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Torn Curtain (1966)
In Alfred Hitchcock's mid-60s, war-time political/spy
thriller - it was a Cold War cloak-and-dagger tale of intrigue, mystery
and suspense concerning an American physicist who defected to East
Berlin in Germany (behind the Iron Curtain), as part of his secret
mission to acquire Soviet information (a secret formula) that would
be helpful to his research for the US anti-missile defense program
(the missile was dubbed Gamma 5), before returning back to the US.
His seemingly-traitorous plan was thrown off when his loyal fiancee
decided to join him behind the Iron Curtain, jeopardizing their relationship
and his espionage mission. The film's plot relied on the dramatic
switching of perspectives from the female to the male protagonist,
followed by their working together as they were shuffled from place
to place to escape the Iron Curtain.
The screenplay by Northern Ireland screenwriter Brian Moore (plus additional
rewrites by British authors Willis Hall and Keith Waterhouse) was
based upon the real-life defections of two British diplomats (Guy
Burgess and Donald Maclean) to the Soviet Union in 1951. Hitchcock's
spy film 'behind the Iron Curtain' came at a time of a resurgence
of 007-Agent Bond films in the early 1960s.
The film's most celebrated and unforgettable memorable
sequences or set-pieces included: (1) the cat-and-mouse sequence of a
tense pursuit and the sounds of footsteps in the echoing hallways
of the Museum of East Berlin, (2) the prolonged life and death struggle
to kill an East Berlin security agent in a farmhouse kitchen (including
choking, stabbing, and gassing), (3) the sequence in which the US
scientist swindled or fooled a notable East German scientist to reveal
his mathematical formula about a rocket system (the film's MacGuffin)
on a blackboard, and (4) the concluding suspenseful scene in a crowded
German ballet theater where crying "Fire" (in
English) was the only way to escape. One of its taglines was: "It
Tears You Apart With Suspense!"
Although some of the film's exteriors were shot in
Denmark and West Germany, most of the film was shot on the backlots of
Universal Studios in Hollywood, with some impressive uses of matte
paintings, and the substitution of American locations that doubled
as European ones.
Hitchcock's 50th was poorly received by
critics as a routine and average film - and even a disappointment
for Hitchcock himself, due to numerous issues, many of which included
studio interference: (1) a major disagreement between Hitchcock and
his long-time composer and partner Bernard Herrmann led to a falling
out, (2) the expected chemistry never materialized between the film's
two major A-list stars - (a miscast and highly-paid Julie Andrews
and method-actor Paul Newman, both with bland and charmless performances),
and (3) the overlong, uninspired, pallid and undistinguished plot
and script (and the film's ending) included problems with its believability,
somewhat due to its numerous grainy rear-projection sequences. On
a budget of $6 million, the film took in revenue of $13 million,
making it a moderate hit for Universal Pictures.
- the opening title credits were composed of a split-screen
or 'torn curtain' (with a bluish background) - on the left,
orangish-red fiery flames burned (from a rocket missile), while
on the right in the cloudy smoke were random, impressionistic,
close-up images of characters' faces from the film
- in Osterfjord, Norway in early September of 1965,
the M.S. Meteor was on its way to Copenhagen, Denmark with many esteemed professors
and scholars were onboard the tour vessel heading for the city's
International Congress of Physicists; for some reason, the vessel's
heating system was non-functional and temperatures on board were
near freezing and the outdoor decks were empty; passengers in
the dining room for breakfast were wearing overcoats and hats
to keep warm; water in drinking glasses was frozen; numerous
academic leaders and scientists, including Dr. Walter Keller from
Princeton University, and other peers, were planning to be at
the conference, and were preparing by attending on-board lectures
on topics such as "Neutrino Collisions"
- one breakfast dining table was
noticeably empty - its absent occupants were in their cabin in bed
together under warm blankets with their clothes (with name-tags)
piled on top; Senior Physics Professor Michael Armstrong
(Paul Newman) (and rocket scientist) and his British colleague
and graduate assistant Dr. Sarah Sherman (Julie Andrews) were both
representing the U.S. Interspace Committee; as they kissed, Michael
told his American fiancee Sarah (with an English accent): "We'll
call this lunch and go upstairs for breakfast"
