/pHFNaNHqiaZ2myMAsylIm2y17c7.jpg
DramaWarThriller

The Catcher Was a Spy

- Based on the true story of Moe Berg

Former major league baseball player Moe Berg lives a double life working for the Office of Strategic Services in World War II Europe.

Release Date : 2018-06-22

Language :GermanEnglishItalianJapaneseHebrewFrench

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Serena FilmsAnimus FilmsPalmStar Media

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Paul Rudd

Character Name : Moe Berg

Original Name : Paul Rudd

Gender : Male

Mark Strong

Character Name : Werner Heisenberg

Original Name : Mark Strong

Gender : Male

Sienna Miller

Character Name : Estella Huni

Original Name : Sienna Miller

Gender : Female

Connie Nielsen

Character Name : Koranda

Original Name : Connie Nielsen

Gender : Female

Shea Whigham

Character Name : Joe Cronin

Original Name : Shea Whigham

Gender : Male

Hiroyuki Sanada

Character Name : Kawabata

Original Name : 真田広之

Gender : Male

Tom Wilkinson

Character Name : Paul Scherrer

Original Name : Tom Wilkinson

Gender : Male

William Hope

Character Name : John Kleran

Original Name : William Hope

Gender : Male

Giancarlo Giannini

Character Name : Professor Eduardo Amaldi

Original Name : Giancarlo Giannini

Gender : Male

Pierfrancesco Favino

Character Name : Martinuzzi

Original Name : Pierfrancesco Favino

Gender : Male

Anna Geislerová

Character Name : Rathe

Original Name : Anna Geislerová

Gender : Female

Agnese Nano

Character Name : Mrs. Amaldi

Original Name : Agnese Nano

Gender : Female

Brian Caspe

Character Name : Commanding Officer

Original Name : Brian Caspe

Gender : Male

Demetri Goritsas

Character Name : Clifton Fadiman

Original Name : Demetri Goritsas

Gender : Male

Roy McCrerey

Character Name : Princeton Conductor

Original Name : Roy McCrerey

Gender : Male

Susan Garfield

Character Name : Red Sox Fan

Original Name : Susan Garfield

Gender : Female

Joseph Oliveira

Character Name : Team Scout

Original Name : Joseph Oliveira

Gender : Male

Ted Otis

Character Name : Radio Show Director

Original Name : Ted Otis

Gender : Male

Philip Lenkowsky

Character Name : NYC Taxi Driver

Original Name : Philip Lenkowsky

Gender : Male

Bobby Schofield

Character Name : Bill Dalton

Original Name : Bobby Schofield

Gender : Male

John Schwab

Character Name : Lefty Grove

Original Name : John Schwab

Gender : Male

Jordan Long

Character Name : Babe Ruth

Original Name : Jordan Long

Gender : Male

Jimmy LeBlanc

Character Name : First Base Coach

Original Name : Jimmy LeBlanc

Gender : Male

Kristen Anne Ferraro

Character Name : Baseball Fan

Original Name : Kristen Anne Ferraro

Gender : Female

James McVan

Character Name : Lou Gehrig

Original Name : James McVan

Gender : Male

Gabriel Andrews

Character Name : British Colonel

Original Name : Gabriel Andrews

Gender : Male

Cristiano Donati

Character Name : Italian Resistance 2

Original Name : Cristiano Donati

Gender : Male

Rob Lévesque

Character Name : Red Sox Fan

Original Name : Rob Lévesque

Gender : Male

Dušan Kiš

Character Name : Italian Resistance

Original Name : Dušan Kiš

Gender : Male

Tim Hackney

Character Name : Jimmie Foxx

Original Name : Tim Hackney

Gender : Male

Marco Velutti

Character Name : Italian Resistance 1

Original Name : Marco Velutti

Gender : Male

Roman Vangeli

Character Name : Gangster

Original Name : Roman Vangeli

Gender : Male

Karoline Patrick

Character Name : Catherine

Original Name : Karoline Patrick

Gender : Male

Jeff Fritz

Character Name : OS Trainer

Original Name : Jeff Fritz

Gender : Male

Martin Janouš

Character Name : Franklin Adams

Original Name : Martin Janouš

Gender : Male

Marc Cram

Character Name : Karl Friedrich Von Wiezsacker

Original Name : Marc Cram

Gender : Male

Hélène Cardona

Character Name :

Original Name : Hélène Cardona

Gender : Female

Matt Lindquist

Character Name :

