The Man Who Never Was

This particular Motion Picture shares distinction with the very ordinary and the very suspensefull.It is a story that I have viewed more than once because this time consuming effort required to produce one Major William Martin of the Royal Marines was worth watching more than once.As everybody belongs to somebody,"The Man Who Never Was" provided such a success story that "Operation Mincemeat" was the code named operation with which Major William Martin of the Royal Marines helped to persuade Nazi German Officials that the documents found on Major Martins Body were to be believed.It appears as if German forces responded to this proposed threat of an invasion coming from Greece rather than Sicily thereby relocating some percentage of there forces in Italy to Greece.This had the desired affect of lowering the overall ability that could be offered by German forces when the Invasion of Sicily commenced.The film produces some tedious if a bit overstated positions as would be if we can re-locate just one battery.The tediousness of such positioning may of in fact been un-necesary as there was a loss of dramatic story telling ability as a result.Both Ewen Montagu(played by Clifton Webb) and an assistant played by Robert Fleming moved with deligence towards this films overall story.These very same offices whereby much of the intelligence discussions occurred were the very same offices that Ian Fleming was attached to.This is mentioned as both attention to detail could be overstated and otherwise as commonplace occurences. There were two women,one played Ewen Montagu's Secretary(Josephine Griffin) and the other(women) was a librarian(Gloria Grahame), the two women lived together.It can not be stated enough that these two women were instrumental in making this film work.Excellent performances as both clever and intelligent theater was very interesting to watch unfold.When these women were on their own in the presence of Nazi German Agent O'Reilly(played by Steven Boyd) there dramatic storytelling ability was pretty darn good.This film had that about it that as the film progressed it became more and more suspenseful.It seems further that the war had taken a toll which the feminine psyche had some problems with,however it was not only the feminine psyche that had a problem with the toll the war was taking.It had the desired effect of convincing an otherwise wiser man in The German Agent played by Stephan Boyd.A matter perhaps worth mentioning is that both the German Agent(played by Stephan Boyd)and the unidentified "Man Who Never Was" were claimed to be Scottish.A understated complaint was made to Ewen Montagu(played by Clifton Webb) by the father to this particular individual(the unidentified "Man Who Never Was")that they were Scottish and proud of it.Scotland was as well a Neutral Nation during World War II and should not necessarily be considered part of the United Kingdom.Politics is here mentioned as a understated strain in Scotlands relationship with Great Britain.These moments did as it were add up,they added up to credible storytelling .I'am not so easily convinced however the scene occurring which convinced me that German Agent O'Reilly was a wiser man then we were lead to believe occurred in the officers club as he actually expressed a sincere ability that I paid attention to.I do not know if in fact German agents were so skilled but it might very well un-nerve some very resolute fellows when confronted by such sincerity.I'am reminded of a number of 00 accounts whereby Agents were to lose their lives as a result.The particular offices that were involved were in fact associated with and almost exclusively dealt with the double 00 field agent. Ewen Montagu was himself a 00 field agent with there command centralized out of office 39.This effort had people like Ian Flemming attached to its operations.This was a very real War time effort."Operation Mincemeat"was also part of a larger operation.We do not know these things as such but perhaps it is well and good that such things are more properly handled than being the province of hucksters of a sort.This film had that degree of involvement whereby the success or failure of one particular item could doom the believability of Major William Martin of the Royal Marines.This particular mention was worth considering as there was a difference between a Motion Picture and the reality of this war time account of "Operation Mincemeat".This was as it were a good try.I wish to remind the reader that "Operation Mincemeat" was not a well made Motion Picture,it was a real time War Operations plan conducted in 1943.The very detail offerred here was not the detail that was offerred in reality.There are to be certain differences as things may actually have happened and the things that are portrayed in "The Man Who Never Was".There was a story told elsewhere as it involved Irwin Rommel's "Africa Corp".A blown up jeep with a dead soldier behind the wheel had on his person papers that showed a way around a mine field.Rommel's forces discovered the documents and a while later were found to be bogged down in quick sand like desert.There was a-lot at stake with this undertaking both as it were on film and most certainly when it counted.The Film portrays Ewen Montagu in Civilian clothes.He goes to the grave site of Major William Martin and places a Medal,a Medal that Montagu has been awarded upon a wreath which adorns the grave of Major William Martin.It may very well be suggested that such a scene was all the more appropiate given the importance of the life of Major William Martin. "The Man Who Never Was" was as a result of real effort.This film was that to me both a real effort and worth as it were in mentioning the films opening narrative,"Last Night I Dreamed A Deadly Dream Beyond the Irish Sky.I saw a Dead Man win the fight and I think that Dead Man was I".