- this comment prompted her to firmly
state her views about sex before marriage: "You're
a scientist, and you're supposed to respect a natural order in
all things. Breakfast comes before lunch...And marriage should
come before a honeymoon cruise"; he playfully scoffed at her: "You're
on the wrong boat"; she suggested a "July wedding" for
the two of them
- [Note: The scene of the two of them in bed having
premarital sex was opposed by the National Roman Catholic Office
for Motion Pictures: ("Parents should be aware that the
'Mary Poppins' image of the female lead (Julie Andrews), shattered
in this film, cannot serve as any criterion of the film's acceptability
for their children")
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A Boat (With Physicists and Scientists) on Its Way
to Copenhagen for an International Conference - Including A Couple
Representing the U.S. Interspace Committee
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- they were interrupted by a knock on their cabin
door - the delivery of a mysterious radiogram addressed to Professor
Armstrong, reading: "YOUR BOOK IS READY" - sent from the Elmo Book
Store in Copenhagen, but Armstrong elusively denied it was for
him and refused it: ("It must be a mistake") - presumably to keep
it a secret from Sarah for some reason; however, shortly later,
he went to the Radio room and asked for the radiogram again, and
then printed out a reply-response: "MESSAGE RECEIVED. ARRIVE HOTEL
D'ANGLETERRE COPENHAGEN 0900 TOMORROW"
- the next scene was set in the lobby of the Hotel
D'Angleterre ("Hotel of England"), the site of the International
Congress of Physicists Conference; in his brief cameo, Hitchcock
was sitting with a child on his lap, as the music changed to resemble
the famous "Hitchcock theme," also known as the Funeral March of the Marionette;
Michael and Sarah were occupants of two adjoining rooms in the hotel
American Nuclear Physicist Professor Michael Armstrong (Paul Newman)
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Professor Sarah Sherman (Julie Andrews) - Michael's Assistant and Fiancee
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- two phone calls to their room from the Elmo Book
Store were answered by Sarah while Michael was showering; he tried
to stop her from going on a stroll to pick up the book that had
been ordered at the bookshop; as she was leaving the hotel, she
was joined by persistent and curious Professor Karl Manfred
(Günter Strack) who observed as Sarah was handed the brown paper-wrapped "first edition"
book by bookseller Freddy (Arthur Gould-Porter); the seller suggested:
"Take good care of it, dear heart"; back in the hotel lobby, Sarah
handed the book to Michael, who then introduced Prof. Manfred to
their dinner host Professor Olaf Hengstrom (Peter Bourne)
- from Sarah's point of view, Michael was acting deviously like he was hiding something;
she saw him pocket travel tickets that he picked up at the
travel desk, and then took the wrapped book into the lobby's gentlemens'
rest room; there in a locked toilet stall, he noticed that one
of the front pages directed him to Page 107, where the Greek letter π was
circled, and other underlined letters on the page spelled out the
message: "CONTACT π IN CASE OF EMERGENCY"
- during lunch with an inquisitive Sarah at Tivoli
Gardens, Michael tersely and dismissively told her that he was
leaving for Stockholm by plane that afternoon to meet with the
Swedish Defense Department - disrupting his plans to give an evening
lecture at the conference; he vaguely explained how he might be
able to revive his cancelled Gamma 5 missile project he was
working on with the US government, after seeking advice from
Professor Hengstrom on the boat; Sarah felt he had been keeping
this a secret for a long time, and had tried to keep her from joining
him on the trip: ("You did everything you could to stop me from
coming"); he then told her he might be gone for a few months, and
that she should cover the conference for him in his absence; she
was miffed by his deceptions and treatment of her: "Oh, Michael,
you certainly know how to make a girl feel wanted"; he persisted
in forcefully refusing to let her join him in Stockholm after she
suggested: "We could get an apartment. I mean, I could look after you, shop, cook"
- Sarah left the table and returned to the hotel travel
desk to book an immediate flight home to New York on SAS at 16:45
that afternoon; and then she happened to ask: "What time does Professor
Armstrong's flight leave for Stockholm?" - and to her surprise,
she discovered that he had lied to her; he had booked a single
ticket at 16:30 on Romanian Airlines to East Berlin; Sarah was
shocked and puzzled: "East Berlin? But that's behind the Iron Curtain!"
