I See a Dark Stranger – 1946 | 98mins | Comedy, Thriller | B&W

Plot Synopsis

Finely crafted espionage thriller in which a feisty Irish girl travels to England to spy for the Germans, but falls in love with an Englishman. Launder and Gilliat’s cleverly plotted Mata Hari yarn is atmospheric and suspenseful with moments of pure slapstick humour during a funeral procession or the disposal of a corpse in a wheelchair. Despite being cruelly neglected perhaps due it’s light-hearted treatment of a politically sensitive subject, I See A Dark Stranger stands up well in comparison with Launder and Gilliat’s earlier scripted thrillers including The Lady Vanishes (1938) and Night Train to Munich (1940).

Set during the Second World War, Bridie (Deborah Kerr) is a strong-minded Irish girl raised to despise the British on the pub tales recounted by her staunchly Republican father. On her 21st birthday she decides to leave Ballygarry and take the train to Dublin and offer to help in the war against the British. On the train to Dublin she meets Miller (Raymond Huntley), a Nazi spy attempting to rescue an accomplice held in detention by the British. In Dublin, Bridie’s wish to join the IRA is greeted with no encouragement but Miller sees that she is an attractive decoy so takes her to the English town of Wynbridge Vale with him as part of the operation to spring Oscar Pryce (David Ward) from custody.

On the day of the breakout, Miller employs Bridie to distract British officer Lt. David Bayne (Trevor Howard) for the afternoon using her feminine wiles. When Miller and the escaped prisoner are killed, Bridie is told that a notebook containing D-Day plans for the Allied invasion is on the Isle of Wight. Realizing the full horrors of how many lives would be lost as a result of her deceit and espionage, Bridie sets off to find and destroy the notebook. Her ideals are further compromised when she begins to fall in love with Lt. Bayne.