Original Name : Matt Lindquist

Gender : Male

Scott Lipman

Character Name : U.S Army Pitcher

Original Name : Scott Lipman

Gender : Male

Thomas Brogan

Character Name : Fenway Fan

Original Name : Thomas Brogan

Gender : Male

Benjamin Crocker

Character Name : Guy Eating Peanuts

Original Name : Benjamin Crocker

Gender : Male

Joe Oliveira

Character Name : Fenway Fan

Original Name : Joe Oliveira

Gender : Male

Timur Sibatov

Character Name : Italian Civilian

Original Name : Timur Sibatov

Gender : Male

Scott Sederquist

Character Name : Fenway Fan

Original Name : Scott Sederquist

Gender : Male

Dean Littlefield

Character Name : Baseball Fan

Original Name : Dean Littlefield

Gender : Male

Paul Giamatti

Character Name : Sam Goudsmit

Original Name : Paul Giamatti

Gender : Male

Guy Pearce

Character Name : Robert Furman

Original Name : Guy Pearce

Gender : Male

Jeff Daniels

Character Name : Bill Donovan

Original Name : Jeff Daniels

Gender : Male

Dave Quay

Character Name : Grogan

Original Name : Dave Quay

Gender : Male

Jan Slovák

Character Name : Joliot

Original Name : Jan Slovák

Gender : Male

Petr Meissel

Character Name : Diebner

Original Name : Petr Meissel

Gender : Male

Zuzana Hodková

Character Name : Scherrer's Wife

Original Name : Zuzana Hodková

Gender : Female

Petr Opava

Character Name : Cantor

Original Name : Petr Opava

Gender : Male

Karel Dobrý

Character Name : Cold-Eyed German

Original Name : Karel Dobrý

Gender : Male

Reviews

S

SierraKiloBravo

@SierraKiloBravo

2021-06-23

Click here for a video version of this review: https://youtu.be/zt13FFkDD1w Moe Berg was a professional baseball player who played for a number of teams as a backup catcher over his 16 year career. He also had a knack for languages and this led him to working for the Office of Strategic Services during the second world war. One of his missions during the war is the subject of the 2018 movie _The Catcher Was a Spy_. Paul Rudd plays Berg, and as the movie starts, we meet him during his baseball career. With the war unfolding the US begins working on The Manhattan Project and they suspect that there are some scientists in Germany who are also close to completing a nuclear bomb of some sort. Berg is despatched to Switzerland to look into one of the lead scientists and determine how close the Germans are to having a bomb. If they were close, Berg was to shoot the scientist. It's a small scale story told against the large scale of a world war, and the enormous pressure of the nuclear arms race. This has a number of big names in it such as Tom Wilkinson, Mark Strong, Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce, Paul Giamatti, Jeff Daniels, and of course Paul Rudd in the lead as Moe Berg. I really enjoyed this and found myself drawn into the story. Rudd is engaging as the mysterious Berg and does a really good job of bringing this enigmatic character to life. This is not a big loud action extravaganza, but rather an understated film, which is apropo as this is how Moe Berg was in real life. I think this movie flew under the radar when it came out, but I reckon it's definitely worth your time.

T

Trevor Morris

@trovster

2023-07-14

This should have been a better movie. There are complex characters, especially the titular spy that I am interested in learning more about, and an intriguing story set around World War 2. However, it fails to really deliver. The movie opens and closes with blocks of text giving an introduction and conclusion to the story, which sums up the disappointment; this should be part of the movie… The movie is filled with an amazing cast; Paul Rudd, Mark Strong, Sienna Miller, Tom Wilkinson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Paul Giamatti, Guy Pearce and Jeff Daniels, although only a few are used to any potential. Paul Rudd carries the movie, with his portrayal of an intelligent baseball player turned out-of-his-depth spy, but never seems phased by his task. The screenplay tackles interesting ethical dilemmas and is a very personal character study. The undercurrent of lies and half-truths bleeds into our spy's personal life, with his sexual orientation questioned on numerous occasions. There is a nice blend between set-up, character development and suspense, with a small but sturdy action sequence thrown in. Everyone is exquisitely dressed. The world is filled with a distinctive brown and green colour palette and is captured with a sometimes off-putting extremely shallow depth-of-field focus style. For all the benefits, the movie seems to miss its marks. There is a lot of ground to cover and scenarios to introduce but it suffers because the runtime is only 94 minutes. Too much is either left unresolved (or just written at the end) or not given enough attention in the screenplay. Overall, the movie is fine and worth a watch, but it could've been much better.