- later in mid-flight, Michael was surprised to see
Sarah seated in the back of his plane; he approached her and angrily
demanded that she not follow him and immediately return to Copenhagen
- realizing that he had put her life in jeopardy: "Now you stay
away from me. Don't talk to me. When this plane lands, you take
the next one out! Anywhere! Go home! Do you understand?"; she was
speechless, as the scene faded to a blur
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On the Same Plane, Bound for East Berlin
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- after landing as the passengers disembarked, Sarah
noticed that one of the passengers was Professor Manfred, who had
presumably helped to arrange Armstrong's trip; he asked Michael:
"I thought she didn't know"; Michael replied: "She doesn't know.
She can't know. She just followed me"; Professor Armstrong was
besieged by reporters and photographers as he stepped off the plane
for a planned press event; Sarah and Prof. Manfred watched from
behind him
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Arrival at the East Berlin Airport (Behind the Iron
Curtain)
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- Professor Manfred introduced Michael to the Vice
Minister Strauss (Hans Difflipp) on the tarmac, and then it was
announced that the distinguished American nuclear scientist Professor
Michael Armstrong was defecting to the German Democratic Republic
(GDR) and switching his political loyalties: "Professor Armstrong
has decided to live and work for peace in the Peoples' Democracies"
- inside the airport, Professor Armstrong met with
the GDR's Head of State Security Heinrich Gerhard (Hansjoerg Felmy),
who appointed a "personal guide" or chaperone
to accompany Armstrong everywhere - gum-chewing, long leather-coated,
twitchy Hermann Gromek (Wolfgang Kieling), an East German security
officer, noted for having a faulty cigarette lighter
- Armstrong was reminded by Gerhard that he had unexpectedly
brought "excess baggage" with him - his assistant and
fiancee Sarah Sherman, and was asked what should be done with her: "Then
what did you intend her to do? Go home, marry the boy next door,
or what?"; Michael answered: "I hoped, vaguely that she'd
understand my motives. Maybe she wouldn't, but I hoped she'd join
me later"; Sarah was called in and given a choice: "How would you like
to live behind what you call the Iron Curtain?"; the two were
given until the next day to think it over
- in a public speech at the airport to Eastern and
Western reporters, Armstrong explained the reason for his defection
to a Communist country - Washington had abandoned his six year
anti-missile program to design an "anti-missile
missile" (known as Gamma 5) to "make
nuclear defense obsolete"; he described his mission: "I
am offering my services to your University of Leipzig, hopefully
to work with Professor Gustav Lindt, a leading authority in my
field. Together with Professor Lindt, we will produce a defensive
weapon that will make, um, all offensive nuclear weapons obsolete,
and thereby abolish the terror of nuclear warfare"
- later in Sarah's room in the Hotel Berlin while
the rays of a golden sunset were shining in, Michael and Sarah
engaged in a deep discussion about their fates, filmed in one long-take
with a steady long-distance camera; Sarah explained: "I just knew
I had to follow you. I... By instinct, to protect you or something,"
but he felt that his lies were justified to keep her in the dark;
when she called him a "traitor" to his country, he admitted: "I
can't explain it to you"; he refused her request: "Would you
please take me home?"; the next morning, Michael left a note under
Sarah's door: "GONE FOR A WALK. GO HOME!! Michael"
- in the next sequence, Michael attempted to evade
his guard Gromek as he left the hotel lobby; he entered a double-decker
bus and watched as Gromek mounted his motorbike to pursue him;
Michael entered the East Berlin Art Museum, and engaged in a silent
