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Confessions of a Nazi Spy

Play trailer Poster for Confessions of a Nazi Spy 1939 1h 42m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 7 Reviews 60% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
FBI agent Ed Renard (Edward G. Robinson) goes on the hunt for a Nazi spy ring bent on subverting the citizenry of America. Beginning with Nazi rabble-rouser Kurt Schneider (Francis Lederer), Renard uses his well-honed instincts to find his way to the ring leader of the espionage campaign, Dr. Karl Kassell (Paul Lukas). With the Nazi secret police rounding up any security leaks and passing them back to Germany, Renard races to extract the information that will bring down the conspiracy.
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Confessions of a Nazi Spy

Critics Reviews

View All (7) Critics Reviews
Otis Ferguson The New Republic This is no “Beast of Berlin,” but a statement of sober inevitable facts, so brilliantly realized that no one can hide from it; it happens before his eyes. May 23, 2024 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy A propaganda pic par excellence. Rated: 3.5/4 Mar 26, 2023 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review It continues to be a telling historical marker and evidence of a Hollywood studio taking a moral and political stance when it was unpopular to do so. Rated: 3/4 Mar 14, 2023 Full Review Danielle Solzman Solzy at the Movies Confessions of a Nazi Spy is a film that shows a studio with a conscience and one that uses their platform for the greater good. Rated: 4/5 Mar 31, 2020 Full Review John Kinloch California Eagle As motion picture entertainment removed from the sphere of political objections, this courageous Warner Bros. film will stand high when the outstanding pictures of 1939 are heralded. Confessions is pretty nearly tops in screen melodrama. Oct 22, 2019 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Historically significant, Litvak's sensationalistic political melodrama is considered to be the first Hollywood anti-Nazi film made by a major studio Rated: B Jun 12, 2011 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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David K The Warner Bros style on display. Tough, no nonsense style shot with the feel of a documentary. This was really the first studio-produced film that dealt with the threat of Nazi Germany and resulted in a lot of blowback for the Brothers Warner. If you need any context on the environment this film came out in, you must watch Ken Burns' documentary "The US and the Holocaust". Although my dad, a Jewish man, who was 27 at the time the war started, said some things about this period in time, it was a brief and insufficient overview. Burns paints a far more detailed picture of Nazi sympathies in the US, including in the Roosevelt Administration. What Confessions does is give a contemporary account that appeared 2.5 years before the US entered the war. And, they did a very good job at it. Not the 100 Tomatometer rating from critics, but definitely worth your time. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 04/23/23 Full Review j f Great picture. Especially for the time. But, it does seem that Warner Bros went out of their way to not mention or insinuate anything that could be construed as referring to a Mr. Heinrich Ford. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/07/23 Full Review Audience Member Under-rated. The first Hollywood film to tackle the subject of Nazism aggressively in a riveting manner. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review paul d Anatole Litvak's Confessions of a Nazi Spy is a very good movie and an outstanding work of propaganda. It is much more direct and straightforward, and less artistic, than some other famous propaganda films such as Foreign Correspondent, Casablanca and Saboteur. However, those came later than Litvak's and they owe a lot to him and to Warner Brothers for this early and bold attempt to warn America about the Nazi threat. Litvak was highly, personally motivated to make this film, and he knew a lot about the threat, because by 1939 he had already fled Russia because of the Bolsheviks, and Germany and France because of the Nazis. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member A wonderful snapshot of cinematic & world history combined. Made BEFORE the US entered WW2 it shows American propaganda at its best. The valid fears of Americans (if somewhat sensationalized) that even translates to TODAYS politics. Robinsin is his usual tough good guy smart self. Paul Lucas is actually believable as the German-American nazi super fanatic. Add a little George Sanders, Henry O'Neill, Sig Ruman & Francis Lederer & it's well worth watching every minute. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member It sure is okay if the US puts out propaganda movies ... cough Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Confessions of a Nazi Spy

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis FBI agent Ed Renard (Edward G. Robinson) goes on the hunt for a Nazi spy ring bent on subverting the citizenry of America. Beginning with Nazi rabble-rouser Kurt Schneider (Francis Lederer), Renard uses his well-honed instincts to find his way to the ring leader of the espionage campaign, Dr. Karl Kassell (Paul Lukas). With the Nazi secret police rounding up any security leaks and passing them back to Germany, Renard races to extract the information that will bring down the conspiracy.
Director
Anatole Litvak
Producer
Robert Lord
Screenwriter
Milton Krims, John Wexley
Production Co
Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 31, 2009
Runtime
1h 42m
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