- Actors: James Cagney, Annabella, Richard Conte, Frank Latimore, Walter Abel
- Directors: Henry Hathaway
- Writers: John Monks Jr., Sy Bartlett
- Producers: Louis De Rochemont
- Format: Black & White, Full Screen, PAL, Subtitled
- Language English, French
- Subtitles: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish
- Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Classification: U
- DVD Release Date: 3 May 2004
- Run Time: 95 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B0001XLXGQ
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 88,957 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details |
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
A totally marvelous film depicting the setting up of a spy organization in the U.S. during World War 11. James Cagney shed his usual tough guy image in gangster films to portray the head of the unit. He is one tough dedicated American. The film wonderfully captures the training that the prospective spies received. It also tells that one of them is really a German agent. Annabella is convincing as one of the trainees who yearns for information regarding her missing husband in France. Richard Conte is quite effective as the German spy who is cunning beyond belief. His cruelty is on par with his fabulous performance years later as Tony Bardman in "I'll Cry Tomorrow." Though a tragic film, the film should serve to show the dedication of men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice during World War 11.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
What a totally brilliant film. I wasn't expecting much, just a good cagney film to pass the morning by, but no, this film totally gripped me and I was on the edge of my seat the whole length of the film. James is as usual his brilliant self and the other supporting actors really stand out. I really recomend this film.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
21 reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
The past is prologue
8 July 2005
Format:DVD
We're in the middle of the Second World War, the Allies have decided on the location where they'll launch their massive invasion of Europe, and spies are battling spies to hide and discover the facts. Thank goodness we have Jimmy Cagney on our side.
Cagney plays the rough-and-tumble spy Bob Sharkey in Henry Hathaway's 13 RUE MADELEINE (1947), one of a number of motion pictures released shortly after the war that celebrated the exploits of America's nascent espionage organization, the OSS (Office of Strategic Services.) Although the movie ends in an exciting, if somewhat abrupt, scene behind enemy lines, a great deal of this movie takes place in what can probably best be described as a spy school. The movie begins with a rather extended montage of stock documentary film of London during wartime before gradually, and neatly, folding it into the movie proper. The first half of the movie concerns itself with the acceptance of a number of highly qualified candidates (including Annabella, Richard Conte and Frank Latimore), the rigorous training they undergo (Is that the brake of a train or a steam kettle you hear on the phonograph record?) and the discovery of a mole. A mole whom, of course, they leave in place so that the enemy can be fed disinformation and, hopefully, lead the good guys to the bad guys and their cache of rocket bombs in the Low Countries. Ah, spy movies! Especially spy movies where our spies are better than their spies.
As usual Cagney is convincing as the spy trainer who eventually is forced to take the field, and 13 RUE MADELEINE'S semi-documentary treatment works well. Hathaway takes enough of a gritty realist approach to make this one believable, even if his presentation of the infallibility of Cagney the Spy stretches credibility. The film is in good condition, and old film fans should look quick for Karl Malden and E.G. Marshall in bit roles.
Cagney plays the rough-and-tumble spy Bob Sharkey in Henry Hathaway's 13 RUE MADELEINE (1947), one of a number of motion pictures released shortly after the war that celebrated the exploits of America's nascent espionage organization, the OSS (Office of Strategic Services.) Although the movie ends in an exciting, if somewhat abrupt, scene behind enemy lines, a great deal of this movie takes place in what can probably best be described as a spy school. The movie begins with a rather extended montage of stock documentary film of London during wartime before gradually, and neatly, folding it into the movie proper. The first half of the movie concerns itself with the acceptance of a number of highly qualified candidates (including Annabella, Richard Conte and Frank Latimore), the rigorous training they undergo (Is that the brake of a train or a steam kettle you hear on the phonograph record?) and the discovery of a mole. A mole whom, of course, they leave in place so that the enemy can be fed disinformation and, hopefully, lead the good guys to the bad guys and their cache of rocket bombs in the Low Countries. Ah, spy movies! Especially spy movies where our spies are better than their spies.
As usual Cagney is convincing as the spy trainer who eventually is forced to take the field, and 13 RUE MADELEINE'S semi-documentary treatment works well. Hathaway takes enough of a gritty realist approach to make this one believable, even if his presentation of the infallibility of Cagney the Spy stretches credibility. The film is in good condition, and old film fans should look quick for Karl Malden and E.G. Marshall in bit roles.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Cagney and WWII Heroics: A Great Combination
7 Sep 2004
Format:DVD
It's 1944 and a team of OSS agents are being trained to parachute into France to locate a Nazi missile site. Washington learns that one of them is a spy. What will OSS do about it?
