Ministry of Fear

Other than loving these kind of stories and this type of film/ambience, my main reason for watching 'Ministry of Fear' was for Fritz Lang. A great and very influential director, with a fascinating style that stands apart from the styles of most directors.

Fritz Lang directed this film based on a Graham Greene novel that stars Ray Milland as Stephen Neale, who has just been released from an asylum after two years for the mercy-killing of his terminally ill wife. It is London during WWII, and Stephen stops at a country fête where he correctly guesses the weight of a cake, but after a misunderstanding with a "fortune teller", finds himself mixed up with a spy ring that leads to the fête organizers, one of whom(a beautiful woman played by Marjorie Reynolds) falls in love with Stephen, and helps him evade both the police and enemy agents to uncover the truth.

"Ministry of Fear" has some masterly use of sound and silence by Fritz Lang, but as a thriller it's lacking in thrills the romance between Ray Milland and Marjorie Reynolds is also unconvincingly quick. Hitchcock, and maybe Lang himself.

In stylistic terms, Fritz Lang's MINISTRY OF FEAR looks like a follow-up to Paramount's THIS GUN FOR HIRE (1942), their adaptation of Graham Greene's fast-moving novel that catapulted Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake to stardom. This time the stars are Ray Milland and Marjorie Reynolds, but the visual imagery is much the same much of the action takes place in the dingy back-streets of Hollywood wartime London, or in darkened rooms where no one can trust anyone else.

Ministry of Fear is fun. It's lighter and less moody than one would expect from the premise of a man just out of a mental hospital being pursued by sinister forces, or from the knowledge that it was directed by Fritz Lang and based on a novel by Graham Greene.

A far from perfect noir spy thriller by Fritz Lang filmed in the states but set in England during the blitz. This film looks great, there are some really striking visuals and stylish interior scenes.

Can we say that Fritz Lange was a genius of the noir. You bet!

****SPOILERS**** Confusing story about a man just released from a mental institution for the mercy killing of his terminally ill wife. Just released mental patient Stephen Neal, Ray Malland, who through winning a cake at a carnival ends up too his neck involved in a Nazi spy ring in London at the hight of the 1940-41 Blitz!

"Ministry Of Fear" is set in England during World War 11 and is an exciting spy thriller with a complicated plot, plenty of suspense and action that unfolds at a lively pace. It was adapted for the screen by Seton I Miller from a Grahame Greene novel and was also directed impressively by Fritz Lang.