Britain has traditionally been a naval power but neverhad a large standing army. This has prodded its militaryplanners to think in unconventional terms in strikingat its enemies. This means using its naval forces tomove stealthily around its continental enemiesusing naval forces and to try to use deceptionto get the enemy off guard, rather than confrontingthem head on. The failed First World War operation at Gallipoli wasa good example of this, trying to strike at Germany"through the back door", rather than just head onin the blood-soaked trenches of Flanders on theWestern Front.In the Second World War, all the British leaders andsenior officershad been traumatized by the slaughter of theFirst World War and were desperate to come up withways of avoiding a replay. Thus, in 1943, after NorthAfrica had been cleared of Axis forces, the Britishmilitary leaders sought a way to distract the Germansfrom the obvious next target, which was Sicily.The result was deception of "Operation Mincemeat" which is portrayedin this excellent film. The film is based on EwenMontagu's book "The Man Who Never Was". This filmis of a long-lost genre of films which are rivetingin spite of the fact that they don't have any "action",(i.e. shoot-outs, fist fights, car chases, etc), like another of my favorites "Twelve Angry Men".A close observation of the film shows, beside the mainstory, a lot of other information showing what wartimeBritain was like, such as how London became run-downand grimy during the long years of bombing and austerity,how the British learned to take the air raids in stride,the resignation to the on-going deaths of relatives andfriendsand the shortages of quality consumer goods. In addition,we see the manifestations of the traditionally tense relationship betweenBritain and Ireland as well as Scotland. For militarybuffs, there is a brief look at the legendary Mosquitofighter/bomber and the unsung British submarine force (ascompared to those of the United States and the GermanU-Boat force).One thing to keep in mind is that while Montagu makesno mention of German efforts to authenticate the existenceof "Major Martin", the film devotes a considerable partof its plot to that, which I assume is "overdramatized"to keep the interest of the audience. The film claimsthat the German (actually Irish) agent actually gets incontact with someone who had a part in the whole operation,and I doubt whether this is factual. However,this is a minor point and does not detract from the excellence of the film.

I can't convey in a short review how much I love this movie! It's one of my all time favorite WWII films, along with No Man is an Island and Heaven Knows Mr. Allison. This movie, based on the true story of British Operation Mincemeat, hooks you right from the beginning. It has it all--a great story, suspense, a great script, great direction, likable characters, everything. One of my favorite scenes is where they are dressing the body getting ready to put it into the shipping canister and bombs are falling onto the streets above them and they just keep right on working as if everything is normal. The whole angle with the Nazi spy in London, hunting down info on Major Martin is suspenseful and makes this film into a genuine spy thriller as well. The ending is incredible. Josephine Griffin is wonderful as Webb's steadfast assistant, Pam and so is Gloria Grahame as the lovelorn Lucy. The film, having been made in the 1950's, still has that 1940's look to it and as such, it transports you to wartime London. Nothing inappropriate, just good clean, suspenseful entertainment. For the price, this film is a must own. If only they made more like this one. Martin genuine, indeed!

Very happy with purchase, delivered on time in excellent condition

Ce film raconte comment les Anglais ont réussi une mystification extraordinaire des Allemands pendant la 2e guerre mondiale. Histoire fascinante de contre-espionnage véridique. Excellents acteurs. Film émouvant.

Interessante von dem Ereignis im 2. Weltkrieg.

Excelente película de acción, guerra y suspenso basada en hechos reales ocurridos en la Segunda Guerra Mundial.Hacía muchos años que no la veía desde que la pasaron en la tv y con el dvd he apreciado mucho más todos los detallesy situaciones de la trama, algunos que ya había olvidado. Muy recomendable para todos los estudiosos de este conflictomundial y también para el público en general.

Though the picture is fine generally, there are definite issues with color/image quality that separate this blu-ray from being among the better ones. The color is often a bit faded, the picture not as crisp as is usual with say US Criterion or British StudioCanal blu rays of the same vintage.