A bit too sardonic at times, I think his character wanted to be elsewhere, clashing with KGB agents instead of ferreting out neo-nazis. Pretending to be a reporter, Quiller visits the school featured in the article. Quiller goes back to the school and confronts Inge in her classroom. Quiller, however, escapes, and with Inges help, he discovers the location of Phoenixs headquarters. In addition to Pinters screenplay, the film was noted for its plot twists and the portrayal of Quiller as refreshingly vulnerable and occasionally inept. Segal plays Quiller with a laconic but likeable detachment, underlining the loneliness and lack of relaxation of the agent, who can- not even count on support from his own side. The Quiller Memorandum | Popular Culture Wiki | Fandom [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. Alec Guinness plays spymaster Pol, Quillers minder. Oktober demands Quiller reveal the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) base by dawn or Inge will be killed. Visually, the film was rather stunning, but the magical soft focus that appears every time Inga is in the frame is silly. Cue the imposing Max Von Sydow as Nazi head honcho Oktober, whose Swedish accent is inflected with an Elmer Fudd-like speech impedimentthus achieving something like a serviceable German accent. 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. From the latest Scandinavian serial killer to Golden Age detective stories, we love our crime novels! Get help and learn more about the design. A highly unusual and stimulating approach that draws us into the story. 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). En route he has some edgy adventures. Another characteristic of Halls style isthe ending of chapters with a cliff hanger. Can someone explain it to me? In the 60's, in Berlin, two British agents that are investigating a Neonazi ring are murdered. Don't bother watching it, except to see the many scenes shot on location in West Berlin at that time, with its deserted streets and subdued mood. There are long stretches of what may have seemed to Pinter like very lively and amusing dialogue (the torture scenes between October and George Segal), but they drag on interminably, and make one want to go to sleep. He is British secret agent Kenneth Lindsay Jones. 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. This is the first in the series, and it seems to have a reputation for being a little different from what would become the typical Quiller novel. Oh, there are some problems, and Michael Anderson's direction is. Quiller then returns to his hotel, followed by the men who remain outside. Weary, Quiller only accepts the assignment on the assumption that he can fulfill a self-made promise revenge for a friend. They are not just sympathisers though. This isn't your average James Bond knockoff spy thriller; the fact that the screenplay is by playwright Harold Pinter is the first clue. 42 editions. 1966's The Quiller Memorandum is a low-key gem, a pared-down, existential spy caper that keeps the exoticism to a minimum. [6], The mainly orchestral atmospheric soundtrack composed by John Barry was released by Columbia in 1966. But good enough to hold my interest till the end. Neo-Nazi plot Quiller: At the end of our conversation, he ordered them to kill me. His job is to locate their headquarters. I'm generally pretty forgiving of film adaptations of novels, but the changes that were made just do not make sense. Your email address will not be published. He first meets with Pol, who explains that each side is trying to discover and annihilate the other's base. 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. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. Michael Anderson directs a classy slice of '60s spy-dom. And he sustains the same high level of quality over the course of nineteen books. American agent Quiller (George Segal) arrives in Berlin and meets with his British handler Pol (Alec Guinness). Quiller tells Inge that they got most, but clearly not all, of the neo-Nazis. The Quiller Memorandum - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings - TV Guide The Quiller Memorandum (1966) - Trivia - IMDb Quiller confronts a man who seems to be following him, revealing that he (Quiller) speaks German fluently. Hall is not trying be a Le Carre, hes in a different area, one he really makes his own. Scriptwriter Harold Pinter, already with two of the best adapted screenplays of the 1960s British New Wave under his belt (The Servant and The Pumpkin Eater), adapted his screenplay for Quiller from Adam Halls 1965 novel, The Berlin Memorandum. A crisply written story that captured my attention from beginning to end. The film had its world premiere on 10 November 1966 at the Odeon Leicester Square in the West End of London. It relies on a straight narrative storyline, simple but holding, literate dialog and well-drawn characters. Despite