Hotel Reserve

Last updated

Hotel Reserve
Hotel Reserve FilmPoster.jpeg
Original UK cinema poster
Directed by Lance Comfort
Mutz Greenbaum
Victor Hanbury
Screenplay by John Davenport
Based onEpitaph for a Spy
by Eric Ambler
Produced byLance Comfort
Mutz Greenbaum
Victor Hanbury
Starring James Mason
Lucie Mannheim
Raymond Lovell
Cinematography Mutz Greenbaum
Edited bySidney Stone
Music by Lennox Berkeley
Production
company
Distributed byRKO Radio Pictures
Release dates
  • 1 June 1944 (1944-06-01)(Premiere-London) [1]
  • 22 December 1945 (1945-12-22)(U.S.) [1]
Running time
79-90 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Hotel Reserve is a 1944 British spy film starring James Mason as an innocent man caught up in pre-Second World War espionage. [2] Other cast members include Lucie Mannheim, Raymond Lovell and Herbert Lom. It was based on Eric Ambler's 1938 novel Epitaph for a Spy . [3] Unusually, it was both directed and produced by a trio: Lance Comfort, Mutz Greenbaum and Victor Hanbury. [4] It was shot at Denham Studios with sets designed by the art director William C. Andrews. The film was produced and distributed by the British branch of RKO Pictures.

Contents

Plot

In 1938, refugee Peter Vadassy decides to take a holiday at the Hotel Reserve on the French Mediterranean coast to celebrate both his completion of medical school and his impending French citizenship. When he goes to pick up some photographs at the local pharmacy, he is taken away and questioned by Michel Beghin of French naval intelligence. When his negatives had been developed, some of them turned out to be of French military installations. It is discovered that while the camera is the same make as Peter's, the serial number is different. Peter is released on condition that he find out which other hotel guests have cameras like his.

Peter does some snooping and eavesdrops on a suspicious conversation between Paul Heimberger and the hotel's proprietor, Madame Suzanne Koch. He searches Heimberger's room and finds several passports, all with different names and nationalities. Heimberger catches him in the act, but eventually matters are straightened out. Heimberger explains that he was originally a Social Democratic newspaper publisher who was anti-Nazi and been sent to a concentration camp for two years. After he was released, he joined an underground movement against the German regime.

Peter spots his camera in the pocket of a dressing-gown belonging to Odette and Andre Roux, a couple on their honeymoon. Andre first tries to bribe Peter into giving him the negative and, when that fails, threatens him with a pistol. The police arrive at that moment and arrest Peter for espionage.

The Rouxs leave the hotel, but find Heimberger trying to disable the hotel's car. Andre shoots him dead and the couple speed off to Toulon, unaware that they are being tracked by the police. Beghin had known the identity of the spies all along and merely used Peter to further his true goal; to find out who the Rouxs are reporting to. The spy ring is captured. Andre gets away, but is caught on a roof by Peter. Andre slips and falls to his death.

Cast

Critical reception

The Radio Times noted, "this subdued thriller, set just before the Second World War, is lifted by James Mason's performance as a 'wronged man'," and concluded, "The plot has enough suspense and intrigue built in, but this movie only fitfully comes to life as Mason sets out discover who the real villain is"; [2] Dennis Schwartz found it "a visually attractive film, though hampered because it's so slow moving"; [5] whereas Leonard Maltin thought more highly of the piece, finding it a "Suspenseful, moody film." [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Odette Hallowes</span> French resistance member (1912–1995)

Odette Marie Léonie Céline Sansom,, also known as Odette Churchill and Odette Hallowes, code named Lise, was an agent for the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive (SOE) in France during the Second World War. She was the first woman to be awarded the George Cross by the United Kingdom and was awarded the Légion d'honneur by France.

<i>Topaz</i> (1969 film) 1969 film by Alfred Hitchcock

Topaz is a 1969 American espionage thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Based on the 1967 novel of the same title by Leon Uris, the film is about a French intelligence agent (Stafford) who becomes entangled in Cold War politics before the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and then the breakup of an international Soviet spy ring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herbert Lom</span> Czech-British actor

Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchačevič ze Schluderpacheru, known professionally as Herbert Lom, was a Czech-British actor with a career spanning over 60 years. His cool demeanour and precise, elegant elocution saw him cast as criminals or suave villains in his younger years, and professional men and nobles as he aged. Highly versatile, he also proved a skilled comic actor in The Pink Panther franchise, playing the beleaguered Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in seven films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marius Goring</span> English actor

Marius Re Goring, was an English stage and screen actor. He is best remembered for the four films he made with Powell & Pressburger, particularly as Conductor 71 in A Matter of Life and Death and as Julian Craster in The Red Shoes. He is also known for playing the title role in the long-running TV drama series, The Expert. He regularly performed French and German roles, and was frequently cast in the latter because of his name, coupled with his red-gold hair and blue eyes. However, in a 1965 interview, he explained that he was not of German descent, stating that "Goring is a completely English name."

<i>Contraband</i> (1940 film) 1940 film by Michael Powell

Contraband (1940) is a wartime spy film by the British director-writer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, which reunited stars Conrad Veidt and Valerie Hobson after their earlier appearance in The Spy in Black the previous year. On this occasion, Veidt plays a hero, something he did not do very often, and there is also an early (uncredited) performance by Leo Genn.

