MartinHafer I like WWII propaganda films. However, I also will admit that often they lack logic. Their intent was to rouse the folks watching it-- stirring their patriotic fervor, not their intellect. In the case of "Blackout", it's a pretty exciting film but completely illogical from start to finish.The film begins with a Danish* ship awaiting inspection by a British naval patrol. After all, WWII has begun and the Brits are just making sure nothing is getting in or out of the country that would help the Nazis. The Captain of the ship (Conrad Veidt) is cooperative and things seem just fine. However, and here's where the film starts to get stupid, a couple passes which would have allowed him and his first mate to go ashore suddenly go missing--and so do two passengers. Obviously the pair had taken the passes and went ashore. Now anyone with at least 1/2 ounce of brain would think to contact the British authorities to let them know. After all, the two might be German agents. But, since it's a propaganda film, the Captain and his mate sneak ashore and the Captain goes in search of the pair (don't worry, it's only London and it's not like it's one of the largest cities in the world!!! Finding them should be a snap). Does the Captain NOW find a cop or some other authority for help? Nah, he goes out and almost immediately tries to find them....and he DOES find the lady! She almost immediately tries to give him the slip--and yet he STILL does not seek police help!!! This is pretty much what happens throughout the rest of the film-- even when the Captain DEFINITELY discovers a Nazi spy ring. Why bother telling the police when you can take on a group like Nazi spies?! Illogical from start to finish but also find of exciting and fun.*This film is set in 1939--before the Germans took over Denmark. So, when the film occurred, the Danes were still neutral and not involved in the war.

ella-48 One of my favourite P+P outings - but then there are so many of 'em!Where to begin? A delicious feast of a film. A perfectly seasoned mix of pace, humour and suspense - not to mention a surprisingly strong undercurrent of bondage/S+M eroticism for a 1940s British product. (WARNING - SPOILER) A mere 5 minutes in, and in the very first verbal exchange between the two central characters, Captain Andersen (Conrad Veidt) says "Tell me, Mrs Sorensen: have you ever been put in irons?" (/SPOILER)From there on, their fractious, edgy relationship - essentially a battle of wits to find out which shall be the dominant partner and which the submissive - carries a smouldering erotic charge that drives the story and makes it compellingly watchable. Veidt and Hobson make a brilliant double-act: move over, Steed and Mrs. Peel!I won't go on at length about the quirky, typically P+P story elements, the expressionist camera/lighting work or the distinctly Hitchcockian touches (look out for the conversation on the bus, folks), because others have said it far better than I could. Instead, I'll just say...WATCH THIS FILM - YOU WON'T REGRET IT!

writers_reign Never underestimate the power of hype and the willingness of impressionable snobs to praise the mediocre. If people were easily pleased in 1940 it seems little has changed in almost 60 years. I accept that Powell and Pressburger completists will want to see and/or own this film but just because the team turned out a couple of half decent movies doesn't mean that every early effort was gold dust. The year before the same team had enjoyed a minor success - not, surely, that hard in wartime - with the Spy In Black and figured why not team Conrad Veidt and Valerie Hobson again and this time, improbable and unrealistic as it is, have them fall in love in between escaping from a spy ring. All sorts of people pop up here and it's amazing that the likes of Peter Bull, Leon Genn and Bernard Miles went on to appear in anything else let alone enjoy reasonable careers. For completists only.

MARIO GAUCI This is a follow-up to THE SPY IN BLACK (1939) - utilizing the same director, writer and stars - and even better! It's described as a Hitchcockian comedy-thriller - though still every bit an "Archers" product - which only goes to show that the Master Of Suspense lost something by going to the US (the English films being more deliberately stylized); the second of 5 collaborations by the Powell/Pressburger team designed as propaganda for the war effort - each more ambitious and uncharacteristic of the typical British effort than the one before!It's fast-paced and plot-packed, with several marvelous suspense scenes, but also excellent characterization all around - and a splendid cast: Conrad Veidt and Valerie Hobson are supported by a wonderful dual role from Hay Petrie, Esmond Knight, and even early villainous turns by Leo Genn and Peter Bull (dubbed "The Brothers Grimm" by Veidt's Captain Hans Andersen!) - with bits by Torin Thatcher and an especially nice one involving Bernard Miles; The Archers also take care to provide the chief villain (played by Raymond Lovell) with a speech impediment - though not as a means of ridiculing him.The London locations (shot by the great Freddie Young) are superbly deployed - given an extra Expressionist edge by being largely set during a blackout (actually, the film's title in the US). The Archers would come to be known for their occasional drop in taste, already evident here in an interracial cabaret number entitled "White Negro"! The terrific climax involves a chase intercut with a free-for-all.I had long wanted to purchase the R1 DVD but kept postponing it due to the utter lack of extras and the prohibitive price (only managing to get it through Deep Discount's recent sale on Kino products!); still, the transfer is disappointing (and yet the only way the film is available for the moment!): bright, soft and probably PAL sourced (given that the running time is only 87 minutes against the official 92 - the sleeve notes thus making the mistake of stating that it's 8 minutes, rather than 12, longer than the version originally shown in the US!).