MAN ON A STRING
US, 1960, 92 minutes, Black and white.
Ernest Borgnine, Kerwin Mathews, Colleen Dewhurst, Alexander Scorby, Glenn Corbett.
Directed by Andre De Toth.
Man on a String is based on the autobiographical book by Russian Boris Morris. Morris worked in Hollywood as a producer and on music in films, including Stage Coach. However, he was indebted to the Russian government for enabling his family to go to the US. This was known by the State Department who then used him as a double agent.
The film is set in Germany, just before the Berlin wall went up. It is a rather grim picture of espionage during the 1940s and 50s (and can be seen along with Elia Kazan’s Man on a Tightrope with Fredric March). After the wall went up with the greater separation of East and West Berlin, the spy films set in Berlin became grimmer, even when they were in Technicolor – The Ipcress File, The Quiller Memorandum.
Ernest Borgnine had won an Oscar for best actor as Marty in 1955. Colleen Dewhurst was at the beginning of her career and had just appeared to great effect in The Nun’s Story. The film was directed by Andre De Toth, a director of a variety of genres including House of Wax in 3D (famous, because De Toth had only one eye).
1. The significance and implications of the title, freedom, government and society, individuals and society?
2. The quality of the black and white photography, action sequences, location photography especially the details of Moscow?
3. The quality of the documentary aspects of the film: the presentation of times, dates? The message atmosphere of the film?
4. The attitudes of America towards Communism around 1960? The attack on Communists, their morals, sympathy for Russians? Was this well blended or were there inconsistencies?
5. Comment on the presentation of C.I.A. methods: equipment, techniques of surveillance, attitude towards the law, morals, What are audience sensibilities now concerning such surveillance and the regard for the law? The power that the CIA has over people, the pressures they can exert, the individuals right to privacy? The attitude taken in the film? The film's judgement on these issues?
6. The presentation of espionage organisations, Russian and American? The use of cover, methods, means of communications, for instance photography, bugging, coded telegrams etc, how interesting was this? How realistic? Developments since the 1950s?
7 The questions of infiltration, of training spies, the presentation of the details of training, the Russian classes to make Americans of Russians?
8. How interesting was Boris Mitrov as a person? The film's filling in of his background, as a Russian, his getting his father to America, his brothers? His work and its use by the Russians, the invitation of the Russians for him to be a spy, his being used by them? His being used by the Americans and pressurised? The risks of a double agent? The use of cover? The value of double agents? Earnest Borgnine's personality in communicating Mitrov? The final sequences of the danger and escape? The film's preaching about espionage and patriotism through this character?
9. Patriotism as a theme? Love of country as a country presented as a value above so many others?
10. The portrayal of Americans like Avery? The function of U.S. contacts compared with the Russians?
11. The Bensons as villains? As spies? Their use by the Russians?
12. How interesting were the dramatic and suspenseful details of the plot?
