Above Suspicion (1943 film)

Above Suspicion (1943) is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer spy drama film starring Joan Crawford and Fred MacMurray as newlyweds who spy on the Nazis for the British Secret Service during their honeymoon, along with Basil Rathbone as a Nazi who pursues them. The screenplay by Keith Winter, Melville Baker, and Patricia Coleman was based upon the novel Above Suspicion by Helen MacInnes. The film was directed by Richard Thorpe and produced by Victor Saville, and was Crawford's last feature for MGM before signing with Warner Bros.

Plot

Frances and Richard Myles (Joan Crawford and Fred MacMurray) are newlyweds honeymooning in Europe on the eve of World War II. Unexpectedly, they find themselves commissioned by the British secret service to secure the plans for a new secret weapon masterminded by the Nazis (involving magnetic mines).^[1] The trail leads them to Innsbruck where they arouse the suspicions of Gestapo chief Von Aschenhausen (Basil Rathbone). Having secured the plans, the couple find great difficulty leaving the country. Frances is captured and held in a remote castle. She is rescued by her husband and a group of British agents, and, using underground routes, the couple finally cross the border to safety.

Cast

• Joan Crawford — Frances Myles
• Fred MacMurray — Richard Myles
• Conrad Veidt — Hassert Seidel
• Basil Rathbone — Sig von Aschenhausen
• Reginald Owen — Dr. Mespelbrunn
• Richard Ainley — Peter Galt
• Cecil Cunningham — Countess
• Ann Shoemaker — Aunt Ellen
• Sara Haden — Aunt Hattie
• Felix Bressart — Mr. A. Werner
• Bruce Lester — Thornley
• Johanna Hofer — Frau Kleist
• Lotte Palfi Andor — Ottilie (as Lotta Palfi)

Reception

Variety wrote, "Both MacMurray and Miss Crawford completely handled their roles, despite drawbacks of script material", and T.S. in the New York Times commented, "Joan Crawford...is a very convincing heroine."^[2]

DVD release

Above Suspicion was released on Region 1 DVD on April 6, 2010 from the online Warner Bros. Archive Collection.

References

External links

• Above Suspicion at the Internet Movie Database
• Above Suspicion at the TCM Movie Database
• Above Suspicion at AllRovi