cat-and-mouse chase and pursuit within the vast rooms and
empty hallways of the museum, as their footsteps echoing off
the checkerboard marble floors
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The Cavernous, Echoing Rooms and Hallways of the Art Museum
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- to evade Gromek, Michael exited a side door of the
museum onto the street and took a taxi to a farm in the German
countryside, and asked the driver (Peter Lorre, Jr.) to park and
wait for him; at the side doorway with his shoe in the dirt, he
created the π symbol to let the farm wife (Carolyn Conwell) know that he was part of
a counter-intelligence network; she pointed to his contact, her
"farmer" husband (Mort Mills) plowing a nearby field on a tractor;
as they rode on the tractor together, the farmer congratulated
Michael on playing the part of a "dirty defector," but was curious
about the presence of his "girl"; Michael explained she unexpectedly
followed him and now they faced a dilemma: "There are two of us
involved in the escape now, I can't get her to go home"
- their discussion revealed the plot twist -
Armstrong's defection was part of his plan as a secret double-agent
intelligence gatherer, to acquire knowledge about anti-missile
systems found in the brain of a chief East German scientist named Professor
Gustav Lindt (Ludwig Donath): "The information I'm after is inside
the head of a scientist at Leipzig University...It takes a scientist
to pick a scientist's brain"; when asked: "Did Washington approve
this crazy scheme of yours?", Armstrong answered: "They don't know
anything about it," and that his "scheme" might take weeks or
months to accomplish; Armstrong learned that his contact person
for his escape in the Pi network in Leipzig was an agent named
Koska (K-O-S-K-A)
- as Armstrong returned to the farmhouse outside East
Berlin, he noticed that his East German "bodyguard" policeman
Hermann Gromek had followed him there; Gromek entered the farmhouse
after Armstrong to confront him: "I'm gonna report you to the Minister
of Culture"; Michael introduced the farm wife as a relative on his
mother's side of the family, but Gromek was disbelieving; the menacing
German also suspected that Armstrong was a double-agent due to the
Greek letter Pi symbol scratched into the dirt outside the door - and
kept insisting (with physical gestures) for Armstrong to explain ("Maybe
a Greek letter. Professor! Maybe pi?...A dirty little two-bit organization
for spying and escaping!") - and accused him of being an "American
agent"
Gromek: "I'm gonna report you..."
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Gromek Asking About the Pi Symbol: "Maybe a Greek
letter"
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Reaction to Gromek's Accusations and Threats
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Gromek Dialing the Authorities
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Rice Soup Bowl Thrown at Gromek
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Gromek Choked and Strangled by Armstrong
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- a lengthy, nasty and brutal
murder sequence followed inside the farmhouse with the assistance
of the farm wife; it was deliberately filmed without
background music to emphasize how difficult it was to kill a human
being (with one's bare hands without using a gun); the murder had
to be accomplished quietly, in order to avoid arousing the suspicions
of the taxi driver waiting outside
- there were various different attempts and multiple
stages in the lengthy, slow, awkward, and immensely problematic
struggle to kill the seemingly invincible German; as he was phoning
the authorities: a rice soup bowl was thrown at him by
the wife (it struck the wall next to him); while the farm wife
ripped the phone out of the wall, Armstrong grabbed Gromek from
behind and began to choke and strangle him, as the strong and intimidating
Gromek bragged: "Cut it out. Don't be stupid.
