ThrillerMysteryAction

Foreign Correspondent

- The thrill spectacle of the year!

American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an assassination and stumbles on a spy ring, he seeks help from a beautiful politician’s daughter and an urbane English journalist to uncover the truth.

Release Date : 1940-08-16

Language :EnglishFrenchGermanItalianLatvian

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Walter Wanger Productions

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : John Jones

Original Name : Joel McCrea

Gender : Male

Character Name : Carol Fisher

Original Name : Laraine Day

Gender : Female

Character Name : Stephen Fisher

Original Name : Herbert Marshall

Gender : Male

Character Name : Scott ffolliott

Original Name : George Sanders

Gender : Male

Character Name : Van Meer

Original Name : Albert Bassermann

Gender : Male

Character Name : Stebbins

Original Name : Robert Benchley

Gender : Male

Character Name : Rowley

Original Name : Edmund Gwenn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mr. Krug

Original Name : Eduardo Ciannelli

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mr. Powers

Original Name : Harry Davenport

Gender : Male

Character Name : Tramp

Original Name : Martin Kosleck

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mrs. Sprague

Original Name : Frances Carson

Gender : Female

Character Name : Stiles

Original Name : Ian Wolfe

Gender : Male

Character Name : Assassin

Original Name : Charles Wagenheim

Gender : Male

Character Name : Latvian

Original Name : Eddie Conrad

Gender : Male

Character Name : Bradley

Original Name : Charles Halton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dorine

Original Name : Barbara Pepper

Gender : Female

Character Name : 'Mohican' Captain

Original Name : Emory Parnell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mr. Brood

Original Name : Roy Gordon

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mrs. Benson

Original Name : Gertrude Hoffmann

Gender : Female

Character Name : Captain

Original Name : Marten Lamont

Gender : Male

Character Name : Steward

Original Name : Barry Bernard

Gender : Male

Character Name : Asst. Commissioner

Original Name : Holmes Herbert

Gender : Male

Character Name : McKenna

Original Name : Leonard Mudie

Gender : Male

Character Name : English Announcer

Original Name : John Burton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Van Meer's Impersonator (uncredited)

Original Name : Samuel Adams

Gender : Male

Character Name : Donald's Wife (uncredited)

Original Name : Meeka Aldrich

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Jack Alfred

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Bunny Beatty

Gender : Female

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Frank Benson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Billy Bester

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Henry Blair

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sophie (uncredited)

Original Name : Becky Bohanon

Gender : Male

Character Name : Capt. Lawson (uncredited)

Original Name : Louis Borel

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Barbara Boudwin

Gender : Male

Character Name : Cousin Mary (uncredited)

Original Name : Betty Bradley

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Louise Brien

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Ronald Brown

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Horace B. Carpenter

Gender : Male

Character Name : Krug's Henchman at Windmill (uncredited)

Original Name : Willy Castello

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : George Cathrey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Committeeman (uncredited)

Original Name : Wheaton Chambers

Gender : Male

Character Name : Fake Dutch Detective (uncredited)

Original Name : Ken Christy

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mr. Naismith (uncredited)

Original Name : E. E. Clive

Gender : Male

Character Name : Luncheon Waiter (uncredited)

Original Name : Gino Corrado

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Maurice Costello

Gender : Male

Character Name : Minor Role (uncredited)

Original Name : John Dawson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Uncle Buren (uncredited)

Original Name : Harry Depp

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Elspeth Dudgeon

Gender : Female

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Carl Ekberg

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mrs. Stiles (uncredited)

Original Name : Helena Phillips Evans

Gender : Female

Character Name : Parking Valet (uncredited)

Original Name : Herbert Evans

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dutch Peasant (uncredited)

Original Name : James Finlayson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Robert Fischer

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : George B. French

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Bill Gavier

Gender : Male

Character Name : Hotel Waiter (uncredited)

Original Name : Jack George

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Douglas Gordon

Gender : Male

Character Name : Hotel Valet (uncredited)