I enjoy these WWII espionage movies. Even when they're not too good, they're good. James Cagney is the trainer for the OSS team, and OSS discovers the identity of the spy. They hope to feed him false information before picking him up. But the team he's on is parachuted in, and only Cagney has the skills and knowledge to go in after the team, neutralize the enemy agent, keep the knowledge of other OSS agents from the Nazis, help get the missile information back to the allies and...well, you get the idea. But Cagney is captured, and if he talks the Nazis will know what has been discovered. The solution (Spoiler ahead for those who care about WWII movies): Bomb the prison where Cagney is being held before the Nazis can break him. Cagney knows this will be done and defies his Nazi torturers and the enemy agent while the bombs explode around him killing them all.
This movie has all the faults one would expect of its type and time. The heroics are sometimes overstated. The bad guys sneer. The good guys feel obliged to underline with moralistic statements the consequences of the tough decisions they must make.
This movie also has some first rate good points. Cagney gives a performance of such energy and directness that he sweeps much of the melodrama out of the way. The enemy agent, played by Richard Conte, turns out to be a very shrewd guy and even a little sympathetic. Sure, he allows Cagney to be beaten but at least he looks like he didn't want to. Conte is, in my view, a largely forgotten but excellent actor who spent a good deal of his career in the Forties and Fifties playing second leads or leads in second-rate movies. If you don't recognize his name, he was the scheming don in The Godfather who was behind the effort to take apart the Corleone family, and who was shot by the false cop while he tried to run away up the stairs. Henry Hathaway's direction keeps the film moving at a very brisk pace. There aren't any slow spots.
I suppose this isn't a movie most will feel a need to add to their collection. But, if you're like me, viewing this film is a little like meeting an old friend you'd forgotten about. I'm glad I have it.
I enjoy these WWII espionage movies. Even when they're not too good, they're good. James Cagney is the trainer for the OSS team, and OSS discovers the identity of the spy. They hope to feed him false information before picking him up. But the team he's on is parachuted in, and only Cagney has the skills and knowledge to go in after the team, neutralize the enemy agent, keep the knowledge of other OSS agents from the Nazis, help get the missile information back to the allies and...well, you get the idea. But Cagney is captured, and if he talks the Nazis will know what has been discovered. The solution (Spoiler ahead for those who care about WWII movies): Bomb the prison where Cagney is being held before the Nazis can break him. Cagney knows this will be done and defies his Nazi torturers and the enemy agent while the bombs explode around him killing them all.
This movie has all the faults one would expect of its type and time. The heroics are sometimes overstated. The bad guys sneer. The good guys feel obliged to underline with moralistic statements the consequences of the tough decisions they must make.
This movie also has some first rate good points. Cagney gives a performance of such energy and directness that he sweeps much of the melodrama out of the way. The enemy agent, played by Richard Conte, turns out to be a very shrewd guy and even a little sympathetic. Sure, he allows Cagney to be beaten but at least he looks like he didn't want to. Conte is, in my view, a largely forgotten but excellent actor who spent a good deal of his career in the Forties and Fifties playing second leads or leads in second-rate movies. If you don't recognize his name, he was the scheming don in The Godfather who was behind the effort to take apart the Corleone family, and who was shot by the false cop while he tried to run away up the stairs. Henry Hathaway's direction keeps the film moving at a very brisk pace. There aren't any slow spots.
I suppose this isn't a movie most will feel a need to add to their collection. But, if you're like me, viewing this film is a little like meeting an old friend you'd forgotten about. I'm glad I have it.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Fine spy thriller set in France just before D-Day
29 Jun 1999
Henry Hathaway directs an enthralling, if traditional spy thriller about the OSS and the French Underground working together just before the D-Day Invasion. Jimmy Cagney and Richard Conte star, and are amazing in their roles. Annabella, aFrench star at the time, is included for authenticity but is wasted in hers. Locations, details, OSS methods, all contribute to the veracity of this film-it is interesting and suspenseful throughout. The good guys win, of course, but at a terrific price, and the perfectending is hampered by the Motion Picture Code'sprohibition of showing or suggesting real torture.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