I was trained by experts"
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Gromek Stabbed With a Butcher Knife in the Upper Chest
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- when the farm wife picked up Gromek's gun to shoot
at him, she glanced out of the window and saw the taxi
driver, and realized that she must set the gun down and use a knife
instead - a quieter method; the farmer's wife and Armstrong both
wordlessly conveyed to each other that they had to eliminate Gromek
- the farm wife grabbed a butcher knife
from a kitchen drawer and approached toward Gromek, who was continuing
to wrestle against Armstrong, but joked: "Tell the cookie she should
put that down. She's gonna cut your fingers off"; she nervously
aimed the knife at him before thrusting it into his upper chest
(with the sound of the knife snapping off and clanking to the floor);
the farm wife also bashed in Gromek's kneecaps with four swings
of a shovel (with the sound of the dull thumping metallic
shovel hitting his legs), and he crumpled to the floor; Gromek
made a dash for the window and pulled it open to signal for help,
but Armstrong and the wife swiftly shut the latch, but then Gromek
grabbed Armstrong's neck and attempted to choke him
Gromek Collapsing to the Floor After Being Bashed
by a Shovel in the Kneecaps
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Gromek Still Alive and Fighting For His Life
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Armstrong and Gromek Struggling Against Each Other
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- and finally, Armstrong and the wife were able
to forcibly drag Gromek's body across the floor, filmed from
both a high-angle and low side-angle, and with realistic closeups
of heads, hands, and faces - concluding with a grim overhead shot
above the oven; his head was thrust into the kitchen's
cast-iron gas oven to asphyxiate him to death (with the sound of
the hissing gas) - the fingers of his hands twitched in the air
expressing his excruciating death throes
- the two were anguished, shocked and paralyzed after
the tremendous struggle; the farm wife removed Armstrong's blood-stained
jacket and planned to burn it in her fireplace; she also helped
to clean, rinse off, and and remove Gromek's blood from Armstrong's
right hand; the German-speaking wife also suggested that she would
bury both Gromek's body and his parked motorbike, by making gestures
with the shovel; Armstrong returned to his taxi for the trip back
to the city, as the farm wife erased the Pi symbol in the dirt
- upon his return to the city, Prof. Armstrong was
summoned to see the Head of Security Gerhard in his office, in
the presence of Prof. Manfred and Sarah; he was informed that Sarah
would function as his assistant: "She has decided to come over
to our side. Your fiancee would like to work as your assistant
in Leipzig"; she stressed to Michael: "I want to be with you";
the decision was partly due to Prof. Manfred's intercession: "He
combines mathematical logic with romantic inconsistency"; they
were toasted with cognac: "To your new life in your new country";
they were told to leave immediately and be driven in a car to Leipzig,
although it appeared that the "indispensable" Gromek (who could
assist them) had been "lost"
- the next day in Leipzig, Prof. Armstrong and Sarah
were introduced to members of the physics faculty at Karl Marx
University; Armstrong was also presented with his new security
guide Otto Haupt (Harold Dyrenforth) since Gromek had disappeared;
as they were being shown around the university, Armstrong was tripped
(an insert shot of a female leg was shown) and fell down a flight
of stairs head-first; as he was being examined in the university's
clinic for bruised ribs, the nurse identified herself as Dr. Koska
(Gisela Fischer) - the person the farmer had told him was his contact
person in the Pi escape network
- Dr. Koska explained the Pi organization to him:
"We are not a political group. We only help people take a long
vacation from this lovely place"; her husband, a professor mathematics,
had died a year earlier; she urged him to "move quickly" due
to the unexpected disappearance of Gromek (and the search for him);
Dr. Koska was tasked with helping him and Sarah with an escape
plan to shuttle them out of East Germany: "There are two of
you to get out now.... I will need photographs of both of you for
the false identity cards we have to prepare";
Armstrong explained how his fiancee Sarah was still in the dark
about "the whole idiotic mess," and had no idea that
his defection was faked; she pressured him to see Dr. Gustav Lindt
as soon as possible, since he was leaving soon for Leningrad; Prof.
Armstrong was confident that he could acquire what he needed from
the "curious" Lindt: ("He's got the key to a puzzle in his head. I have
to get the key...In order for him to find out what I know, he's
gonna have to tell me a little bit about what he knows")
- meanwhile, the taxi driver became suspicious when
he saw a 'Missing Persons' newspaper article about Gromek and notified
Head of Security Gerhard about his previous contact with Gromek
at the farmhouse (shown in an overlapping flashback)
- at the same time, "American colleague" Prof. Armstrong
was led by Prof. Manfred to a university lecture hall with elevated
seats to be interviewed by members of the physics department about
developments in the US Gamma 5 Missile program; Prof. Lindt was
seated in an upper row of seats above four other faculty members
in the front row; as Prof. Armstrong began his remarks, he was
interrupted by news about the missing Gromek delivered
to Prof. Manfred from Haupt; Armstrong was questioned about his
dubious visit to a farmhouse; he was forced to lie about how Gromek
was not there - and his interview with the faculty was abruptly terminated
- in the upper row of seats, the inquisitive Prof.
