before he started doing "genial" and reminds us that his previous part was in the heavyweight "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf". See production, box office & company info, Europa-Center, Charlottenburg, Berlin, Germany. He accepts the assignment and almost immediately finds that he is being followed. Your email address will not be published. His dry but quick Yiddish humor shines through on many occasions, providing diversions that masquerade his underlying desire to expose the antagonists' machinations. The screenwriter, Harold Pinter, no less, received an Edgar nomination. Released at a time when the larger-than-life type of spy movie (the James Bond series) was in full swing and splashy, satirical ones (such as "Our Man Flynt" and "The Silencers") were about to take off, this is a quieter, more down-to-earth and realistic effort. George Segal, plays the edgy American-abroad new CI5 recruit (looking unnervingly at times like a young George W Bush!) The Quiller series is highly regarded by the spy-fiction community, and as strange as it may seem - because I have had most of the books for years - I have never actually read them. This was a great movie and found Quillers character to be excellent. 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. 2 decades after the collapse of Nazi Germany, several old guard are planning to (slowly) rebuild. I too read the Quiller novels years ago and found them thrilling and a great middle ground between the super-spy Bond stories and the realism of Le Carre. I can see where some might find it more exhausting than anything else, though--he does get tired :). America's leading magazine on the art and politics of the cinema. Phoenix boss Oktober (Max von Sydow) with George Segal, seated. The goal of /r/Movies is to provide an inclusive place for discussions and news about films with major releases. A Twilight Time release. Quiller works for the Bureau, an arm of the British Secret Service so clandestinethat no-one knows itexists. Get help and learn more about the design. Quiller becomes drowsy from a drug that was injected by the porter at the entrance to the hotel. The Quiller Memorandum, based on a novel by Adam Hall (pen name for Elleston Trevor) and with a screenplay by Harold Pinter, deals with the insidious upsurge of neo-Nazism in Germany. Thank God Segal is in it. He is British secret agent Kenneth Lindsay Jones. The only redeeming features of The Quiller Memorandum are the scenes of Berlin with its old U-Bahn train and wonderful Mercedes automobiles, and the presence of two beautiful German women, Senta Berger and Edith Schneider; those two females epitomize Teutonic womanhood for me. Special guests Sanders and Helpmann bring their special brand of haughty authority to their roles as members of British Intelligence. Quiller slips out though a side door to the small garage yard where his car is kept. In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. 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Oktober demands Quiller reveal the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) base by dawn or Inge will be killed. And although Harold Pinters screenwriting for Quiller doesnt strike one as being classically Pinteresque, occasionally his distinct style reveals itself in pockets of suggestive menace where silence is often just as important as whats spoken. In fact, he is derisory about agents who insist on being armed. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) is one such film, and though it's one of the more obscure ones, it is also one of the better ones. In a feint to see if Quiller will reveal more by oversight, Oktober decides to spare his life. Nobel prizes notwithstanding I think Harold Pinter's screenplay for this movie is pretty lame, or maybe it's the director's fault. He walks down the same street where Jones was shot, but finds he is followed by Oktober's men. The Quiller Memorandum's strengths and charms are perhaps a bit too subtle for a spy thriller, but those who like their espionage movies served up with a sheen of intelligence rather than gloss or mockery will embrace Quiller.Still, there's no denying that that intelligence doesn't go as deep as it thinks it does, which can be frustrating. I've not put together a suite before so hopefully it works.Barry's short (35mins) if atmospheric score for the Cold War thriller The Quiller Memorandum, 1966. Quiller's assignment is to take over where Jones left off. Quiller continues his subtle accusations, and Inge continues her denial of ever meeting Jones. "[4], The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports that 67% of critics have given the film a positive rating, based on 12 reviews, with an average score of 7.4/10. 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. This well-drawn tale of espionage is set in West B. His Oktober does, however, serve as a one-man master class in hyperironic cordiality: Ah, Quiller! After a pair of their agents are murdered in West Berlin, the British Secret Service for some unknown reason send in an American to investigate and find the location of a neo-Nazi group's headquarters. Very eerie film score, I believe John Barry did it but, I'm not sure. This books has excellent prose, unrealistic scenes, and a mediocre plot. There are a number of unique elements in the Quiller series that make it stand out. All Rights Reserved. Elleston Trevor wrote 19 novels in the highly successful Quiller series. Max von Sydow as a senior post-War Nazi conspirator over-acts and is way out of control, Anderson being so hopeless and just a bystander who can have done no directing at all. This movie belongs to the long list of the spy features of the sixties, and not even James Bond like movies, rather John Le Carr oriented ones, in the line of IPCRESS or ODESSA FILE, very interesting films for movie buffs in search of a kind of nostalgia and also for those who try to understand this period. Thought I'd try again and found this one a bit dated and dry - I will persevere with the series, Adam Hall (one of Elleston Trevor' many pseudonyms) wrote many classic spy stories, and this one is considered one of his best. 