Yellow Canary (1944)

To me, this movie is perfection.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

After an impressive run for most of 2016,I've been disappointed that the BBC have been showing less of the more obscure RKO creations. Taking a quick look at the film section on BBC iPlayer,I was thrilled to see that they had unearthed a rare RKO British Spy flick,which led to me getting this canary out of the pit.The plot: Going deep undercover for the British, blonde Sally Maitland boards a ship to Canada. On the ship Maitland meets Jan Orlock,who unknown to Maitland has been secretly sent to protect her. During the journey,the ship is stopped by a Nazi heavy cruiser that kidnaps Orlock,which leads to Maitland realising how deep in the pit of espionage this yellow canary is. View on the film:Flying in during the war,director Herbert Wilcox (who would soon get married to the star!) & cinematographer Mutz Greenbaum are unable to fully shake off the limitations of the times,with scenes in trains and chases being played out stage-bound instead of the great outdoors. Working within the limitations, Wilcox and Greenbaum display sharp eyes for building a Spiv atmosphere with stylised shots seeding doubt on who side Sally Maitland is on,from impressive tracking shots that go down every level of the boat,to overlapping shots following Sally's double dealing.Partly based on the real Hitler devotee Unity Mitford,the screenplay by P.M. Bower/Miles Malleson and DeWitt Bodeen delivers a clear message of the British public needing to be on the lookout for Nazis in their midst. Following Wilcox's path,the writers cut through the propaganda with an impressive level of ambiguity Spiv Film Noir,via allowing Sally to swing the pendulum of trust between the Nazis and the British. Pulling the feathers in every scene, Anna Neagle gives a fantastic performance as Sally,thanks to Neagle subtly using facial expressions to give doubt over which side this canary sings for.

***SPOILERS*** So-so WWII spy movie with Nazi admirer Sally Maitland, Anna Neagle, who's really, no kiddin!, working for the British I15 Intelligence Agency trying to get to the bottom of what the Nazis plan to do in bottling up all the British, the US wasn't at war at the time, ships docked in Halifax Harbor. That's by the Nazis planning to duplicate the 1917 explosion in the very same place that almost won them, but not quite, the First World War.Traveling coach on a dinky British freighter to Canada from Liverpool England Sally who's disliked by almost everyone on board, in being pro-German, strikes up a relationship with Polish freedom fighter Capt. Jan Orlack, Albert Lieven, who despite hating the Germans guts, for what they did to his native Poland, sees nothing at all wrong with her being so tight with the Nazi regime and even bragging about meeting and getting wined and dined by non other then Adolph Hitler when she visited Germany back in 1937! As for fellow undercover British intelligence agent the clean cut Let. Commander Jim Garrick, Richard Greene, who compared to the sleazy looking Col. Orlack, she treats him like absolute garbage without knowing that he there to make sure nothing bad happens to her. It's in Halifax that Sally meets Col. Orlack's mom Madame Orlack,Lucie Mannheim, who despite claiming that she lost her entire fortune back in Poland when the Nazis took over the country lives like a queen with all the fixing as well as money the goes alone with royalty: Except for not having paid her electricity bill for the mansion that she resides in!***SPOILERS*** Sally soon finds out that Madam Orlack and her boy Jan are really working for the Nazis and using their cover, as Polish freedom fighters, to help in Hitler's plans to conquer the world starting with the pesky, in not going along with the program, British Empire first. It's here where both Sally and by then reviled to her secret agent Garrick jump into action in alerting the Halifax police as well as I15 British Intelligence Acency of what's about to go down! In the Nazis evil plan to cut the Candadian life line to the UK, by blasting and bottling up Halifax Harbor. Sally ends up getting shot by Madam Orlack's Nazi thugs only to survive when hero of the day Let. Commander Garrick, and about a dozen Halifax policemen, raided the place. As well as Sally having a solid gold and indestructible, due to high quality German ingenuity, cigarette case given to her by non other the Col. Orlack that stopped cold in its tracks the bullet fired at Sally from killing her!

Apart for about five minutes of the film, this was a "thinking man's" pro-Allies propaganda film made during WWII. Unlike so many other similar films, this one has a more interesting plot and many unique plot elements that help it stand above the pack. For once, the film is about a lady--one who apparently is leaving England because of her pro-Nazi sympathies. She evidently wore out her welcome and was moving to Canada to sit out the war. Because she was famous for publicly voicing her sentiments, most of the people on the boat avoid and despise her. Once in Canada, she is recruited to work as a spy for the Nazis and then the film gets even more interesting. So far, so good--the film is intricately written, well-acted and very, very interesting through most of the film.As I mentioned above, there is a MAJOR problem where the writers apparently fell asleep or had a psychotic episode about 3/4 of the way through the movie. Up until then, the main character (played by Anna Nagel) was a very smart lady as were her contacts withing the British secret service. However, shortly after she infiltrates the Nazi gang and is made a member, she meets with a Commander who is known to be a high-ranking secret service member. They meet in a very public place and then later kiss in a hallway. DUH!!! After supposedly spending years cultivating a pro-Nazi persona and withstanding LOTS of public scorn and threats, she does this and thereby might just be letting the Nazis know she really is a double agent! Duh! Fortunately, after this brainless segment, the film does get back on track and races to a fitting conclusion. And overall, a film well worth your time.

This film is pretty typical of the WW II spy genre. Performances are okay but nothing special. Most of the story takes place in Canada, where the RCMP are responsible for catching enemy agents. The entire scenario is very easy to figure out so there are no real surprises as the various characters show their true loyalties. The ending is neatly wrapped up in a satisfying manner.