Yellow Canary (1943) Reviews

• Enjoyable spy thriller

  Penfold-131999-09-05

  British, made in 1943, which tells you the ideological basis of the film. It's a well-worked story of deception and counter-deception, mostly set in Halifax, NS. Evil Nazi agents and heroic British agents, with Richard Greene looking handsomer than ever in the van, mount operations against each other. Anna Neagle plays a double agent, which means she has to act acting, a test of ability which she carries off very well. Margaret Rutherford has a stormer of a cameo role, shamelessly stealing every scene she's in. Her line "Wouldn't it be nice to do something violent?" is a classic. Well above average example of routine genre.

• One of those wartime films which has remained watchable long after the end of the war

  JamesHitchcock2006-09-04

  Sally Maitland, the daughter of an upper-class family, makes herself unpopular in wartime Britain because of her pro-Nazi views- so much so that the authorities arrange for her to be sent to Canada. (The character of Sally was probably based upon Diana and Unity Mitford, two of the aristocratic Mitford sisters, both of whom held extreme right-wing views. The closeness of the first syllables of the names "Maitland" and "Mitford" is presumably no coincidence). While on board ship, she meets, and is romanced by, a refugee Polish army captain, forced to flee his homeland after the German invasion, and Jim Garrick, an officer with British Naval Intelligence, who has been sent to keep watch on her. Anna Neagle was a highly popular actress in Britain during this period. She specialised in playing heroines, particularly British national heroines such as Queen Victoria, Edith Cavell and the aviator Amy Johnson. To have played a villain, especially a traitor to her country, would have been a remarkable departure for her, so it is no surprise when Sally proves to be not the villain but the heroine of the piece, an agent with British Intelligence, sent to infiltrate a German spy-ring which is plotting to destroy the vital Canadian port of Halifax. In another twist typical of this type of spy drama, the supposed Polish officer turns out not to be a Pole at all, but rather one of the German spies. Anna Neagle's part, which she pulls off very well, can be considered a "double acting" role; she is playing the part of a character who is herself playing a part, pretending to be something she is not. During the first part of the film, while she is pretending to be a Nazi sympathiser, she seems convincing enough, with her cold, aristocratic hauteur, yet when the revelation comes about her true identity and motives I was not surprised; there is clearly something in her bearing which prepares the audience psychologically for a twist of this sort. There is also an amusing cameo from Margaret Rutherford as a cantankerous old battleaxe on the ship. (Those like me who have less than fond memories of the British TV show "That's Life"- an odd mixture of consumer investigations and childish humour- from the seventies and eighties will be amused to learn that the comedian Cyril Fletcher was churning out his appalling poetry as early as the forties). The film was obviously made as wartime propaganda, with the aim not only of keeping up morale but also of warning the British public to be on their guard against Nazi spies. Despite this, it is one of those wartime films which has remained watchable long after the end of the war.6/10

• Anna Neagle's Finest Role!

  JohnHowardReid2008-09-22

  Based on the case of Unity Mitford-Freeman, a blonde British lady whom Hitler took a fancy to, and who it now appears was a British agent all along, this story concerns a British socialite, Sally Maitland, who is reputed to be in the employ of the Third Reich. True, the real identities and characters of all concerned in this war-time, morale-boosting, spy thriller are obvious and the plot developments are as predictable as the dot of an "i", but it's well produced and by Herbert Wilcox's usual plodding standard, directed with pace and flair. Anna Neagle has bravely chosen to play her part the difficult way and she comes through with a success that makes it all seem easy. Lucie Mannheim is also impressive, but by and large, most of the other players tend to over-act, especially Greene, Lieven, Rutherford and Bailey. Admittedly, the Boys Own Paper dialogue is partly to blame, but then Neagle and Mannheim manage to surmount this obstacle to give restrained, realistic and convincing performances. Max Greene's superb cinematography with its elaborate noir lighting effects, especially in the ship-board and Halifax château scenes, was undoubtedly a key factor in the vigor of Wilcox's direction. The adroit skill of Vera Campbell's film editing with its elaborate dissolves effectively joining together short strings of tracking shots, must also be mentioned. There's a fair amount of action but much of it is spruced up with fairly obvious stock footage. Despite a few half-hearted attempts at comic relief and romance, the pace is commendably brisk — at least in the U.S. version, though it does disappointingly reduce Nova Pilbeam's role to a small bit at the finale!

• Very good except for one small brainless scene

  MartinHafer2006-09-06

  Apart for about five minutes of the film, this was a "thinking man's" pro-Allies propaganda film made during WWII. Unlike so many other similar films, this one has a more interesting plot and many unique plot elements that help it stand above the pack. For once, the film is about a lady--one who apparently is leaving England because of her pro-Nazi sympathies. She evidently wore out her welcome and was moving to Canada to sit out the war. Because she was famous for publicly voicing her sentiments, most of the people on the boat avoid and despise her. Once in Canada, she is recruited to work as a spy for the Nazis and then the film gets even more interesting. So far, so good--the film is intricately written, well-acted and very, very interesting through most of the film. As I mentioned above, there is a MAJOR problem where the writers apparently fell asleep or had a psychotic episode about 3/4 of the way through the movie. Up until then, the main character (played by Anna Nagel) was a very smart lady as were her contacts withing the British secret service. However, shortly after she infiltrates the Nazi gang and is made a member, she meets with a Commander who is known to be a high-ranking secret service member. They meet in a very public place and then later kiss in a hallway. DUH!!! After supposedly spending years cultivating a pro-Nazi persona and withstanding LOTS of public scorn and threats, she does this and thereby might just be letting the Nazis know she really is a double agent! Duh! Fortunately, after this brainless segment, the film does get back on track and races to a fitting conclusion. And overall, a film well worth your time.

• WW II spy film

  blanche-22016-09-22

  Anna Neagle stars with Richard Greene, Albert Lieven, Nova Pilbeam, and Margaret Rutherford in the British film "The Yellow Canary" from 1943, Anna Neagle is Sally Maitland, a woman from a good family, estranged from them, who is a known Nazi sympathizer. She is forced to move to Halifax, Nova Scotia. On the ship, she meets a Polish aristocrat, Jan Orloch (Albert Lieven) and is also chased around by a British naval intelligence officer, Jimmy Garrick (Richard Greene). Once on dry land, she agrees to meet Jan's mother (Lucie Mannheim) who was blinded when the Nazis bombed their home. Garrick, meanwhile, is supposed to watch her every move. Enjoyable spy movie, with Neagle, the hugely popular British star, in fine form as a glamorous and somewhat snobby woman in this film, which has many twists and turns. Handsome Richard Greene was signed by 20th Century Fox, but went back to England during the war and served in the Royal Armoured Corps of the Twenty-Seventh Lancers, rising to Captain. His career never got off the ground again, but he is best known by us old-timers in the states for being Robin Hood in the British TV series, which made him filthy rich and well known. After that, he became a country gentleman, raising thoroughbreds. Here he is pleasant and earnest. Nova Pilbeam, who worked with Hitchcock, plays Neagle's mother in a small role. The smallest role is Margaret Rutherford, who is a riot and a real scene-stealer. If you see this is going to be on TCM, try and catch it.