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. 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. 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). A spy thriller for chess players. It was from the quiller memorandum ending of the item, a failed nuclear weapons of Personalized Map Search. 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. I read the whole Quiller series when I was younger, and loved it. 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. Write by: Quiller awakes in a dilapidated mansion, surrounded by many of the previous incidental characters. It is the first book in the 20-volume Quiller series. The film was shot on location in West Berlin and in Pinewood . Quiller, a British agent who works without gun, cover or contacts, takes on a neo-Nazi underground organization and its war criminal leader. Quiller leaves, startling the headmistress on the way out. 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. This well-drawn tale of espionage is set in West Berlin, 15 years after the end of WW II. Director Michael Anderson Writers Trevor Dudley Smith (based on the novel by) Harold Pinter (screenplay) Stars George Segal Alec Guinness Max von Sydow See production, box office & company info On paper, this film had all the makings of a potential masterpiece: youve got a marquee cast, headed up by George Segal, Max Von Sydow, and Alec Guinness, for starters. The story, in the early days of, This week sees the release of Trouble, the third book in the Hella Mauzer series by Katja Ivar. Alec Guiness and George Sanders have brief roles as Segal's Control and Home Office head, respectively, and both rather coldly and matter-of-factly pooh-pooh over the grisly death of Segal's agent predecessor. Like Harry Palmer, Quiller is a stubborn individualist who has some rather inflated ideas of being his own man and is contemptuous of his controlling stuffed-shirt overlords. She states that she "was lucky, they let me go" and claims she then called the phone number but it did not work. He calls Inge and arranges to meet. In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate.In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate.In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. Quiller admits to Inge that he is an "investigator" on the trail of neo-Nazis. Quiller had the misfortune to hit cinemas hot on the heels of two first-rate examples of Bond backlash: Martin Ritts gritty The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and the first (and easily best) entry in the acclaimed Harry Palmer trilogy, The Ipcress File, both released in 1965. Quiller tells Inge that they got most, but clearly not all, of the neo-Nazis. Quiller (played by George Segal) is an American secret agent assigned to work with British MI6 chief Pol (Alec Guinness) in West Berlin. In terms of style The Quiller books aretaut and written with narrative pace at the forefront. Read 134 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. He is shielded behind the building when the bomb explodes. Quiller goes back to the school and confronts Inge in her classroom. Defiant undercover spy Quiller carries out a nervy , stealthy , prowling around Berlin in which he becomes involved into a risked cat and mouse game , being chased and hunted , by a strange and sinister leader , known only as Oktober (Max Von Sidow) . Quiller captures the contrast between the new and the seedy in the West Berlin of the 60s and how Germany remains haunted by the sins of its recent past. When drug-induced questioning fails to produce results, Segal is booted to the river, but he isn't quite ready to give in yet. Twist piles upon twist , as a British agent becomes involved in a fiendishly complicated operation to get a dangerous ringleader and his menacing hoodlums . 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. A much better example of a spy novel-to-film adaptation would be Our Man in Havana, also starring Alec Guinness. Read our extensive list of rules for more information on other types of posts like fan-art and self-promotion, or message the moderators if you have any questions. This repackaging includes some worthwhile special features like an isolated score track and commentary by film historians Eddy Friedfeld and Lee Pfeiffer of Cinema Retro magazine to go with the new format. 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. Quiller, a British agent who works without gun, cover or contacts, takes on a neo-Nazi underground organization and its war criminal leader. The British Secret Service sends agent Quiller to investigate. In . AKA: Ivan Foxwell's the Quiller Memorandum, Quiller, Quiller Memorandum, Ian Foxwell's The Quiller Memorandum, Ivan Foxwell's Production The Quiller Memorandum. By day, the city is presented so beautifully, it's hard to imagine that such ugly things are going on amidst it. They are not just sympathisers though. But good enough to hold my interest till the end. The sentences are generally clipped and abrupt, reminiscent of Simon Kernicks style wherenot a word is wasted, but predating him by a generation. Sort of a mixed effect clouds this novel. As a consequence I was left in some never-never land and always felt I was watching actors in a movie and never got involved. The third to try is Quiller, an unassuming man, who knows he's being put into a deadly game. But don't let it fool you for one minutenor Mr. Segal, nor Senta Berger as the girl. I just dont really understand the ending to a degree. On the other hand, the female lead is played by the charming Senta Berger, then aged 25, who does very well, and manages to be enigmatic, and gets just the right tone for the story. In the process, he discovers a complex and malevolent plot, more dangerous to the world than any crime committed during the war. I wanted to make a list of all the things that are wrong with this film, but I can't - such a list would need much more than a thousand words. This isachievedviaQuillers first person perspective. In fact, Segal as Quiller can often feel like a case of simple miscasting, although not as egregious a lapse in judgment as, say, Segals choice to play a Times Square smackhead in 1971s Born to Win. The name of the intelligence agency that Quiller ( George Segal) worked for was MI6. 