The Counterfeit Traitor

1962

2h 20m

Drama

List

Reviews

84%

500+ Ratings

Audience Score

Oil merchant Eric (William Holden), blacklisted by the Allies for selling to the Nazis, agrees to spy on the Germans to clear his name. He presents a false plan to the Germans, which gains him the trust of senior officials and allows him to inspect existing oil stations. Meanwhile, Eric passes the information to Collins (Hugh Griffith), a British intelligence expert. However, the Nazis learn that Eric's lover, Marianne (Lilli Palmer), is secretly an Allied spy, putting them both in danger.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

An engrossing World War II thriller.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 23, 2022

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 3/5

Nov 10, 2005

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Chuck O'Leary

Fantastica Daily

Rated: 2/5

Jul 29, 2005

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Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Not good enough to be great, too grim to be enjoyable as a spy yarn.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 13, 2004

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Steve D

Powerful and properly scary.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/19/23

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Audience Member

The narrator got in the way of the narrative. The director forgot that a picture paints a thousand words and, instead used a thousand words to try to paint a picture. It's a shame when filmmakers forget their medium.m: when they think they writing a novel instead of showing a story.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

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don k

Lilli Palmer plays an Allied agent in Nazi Germany and plays it convincingly. William Holden plays William Holden. Credibly. Good plot—believable with a grain of salt. Good screenplay and pacing—suspenseful in all the right spots.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

Perfectly paced spy thriller with plenty of tension throughout.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

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Audience Member

I have seen all of the usual films that one sees of William Holden. This is a gem in the midst of what was considered to be his down period...a very interesting look at a industrialist turned spy and the impacts that this has on his business and personal life. Worth a look.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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Audience Member

Good, old-fashioned spy film, with impressive performances and plenty of real suspense--Engrossing despite itself!!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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George Seaton

Director

William Holden

Eric Erickson

Lilli Palmer

Frau Marianne Möllendorf

Hugh Griffith

Collins

Ernst Schröder

Baron Gerhard von Oldenburg

Eva Dahlbeck

Ingrid Erickson

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The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - Hurt One Jew, Save a Thousand

2:11

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - I Don't Do Business with Jews

2:10

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - One Atrocity

2:12

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - Hans

2:13

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - Let Him Die in Sweden

2:12

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - Marianne's Motives

2:12

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - The Confession

2:07

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - The Incompetents

2:09

The Counterfeit Traitor: Official Clip - Precautionary Measures

1:15

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Synopsis

Oil merchant Eric (William Holden), blacklisted by the Allies for selling to the Nazis, agrees to spy on the Germans to clear his name. He presents a false plan to the Germans, which gains him the trust of senior officials and allows him to inspect existing oil stations. Meanwhile, Eric passes the information to Collins (Hugh Griffith), a British intelligence expert. However, the Nazis learn that Eric's lover, Marianne (Lilli Palmer), is secretly an Allied spy, putting them both in danger.

Director: George Seaton
Screenwriter: George Seaton
Production Co: Paramount
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 11, 2014
Runtime: 2h 20m

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