atmosphere no less than the musical accompaniment of John Barry. The repetition of lines, interspersed with pauses hanging in the air, the incessant verbal fights are delightful. Pulitzer Prize winner David Alan Mamet would later try to repeat something similar in his manuscripts.

Rituals and Interests

In the film "The Qwilleran Memorandum" there are practically no action scenes infamiliar to the modern viewer understanding. Qwilleran doesn't carry weapons, doesn't use fancy spy gadgets. For the author, the main thing is rituals. The leadership of the British secret services constantly drinks tea, when they meet with liaisons or residents, there is a code exchange of cigarettes, even if these people do not smoke. Antagonists differ from protagonists only in accent. The Nazis are an absolute evil, Max von Sydow even crunches his knuckles disgustingly. But at the same time, it is positioned by the creators as a worthy opponent, a kind of "German gentleman", almost a mirror copy of Qwilleran. Sinister neo-Nazis do not shout about the thousand-year Reich and do not throw up their hands in a fit. They indifferently watch the throwing of the protagonist. Organization agents are like zombies. Then Qwilleran thinks about the scale of the conspiracy: either it does not exist at all, or its participants are everywhere.

The thriller "The Qwilleran Memorandum" can be safely recommended for viewing by lovers of high-quality thoughtful spy movies.