1966's The Quiller Memorandum is a low-key gem, a pared-down, existential spy caper that keeps the exoticism to a minimum. Submissions should be for the purpose of informing or initiating a discussion, not just to entertain readers. The Quiller Memorandum, British-American spy film, released in 1966, that was especially noted for the deliberately paced but engrossing script by playwright Harold Pinter. Probably the most famous example of a solid American type playing an Englishman is Clark Gable from Mutiny On The Bounty. 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. 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. (UK title). 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). The plot holes are many. 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. He first meets with Pol, who explains that each side is trying to discover and annihilate the other's base. The Quiller Memorandum is a 1966 British neo noir eurospy film filmed in Deluxe Color and Panavision, adapted from the 1965 spy novel The Berlin Memorandum, by Elleston Trevor under the name "Adam Hall", screenplay by Harold Pinter, directed by Michael Anderson, featuring George Segal, Alec Guinness, Max von Sydow and Senta Berger. If your idea of an exciting spy thriller involves boobs, blondes and exploding baguettes, then The Quiller Memorandum is probably not for you. Because the books were written in the first person the reader learns very little about him, beyond his mission capability. 42 editions. An almost unrecognizable George Segal stars in "The Quiller Memorandum," set in Berlin and made 40 years ago. Senta Berger was gorgeous! I read a few of these many years ago when they first came out. I'm generally pretty forgiving of film adaptations of novels, but the changes that were made just do not make sense. But admittedly its a tricky business second-guessing his dramatic instincts here. With a screenplay by Harold Pinter and careful direction by Michael Anderson, the movie is more a violent-edged tale of probable, cynical betrayal by everyone we meet, with the main character, Quiller (George Segal), squeezed by those he works for, those he works against and even by the delectable German teacher, Inge Lendt (Senta Berger) he meets. From that point of view, the film should be seen by social, architectural, and urban landscape historians. The scene shot in the gallery of London's Reform Club is particularly odious. The casting of George Segal in the lead was a catastrophe, as he is so brash and annoying that one wants to scream. . While most realistic spy films of the 60s focused on the Soviet threat, Quiller pits the title character against a group of neo-Nazis. Oktober also wants to know the location of the British base in Germany and uses drugs in Quiller to get the information but the skilled agent resists. His virtual army of nearly silent, oddball henchmen add to the flavor of paranoia and nervousness. Segal is an unusual actor to be cast as a spy, but his quirky approach and his talent for repartee do assist him in retaining interest (even if its at the expense of the character as originally conceived in the source novels.) Ian Nathan of Empire described the film as "daft, dated and outright confusing most of the time, but undeniably fun" and rated it with 3/5 stars. 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. 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. ago Just watched it. From the latest Scandinavian serial killer to Golden Age detective stories, we love our crime novels! How did I miss this film until just recently? In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. 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). And he sustains the same high level of quality over the course of nineteen books. They don't know how to play it, it's neither enjoyable make-believe like the James Bond movies, nor is it played for real like "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold." The setting is as classic as the comeBerlin during the 1960s. A handful of engaging spy thrillers followed before the author paused his novels to focus on journalism, although its also worth noting that he has freelanced. In the process, he discovers a complex and malevolent plot, more dangerous to the world than any crime committed during the war. Dril several holes in it, the size of a pin, one the size of a small coin. As usual for films which are difficult to pin down . It relies. This isn't your standard spy film with lots of gunplay, outrageous villains, and explosions. [7][8], Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Quiller_Memorandum&oldid=1135714025, "Wednesday's Child" main theme (instrumental), "Wednesday's Child" vocal version (lyrics: Mack David / vocals: Matt Monro), "Have You Heard of a Man Called Jones?" Quiller reaches Pol's secret office in Berlin, one of the top floors in the newly built Europa-Center, the tallest building in the city, and gives them the location of the building where he met Oktober. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. After all, his characters social unease and affectless personality are presumably components of the movies contra-Bond commitment. He also works alone and without contacts. But soon he finds that she has been kidnapped and Oktober gives a couple of hours to him to give the location of the site; otherwise Inge and him will be killed. Inga is unrecognizable and has been changed to the point of uselessness. 1 hr 45 mins. I also expected just a little more from the interrogation scenes from the man who wrote "The Birthday Party". It was nominated for three BAFTA Awards,[2] while Pinter was nominated for an Edgar Award for the script. A satisfyingly cynical spy thriller with George Segal, Alec Guinness and Max Von Sydow; and a script by Harold Pinter, Decent and interesting spy thriller with great cast and impressive musical score by John Barry in his usual style.