Lindt objected to their security concerns, and insisted: "Gentlemen,
I must know about this Gamma Five work before I leave!"; he
suggested that if Prof. Armstrong couldn't speak with him, he would
then confer with Armstrong's assistant Prof. Sherman: (Lindt: "So,
something is better than nothing. She also worked on Gamma Five");
Prof. Sherman was immediately ushered into the room, and was interrogated
about the anti-missile program, but she was confused about why
she was even there to answer questions, and became accusatory
toward Prof. Armstrong: ("I have nothing to tell you...I have
nothing to say....(To Michael) You tell them. You tell them! You
joined them. You're the one who sold out!"); under tremendous
strain, she ran from the room, and was no longer willing to help
Michael, and was even threatening to break up with him and leave
East Berlin immediately ("I want to go back")
- Michael and Sarah retreated for a short walk to
a nearby hilltop, where for a few moments, they discussed (without
dialogue) their predicament; he secretly confided in her that he
was NOT really defecting (and had other motives as a double-agent
for the US) - "I would have told you before, since I wanted to
wait until I got what I needed from Lindt"; suddenly, there were
tears in Sarah's eyes and her mood changed - she became cooperative
after being urged her to play along with his devious schemes and
testify before Prof. Lindt; they passionately kissed each other
During a Break in the Faculty Interview Before Sarah Was Questioned
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Michael and Sarah on Hilltop Discussing Their Dilemma
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A Noticeable Mood Change in Sarah After Being Told
the Truth About Michael's 'Defection'
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The Couple Reconciled With a Passionate Kiss
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- meanwhile, the suspicious authorities
led by Gerhard were searching the farmhouse
- that evening, during an elegant dinner (with music
and dancing) at the university, Prof. Armstrong was able to speak
to Dr. Koska and explain the danger he was in as a result of his
lies about Gromek and the farmhouse; she reacted: "I've got to
get you both out and back to Berlin immediately"; she explained
that she would execute their escape plan the next morning at 10:00
am at the clinic
- Prof. Armstrong was able to speak privately to Prof.
Lindt during the evening's dance; he teased with hints about completing
his work on his US Gamma Five program discussed earlier in the
day with Sarah: "I suppose, uh, she told you that we concluded
our experiment successfully...whereas we've built Gamma Five"
- that evening at the farmhouse, the police dug up
Gromek's motorbike, and by the next morning, things were closing
in when Prof. Armstrong failed to appear at
Dr. Koska's clinic to escape with Sarah - as planned, and she received
a phone call about the discovery of Gromek's corpse; the police
were on their way to apprehend Prof. Armstrong
- simultaneously Armstrong and Lindt were having a
friendly chat at the university, where Armstrong
continued to reveal hints to Prof. Lindt about his US Gamma Five
program: ("We've only done the preliminary tests....We had
trouble getting money. But there's nothing the matter with the
theory. As far as I'm concerned, the problem's solved"); Armstrong
was able to goad Lindt into showing off his "workroom" where
he revealingly bragged about and divulged his own secret anti-missile
defense equations; the proud and Lindt was happy to one-up Armstrong
who had used "different methods" and
had made mathematical mistakes (Lindt: "I'm afraid, Professor,
you have very little to offer"); Armstrong falsely claimed: "Well,
we built it, and it works, and it didn't blow up"; to counter
him, Lindt showed off his full formula: "I tell you
what you say is rubbish!...In Russia, we built it. It works!");
Lindt was tricked into revealing his own "brilliant"
and "genius" formulas for shooting down incoming missiles
- and then realized he had been hoodwinked when he overheard university
loudspeakers announcing a search for the two US professors; he
was dismayed when he realized what was happening: "You told
me nothing. You know nothing. I forbid you to leave this room!"
A Private Discussion Between Lindt and Armstrong About Gamma Five
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In Prof. Lindt's Secret "Workroom" With a Blackboard Filled With Mathematical
Equations
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Lindt to Armstrong: "You have very little to offer"
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Armstrong Goading Lindt Into Revealing His Own Successful
Formula
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Lindt Bragging About His Own Work: "Of
course it's brilliant, it's genius!"