Original Name : Alexander Granach

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Richard Hammond

Gender : Male

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Sam Harris

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man with Newspaper on Street (uncredited)

Original Name : Alfred Hitchcock

Gender : Male

Character Name : New York Globe Teletype Operator (uncredited)

Original Name : Otto Hoffman

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Billy Horn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dr. Williamson (uncredited)

Original Name : Paul Irving

Gender : Male

Character Name : Doctor (uncredited)

Original Name : Colin Kenny

Gender : Male

Character Name : Toastmaster (uncredited)

Original Name : Crauford Kent

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jones' Sister (uncredited)

Original Name : Joan Leslie

Gender : Female

Character Name : Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Gwendolyn Logan

Gender : Female

Character Name : College Arms Hotel Cashier (uncredited)

Original Name : Eily Malyon

Gender : Female

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Eric Mayne

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Jackie McGee

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : John Meredith

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Thomas Mizer

Gender : Male

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Edmund Mortimer

Gender : Male

Character Name : Clark (Jones Family Member) (uncredited)

Original Name : John T. Murray

Gender : Male

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Henry Norton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Miss Benson (uncredited)

Original Name : Jane Novak

Gender : Female

Character Name : New York Globe Copy Boy (uncredited)

Original Name : George Offerman, Jr.

Gender : Male

Character Name : Boy (uncredited)

Original Name : Lawrence Osman

Gender : Male

Character Name : Miss Pimm (uncredited)

Original Name : Hilda Plowright

Gender : Female

Character Name : Airplane Passenger (uncredited)

Original Name : Thomas Pogue

Gender : Male

Character Name : Donald (uncredited)

Original Name : Jack Rice

Gender : Male

Character Name : Waiter (uncredited)

Original Name : Ronald R. Rondell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Loulette Sablon

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sidewalk Crowd Extra (uncredited)

Original Name : Harry Semels

Gender : Male

Character Name : Boy (uncredited)

Original Name : Raymond Severn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Frederick Sewell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Ernie Stanton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : William Stelling

Gender : Male

Character Name : Eric (uncredited)

Original Name : Donald Stuart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Paul Sutton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jones' Father (uncredited)

Original Name : Ferris Taylor

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jones' Mother (uncredited)

Original Name : Dorothy Vaughan

Gender : Female

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Jack Voglin

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dutch Policeman (uncredited)

Original Name : Hans von Morhart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Larry Wheat

Gender : Male

Character Name : Man (uncredited)

Original Name : Bert White

Gender : Male

Character Name : Dutch Motor Policeman (uncredited)

Original Name : William Yetter Sr.

Gender : Male

Character Name : Auntie Maude (uncredited)

Original Name : Mary Young

Gender : Female

Character Name : Luncheon Guest (uncredited)