<i>And Then There Were None</i> (1974 film) 1974 film

And Then There Were None is a 1974 mystery film and an adaptation of Agatha Christie's best-selling 1939 mystery novel of the same name. The film was directed by Peter Collinson and produced by Harry Alan Towers. This was the second of three versions of Christie's novel to be adapted to the screen by producer Harry Alan Towers. Two film adaptations were previously released. An American made-for-television version was broadcast in 1959. Towers produced a third version in 1989.

<i>The Thief</i> (1952 film) 1952 American film noir crime film directed by Russell Rouse

The Thief is a 1952 American film noir crime film directed by Russell Rouse and starring Ray Milland. The film is noted for having no spoken dialogue; the only verbal communication present in the film is represented through closeup shots of two telegrams.

<i>The 39 Steps</i> (1935 film) 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock

The 39 Steps is a 1935 British spy thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Robert Donat and Madeleine Carroll. It is loosely based on the 1915 novel The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan. It concerns a Canadian civilian in London, Richard Hannay, who becomes caught up in preventing an organisation of spies called "The 39 Steps" from stealing British military secrets. Mistakenly accused of the murder of a counter-espionage agent, Hannay goes on the run to Scotland and becomes tangled up with an attractive woman, Pamela, while hoping to stop the spy ring and clear his name.

<i>Background to Danger</i> 1943 film by Raoul Walsh

Background to Danger is a 1943 World War II spy thriller film starring George Raft and featuring Brenda Marshall, Sydney Greenstreet, and Peter Lorre.

<i>Madhouse</i> (1974 film) 1974 British film

Madhouse is a 1974 British-American horror film directed by Jim Clark for Amicus Productions in association with American International Pictures. It stars Vincent Price, Natasha Pyne, Peter Cushing, Robert Quarry, Adrienne Corri, and Linda Hayden. The film was based on the 1969 novel Devilday by Angus Hall. The film's alternate title is The Revenge of Dr. Death.

<i>Odette</i> (1950 film) 1950 British film

Odette is a 1950 British war film based on the true story of Special Operations Executive French agent, Odette Sansom, living in England, who was captured by the Germans in 1943, condemned to death and sent to Ravensbrück concentration camp to be executed. However, against all odds she survived the war and testified against the prison guards at the Hamburg Ravensbrück trials. She was awarded the George Cross in 1946; the first woman ever to receive the award, and the only woman who has been awarded it while still alive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucie Mannheim</span> German singer and actress

Lucie Mannheim was a German singer and actress.

<i>Candlelight in Algeria</i> 1944 British film

Candlelight in Algeria is a 1944 British war film directed by George King and starring James Mason, Carla Lehmann and Raymond Lovell. The story is loosely based on an October 1942 secret conference in Cherchell, Algeria between American general Mark W. Clark and a group of high-ranking Vichy French commanders. At the conference, the Vichy French commanders agreed to not resist the Operation Torch landings in Vichy France-controlled French North Africa that occurred one month later.

<i>Secret Mission</i> 1942 British film

Secret Mission is a 1942 British war film directed by Harold French and starring Hugh Williams, James Mason, Nancy Price, Carla Lehmann and Roland Culver.

<i>The Spider</i> (1945 film) 1945 crime film directed by Robert D. Webb

The Spider is a 1945 American crime film noir directed by Robert D. Webb and starring Richard Conte, Faye Marlowe, and Kurt Kreuger.

<i>Rough Shoot</i> 1953 film by Robert Parrish

Rough Shoot, released in the USA as Shoot First, is a 1953 British thriller film directed by Robert Parrish and written by Eric Ambler, based on the 1951 novel by Geoffrey Household. The film stars Joel McCrea, in his only postwar non-Western role, with Evelyn Keyes as the leading lady, and featuring Herbert Lom, Marius Goring and Roland Culver. The scenario is set in Cold War England when tensions ran high regarding spying.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Miller (actor)</span> Czech actor

Martin Miller, born Johann Rudolph Müller was a Czech-Austrian character actor. He played many small roles in British films and television series from the early 1940s until his death. He was best known for playing eccentric doctors, scientists and professors, although he played a wide range of small, obscure roles—including photographers, waiters, a pet store dealer, rabbis, a Dutch sailor and a Swiss tailor. On stage he was noted in particular for his parodies of Adolf Hitler and roles as Dr. Einstein in Arsenic and Old Lace and Mr. Paravicini in The Mousetrap.

<i>Master Spy</i> 1963 British film about a Soviet defector

Master Spy,, is a 1963 British spy film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Stephen Murray, June Thorburn and Alan Wheatley. The film was based on the short story "They Also Serve" by Gerald Anstruther and Paul White.

<i>The November Man</i> 2014 spy thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson

The November Man is a 2014 spy action thriller film based on the novel There Are No Spies by Bill Granger, which is the seventh installment in The November Man novel series, published in 1987. A British-American production, it stars Pierce Brosnan, Luke Bracey and Olga Kurylenko, with Bill Smitrovich and Will Patton also appearing, with the screenplay written by Michael Finch and Karl Gajdusek. The film is directed by Roger Donaldson, who previously worked with Brosnan on Dante's Peak. The film was released on August 27, 2014 in the United States.

<i>Epitaph for a Spy</i>

Epitaph for a Spy is a 1938 spy novel by Eric Ambler.

References

  1. 1 2 "Hotel Reserve: Detail View". American Film Institute . Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 Hutchinson, Tom. "Hotel Reserve". Radio Times . Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  3. "Hotel Reserve (1944)". AllMovie . Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  4. "Hotel Reserve (1943)". British Film Institute . Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  5. Schwartz, Dennis. "Hotel Reserve". Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  6. "Hotel Reserve (1945)". Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved 3 November 2022.