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Armstrong - Astounded by Lindt's Work!
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- Armstrong fled from the classroom and escaped to
the upstairs university clinic to meet up with Sarah and Dr. Koska;
the threesome fled on bicycles to the center of the city where
they boarded a decoy bus operated by the π network and led
by Mr. Jacobi (David Opatoshu); they were hoping to arrive at their
destination (East Berlin) and establish their contacts before 7:00
pm that evening; Jacobi described the concept of the fake decoy
bus with anti-Communist Germans on board: "We travel
the same route as the official Leipzig to Berlin bus. But we leave
ten minutes ahead of it"; it was a dangerous mission for the
other passengers: "We help others get to Berlin, and then we come
home"; they were beset by a roadblock set up by the Stasi and subject
to a search, and then a second roadblock set up by bandits and
Soviet Army deserters; they were rescued by a military truck and
given a safe but problematic escort by two officers on motorcycles;
a third problem resulted when the "real" second bus caught up to
them and alerted the officers to their decoy bus; Sarah and Michael
were able to sneak off the bus undetected, and the rest of the
passengrs escaped unscathed from machine-gun fire
The Decoy Bus From Leipzig to East Berlin
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Passengers Sarah and Michael with Mr. Jacobi
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The "Real" Bus Caught Up to the Fake Bus
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- as the two were headed to the Friedrichstraße
post office (and a contact named Albert), they met an eccentric but helpful
character - an exiled Polish lady who called herself Countess Kuchinska
(Lila Kedrova), who guided them to a coffee house; she was impressed
to meet them due to their notoriety: "How exciting to meet
you, Professor. It is not every day one meets a spy....And
his face in all the papers. But don't look so worried, my darling
girl. You are quite safe with me. I am not Kommunistical";
the desperate woman offered a proposition: "You two will promise
me to be my sponsors for a visa to the United States of America.
In return, I will take you where you wish to go"; they agreed,
and she helped to direct them to the post-office, where for a few
tense moments, they awaited contact with post office clerk Albert
(Albert Szabo)
- once Albert appeared from a back room, he slipped
them a card with a picture of a ship and the name of a travel agency
in Berlin (named the "Astra Reiseburo"); at the same
moment, a post-office guard had alerted an armed officer who approached
with a machine gun, calling out "HALT!"; Sarah and Michael
slipped out the back entrance as the Countess blocked and tripped
up the pursuing officer on the stairway, allowing them to escape;
she looked toward them longingly as they fled, with tears in her
eyes, crying: "My sponsors!"
- when they were across the street from the travel
agency, two men approached them; one of the men was the farmer
from the countryside; the second man described the next leg of
their journey that would take them out of East Berlin; he would
provide them with tickets to the ballet that evening: "They're
sending you out by sea on an East German boat in the costume baskets
of a Czech ballet company. It gives its last performance tonight
and goes to Sweden. Remember, the boat is East German. You won't
be safe until you're ashore. 8 sharp, I will bring you to the theatre.
You will take your seats one minute after the house lights go down.
At first intermission, you'll be taken through the pass door backstage
by the baggage master of the company. He will know you because
he has your seat numbers"; the baggage manager was to be identified
by his fake red hair and the name of Hugo (Maurice Doner)
- while Michael and Sarah wached the ballet performance
in a crowded East Berlin theatre, the lead Ballerina (Tamara Toumanova)
recognized the couple in the audience; she was still fuming over
being neglected and upstaged when her arrival at the East Berlin
airport was overshadowed by Michael's defection; she reported them
to the authorities, and security officers began to appear at all
the exits; once Michael spotted Gerhard, he was forced to yell "FIRE!" to
cause chaos as the theatre-goers panicked in an attempt to evacuate
and they were able to evade capture; they made their way to a backstage
door where they met their red-haired Pi network contact Hugo (Maurice
Doner)
Artificial Fire on Stage
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Overhead View of Audience Members Surging Toward
Exits After Michael Yelled: "FIRE!"