an Oscar nomination for "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?," Segal's strength lies in light comedy, and both his demeanor and physical build made him an unlikely pick for an action role, even if the film is short on action. Mind you, in 1966-67 the Wall was there, East German border guards and a definite (cold war) cloud hanging over the city. The film magnificently utilizes West German locations to bring the story to life. He is shielded behind the building when the bomb explodes. This well-drawn tale of espionage is set in West B. Senta Berger was gorgeous! Or was she simply a lonely Samaritan who altruistically beds the socially awkward American spy to help prevent a Fourth Reich? Nimble, sharp-toothed and sometimes they have to bite and claw their way out of a dark hole. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) - IMDb Its there to tackle the dirty jobs, and Quiller is the Bureaus go-to guy. The Quiller Memorandum - DVD Talk Its excellent entertainment. The Quiller Memorandum - Variety Watchable and intriguing as it occasionally is, enigmatic is perhaps the most apposite adjective you could use to describe the "action" within. Amazon.com: The Quiller Memorandum eBook : Hall, Adam: Books You are the hero of an extraordinary novel that shows how a spy works, how messages are coded and decoded, how contacts are made, how a man reacts under the influence of truth drugs, and that traces the story of a vastly complex, entertaining, convincing, and sinister plot. Your email address will not be published. These include another superior soundtrack by John Barry, if perhaps a little too much son-of "The Ipcress File", some fine real-life (West) Berlin exteriors, particularly of the Olympic Stadium with its evocation of 1936 and all that and Harold Pinter's typically rhythmic, if at times inscrutable screenplay. movies. He manages to get over the wall of his garage stall as well as the adjoining one and then outside to the side of the building before detonation. When Quiller refuses to talk, Oktober orders his execution. [5], According to Fox records, the film needed to earn $2,600,000 in rentals to break even and made $2,575,000, meaning it initially showed a marginal loss, but subsequent television and home video sales moved it into the black. Quiller is eventually kidnapped and tortured by Oktober (Max von Sydow), the leader of Phoenix. It's a bit strange to see such exquisitely Pinter-esque dialogue (the laconic, seemingly innocuous sentences; the profound silences; the syntax that isn't quite how real people actually talk) in a spy movie, but it really works. Although competing against a whole slew of other titles in the spies-on-every-corner vein, the novel, "The Quiller Memorandum" was amazingly successful in book stores. He finds that a bomb has been strapped underneath and sets it on the bonnet of the car so it will slowly slide and fall off due to vibration from the running engine. Have read a half dozen or so other "Quiller" books, so when I saw that Hoopla had this first story, I figured I should give it a listen to see how Quiller got started. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) directed by Michael Anderson Reviews I probably haven't yet read enough to be fully aware of what the typical Quiller characteristics are, but never mindthe key thing is that it was a pacy, intense and thrilling read. 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. 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. A few missteps toward the end so that a few of the twists felt thin and not solidly set up, but overall very nicely plotted and written. I know several spy fiction fans who rate Quiller highly; I'd read a couple and thought they were only OK, plus seen and enjoyed the film (which fans of the novel tend to dislike). From that point of view, the film should be seen by social, architectural, and urban landscape historians. The original, primary mission has been completely omitted. Directed by Michael Anderson; produced by Ivan Stockwell; screenplay by Harold Pinter; cinematography by Erwin Hiller; edited by Frederick Wilson; art direction by Maurice Carter; music by John Barry; starring George Segal, Max Von Sydow, Alec Guinness, Senta Berger, and guest stars George Stevens and Robert Helpmann. She states that she "was lucky, they let me go" and claims she then called the phone number but it did not work. If you've only seen the somewhat tepid 1966 film starring George Segal which is based on this classic post-WWII espionage novel, don't let it stop you from reading the original. In the relationship between Quiller and Inge, Pinter casts just enough ambiguity over the proceedings to allow us plebian moviegoers our small participatory role in the production of meaning. As classic as it gets. Quiller enters the mansion and is confronted by Phoenix thugs. The protagonist, Quiller, is not a superhuman, like the