Original Name : Herschel Graham

Gender : Male

Reviews

barrymost

@barrymost

2021-06-23

If you enjoy this review, please check out my blog, Old Hat Cinema, at https://oldhatcinema.medium.com/ for more reviews and other cool content. Alfred Hitchcock’s second American picture, Foreign Correspondent (1940), has quite literally everything you could ask for in a great movie. To categorize it, one might say it’s an espionage thriller. But really, that covers merely the basics of what the film is all about. It’s got suspense, adventure, romance, humor, heroics, and a cast that couldn’t be improved upon if you tried! In contrast, Hitchcock’s first American picture was the well-done, if somewhat plodding, Gothic thriller Rebecca. While Rebecca is still an excellent film in its own right, boasting the talents of Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, and others, it isn’t nearly as exciting or action-packed. Foreign Correspondent is the more important of Hitchcock’s films, made at the start of WWII, and a clear call for American entry into the war at that time. Rebecca may have won the Academy Award for Best Picture of 1940, but Foreign Correspondent was the more deserving film. It’s 1939, and Europe is on the brink of war. An American reporter named Johnny Jones is sent to England as foreign correspondent for the New York paper he works for. He takes on the pseudonym Huntley Haverstock and is soon investigating the ostensible assassination of an important diplomat, uncovering a Nazi spy ring in the process. Heading the cast are Joel McCrea and Laraine Day, two fine actors who are highly underrated today. The two of them maintain a good chemistry as the film progresses, and the supporting players are equally accomplished. George Sanders, that “dreadful man,” plays a wisecracking freelancer named Scott ffolliott, and gives a remarkable performance. Robert Benchley, as McCrea’s fellow foreign correspondent Stebbins, co-wrote the script, and is said to have written much of his own dialogue. There’s also Edmund Gwenn, cast against type as an affable Cockney hit man, and he makes the most of his short, but nonetheless important, role. And, in his second film with Hitchcock, we have Herbert Marshall, in a truly great performance. I’ll have to leave it at that — because given half a chance, I could rattle on about the dear old chap for hours. There are so many superbly crafted sequences in the movie, but I’ll mention just a few here. There’s the “umbrella scene,” where McCrea chases an assassin through a crowd of bystanders, getting lost amid the dozens of umbrellas. The windmill sequence, in which McCrea and his sidekicks find themselves alone in an open field, windmills softly turning with the breeze … or against the breeze, in the case of one such suspicious grinding mill, is marvelously shot. To add to the sense of urgency and danger, a single plane flies overhead. When McCrea sends Day and Sanders to fetch the police and enters the windmill himself, it’s one of the tensest parts of the film. Thirdly, when two men masquerading as police officers arrive at McCrea’s hotel room with malicious intent, he cleverly outwits them and escapes through the window, finding himself balanced precariously on a ledge far above the streets of London below … and dressed in his bathrobe. He proceeds to accidentally short circuit two of the letters in the hotel’s neon sign, reducing HOTEL EUROPE to HOT EUROPE, with a flourish that is purely Hitchcockian. There’s also one brief but precious scene which for the most part probably goes unnoticed by audiences. During the car chase where McCrea meets Sanders, the assassin’s car rips around a corner, almost hitting a poor old man trying to cross the street. He steps back onto the curb just in time, and as he tries to cross again, our heroes go flying by, narrowly missing the man as well. As he tries to cross for a third time, a whole squad of policemen on motorcycles tear down the street, and the man, thwarted yet again, escapes back to the safety of the curb, turns around, and goes back inside his house. To the average viewer, it’s just one fleeting moment in the midst of an exciting, high-speed chase, but to be frank, the sequence had me in stitches; a glorious example of comic relief. After a rollicking adventure across the continent of Europe, approaching two full delightful hours for the viewer, Foreign Correspondent reaches its climax in the form of a plane crash into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean … and one of the principal characters gives his life in a touching show of sacrifice. So do yourself a favor, if, like me, you are a lover of great cinema, and enter this Hitchcockian world. Good triumphs over evil, witty banter abounds, romance blossoms, villains are heroes, and adventure awaits!

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2022-03-28

Alfred Hitchcock presides over quite a fast paced jigsaw-puzzle of a film with this gripping WII espionage thriller. Joel McCrae is the American reporter "John Jones" who is despatched by his editor to get decent news coverage of what's going on in war-threatened Europe. No sooner has he landed than he becomes embroiled in the affairs of the mysterious "Peace Party" leader "Van Meer" (Albert Bassermann) who may (or may not) have been gunned down and who may (or may not) have been party to a treaty that could change or even avert the course of war. Together with fellow journo George Sanders ("ffolliot") they become more deeply involved in this complex and intriguing mystery having to avoid just about everyone as they struggle to get to the truth. Herbert Marshall "Fisher" and his daughter "Carol" (Laraine Day) complete the quintet of principal characters ably as the whole story twists and turns in a structured and enthralling manner. There are red herrings, but they are not wasted - there is a thread to the story that ties them all together quite neatly as we begin to get to grips with who is to be relied upon - and who is not! The writing is not the most potent - too many contributors seem to lead, on occasion, to a battle of wordiness that I found just a little distracting; but Hitch is on form and there are plenty of tense scenarios to keep us all interested. Good stuff!