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Gerhard Caught in the Mass Panic
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- Hugo directed them to hide in two large wicker
baskets or hampers of costumes (from the Czech ballet troupe) that
were placed on an East German ferry-freighter (Westgall) to cross
the Baltic Sea to Sweden; once the freighter docked,
the ballerina watched as two baskets were hooked by a Swedish crane
operator - and due to her suspicions of subterfuge (refugees
were caught hiding in baskets on a previous trip), she pointed
out for the hampers to be machine-gunned by a guard; she was mistaken
however - Michael and Sarah had already jumped off the boat and
were swimming to the dock and retrieved by Swedish officers; after
dangerous circumstances, the two were seen huddled under blankets
to keep warm and dry - a perfect bookend for the film's opening
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Huddled Under Blankets
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M.S. Meteor On Its Way With Passengers to Copenhagen Conference
Two Scientists - Professor Michael Armstrong (Paul Newman)
and Dr. Sarah Sherman (Julie Andrews) Under the Covers In
Their Cabin - Naked
Radiogram At First Denied by Armstrong: "Your Book is Ready"
Lobby of Hotel D'Angleterre (Site of Conference) in Copenhagen - Hitchcock's
Cameo
Professor Karl Manfred (Günter Strack)
The Wrapped Book Retrieved by Sarah for Michael From the Elmo Book Store
Clues From the Book: (1) See Page 107, and (2) the Symbol of the
Greek Letter π
A Deciphered or Coded Message: CONTACT π IN
CASE OF EMERGENCY
Sarah's Shocked Reaction After Discovering Michael's Destination: "East
Berlin? But that's behind the Iron Curtain"
Michael's Angry Order for Sarah to Not Follow Him to East Berlin: "Go
home! Do you understand?"
Sarah Was Speechless and Upset by His Words to Her
Heinrich Gerhard (Hansjoerg Felmy) - the GDR's Head of State Security
Hermann Gromek (Wolfgang Kieling) - An East German Security
Officer
Armstrong's Airport Speech Explaining the Reasons for His Defection
to a Communist Country
In an East Berlin Hotel Room - Sarah and Michael Discuss Their
Awkward Situation
The Next Day - Michael's Note to Sarah
Michael's Entry into the East Berlin Art Museum
Michael Traveled by Taxi to a Countryside Farmhouse
Symbol Drawn in the Dirt by Michael's Shoe
Farm Wife (Carolyn Conwell)
Farmer Husband (Mort Mills) - Part of a Network of Counter-Intelligence
Gathering Agents
Discussion of Plans for Michael's (and Sarah's) Escape Via the Pi Network
in Leipzig
The End of the Sequence of the Murder of Gromek - His Motorbike Was Left
at the Side of the Road Before Being Buried by the Farm Wife
Sarah in Gerhard's Office - Stating That She Wanted to Defect With
Michael: "I
want to be with you"
Karl Marx University's Clinic Nurse in Leipzig - Dr. Koska (Gisela
Fischer) - a Member of the Pi Escape Network
Suspicious Taxi Driver (Peter Lorre, Jr.) Reading a Newspaper Account
of Gromek's Disappearance
Taxi Driver Reporting to Security Head Gerhard About Gromek
At Karl Marx University - Prof. Armstrong Was About To
Be Interviewed by Faculty Members, When Interrupted by Security Guide
Haupt
Prof. Sherman Brought In, But Refusing to Answer Questions about the
US' Gamma Five Missile Program
Sarah to Michael: "You tell them! You
joined them. You're the one who sold out!"
Dr. Koska Explaining Her Escape Plan to Michael
Countess Kuchinska (Lila Kedrova)
Post Office Clerk Albert Presenting Them With The Name of a Travel
Agency
Attending a Czech Ballet Performance in East Berlin
Ballerina (Tamara Toumanova) Performing on Stage Recognizing The
Couple
Hiding Place - Two Costume Baskets or Hampers
Hugo Guarding the Two Baskets on a Freighter Crossing the Baltic
Sea
The Ballerina Pointing Out Two Hampers - The Baskets Were Machine-Gunned
The Empty Hampers Where They Were Hidden - Before Jumping Overboard
Rescued By Swedish Officers After Being Removed From Water
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