James Bond types, nor does he have a satchel full of fancy electronic tricks up his sleeve. It is credible. Because the books were written in the first person the reader learns very little about him, beyond his mission capability. The Quiller Memorandum came near the peak of the craze for spy movies in the Sixties, but its dry, oddly sardonic tone sets it apart from both the James Bond-type sex-and-gadget thrillers and the more somber, "adult" spy dramas such as Martin Ritt's The Spy Who Came In from the Cold (1965). It was from the quiller memorandum ending of the item, a failed nuclear weapons of Personalized Map Search. Hall alsopeppered the text with authentic espionage jargon and as you read you get to live the part of Quiller. 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. 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. Two British agents are murdered by a mysterious Neo-Nazi organization in West Berlin. I havent watched too many movies from the 1960s in my lifetime, but the ones I have watched have been excellent (Von Ryans Express, Tony Rome, To Kill A Mockingbird, The Hustler, The Great Escape, etc, including this one.) What is the French language plot outline for The Quiller Memorandum (1966)? The Chief of the Secret Service Pol (Alec Guinness) summons the efficient agent Quiller (George Segal) to investigate the location of organization's headquarter. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) - IMDb Pol dispatches a team to Phoenix's HQ, which successfully captures all of Phoenix's members. Oktober reveals they are moving base the next day and that they have captured Inge. I also expected just a little more from the interrogation scenes from the man who wrote "The Birthday Party". 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. Very eerie film score, I believe John Barry did it but, I'm not sure. Guinness appears as Segal's superior and offers a great deal of presence and class. 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. While the rest of the cast (Alec Guinness, Max Von Sydow and George Sanders) are good and Harold Pinter tries hard to turn a very internal story into the visual medium, George Segal is totally miscast as Quiller. The Neo-Nazis want to know the location of British operations and similarly, the British want to know the location of the Neo-Nazis' headquarters. The book is more focused on thinking as a spy and I found it to be very realistic. The Quiller Memorandum - Rotten Tomatoes The film ends with Quiller suspecting that Inge is more than an ordinary schoolteacher. He accepts the assignment and almost immediately finds that he is being followed. Studios: The Rank Organisation and Ivan Foxwell Productions, https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Quiller-Memorandum, BFI Screenonline - The Quiller Memorandum (1966), Britmovie.co.uk - "The Quiller Memorandum", The Quiller Memorandum - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). In many ways, it creates mystery through the notion of exploring "mystery" itself. And the legendary John Barrycomposer of the original Bond themeprovides appropriately haunting incidental music here. Elleston Trevor wrote 19 novels in the highly successful Quiller series. A man walks along a deserted Berlin street at night and enters an internally lit phone box. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Sort of a mixed effect clouds this novel. The film starred George Segal in the lead role, with Alec Guinness supporting andwas nominated for three BAFTAs. My take was, he knows she's one of the bad guys, and same with the headmistress who he passes on the way out. The intense first person narration which is the defining characteristic of the Quiller books comes into its own during this interrogation scene, and also during the latter chapters of the books as events begin to come to a head. Michael Sandlin is a writer and academic based in Houston, Texas. Older ; About; This film has special meaning for me as I was living in Berlin during the filming and, subsequent screening in the city. 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. Commenting on Quiller in 1966, The New York Timessomewhat unfairlywrote off Segals performance as an unmitigated bust: If youve got any spying to do in Berlin, dont send George Segal to do the job. The reviewer then refers to Quiller as a pudding-headed fellow (a descriptive phrase that sounds more 1866 than 1966). The film illustrates the never-ending game of spying and the futility that results as each mission is only accomplished in its own realm, but the big picture goes on and on with little or no resolution. Also contains one of the final appearences of George Sanders in a brief role, a classic in his own right! George Segal, plays the edgy American-abroad new CI5 recruit (looking unnervingly at times like a young George W Bush!)

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