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For Quiller, it's a question of staying alive when he's not in possession of all of the facts. The Quiller Memorandum by Adam Hall - Goodreads She claims she turned in the teacher from the article, and points out the dilapidated Phoenix mansion. Read our extensive list of rules for more information on other types of posts like fan-art and self-promotion, or message the moderators if you have any questions. The book is built around a continual number of reveals. People tend to like it because "it's not like the Bond movies"; well, it's not - it's like "The Ipcress File", except that "The Ipcress File" was a genuinely smart and atmospheric movie, while "The Quiller Memorandum" is a clumsy, dated spy thriller full of pseudo-hip dialogue and plot holes. The Quiller Memorandum, British-American spy film, released in 1966, that was especially noted for the deliberately paced but engrossing script by playwright Harold Pinter. Its excellent entertainment. How nice to see you again! and so forth. Also contains one of the final appearences of George Sanders in a brief role, a classic in his own right! youtu.be/rQ4PA3H6pAw. It is very rare that I find anyone else who is even aware of the Quiller books and yet they are as your reviewer mentions, absolutely first class. The Quiller Memorandum (1966) directed by Michael Anderson Reviews It looks like we don't have any synopsis for this title yet. The Quiller Memorandum book. A bit too sardonic at times, I think his character wanted to be elsewhere, clashing with KGB agents instead of ferreting out neo-nazis. Other viewers have said it all: it is a good movie and more interestingly it is a different kind of spy movie. Cue the imposing Max Von Sydow as Nazi head honcho Oktober, whose Swedish accent is inflected with an Elmer Fudd-like speech impedimentthus achieving something like a serviceable German accent. In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate.In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate.In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. Quiller's primary contact for this job is a mid level administrative agent named Pol. Pol dispatches a team to Phoenix's HQ, which successfully captures all of Phoenix's members. The newspaper clipping that Hengel gives to Quiller, in the cafe when they first meet, shows that a schoolteacher called Hans Heinrich Steiner has been arrested for war crimes committed in WW2. Mind you, in 1966-67 the Wall was there, East German border guards and a definite (cold war) cloud hanging over the city. Whats left most open to interpretation is Inges role in all this: was she a Janus-faced Nazi mole who used sex as a weapon to lead Quiller into a trap? Can someone explain it to me? After a pair of their agents are murdered in West Berlin, the British Secret Service for some unknown reason send in an American to investigate and find the location of a neo-Nazi group's headquarters. Studios: The Rank Organisation and Ivan Foxwell Productions, https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Quiller-Memorandum, BFI Screenonline - The Quiller Memorandum (1966), Britmovie.co.uk - "The Quiller Memorandum", The Quiller Memorandum - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Submissions should be for the purpose of informing or initiating a discussion, not just to entertain readers. He calls Inge and arranges to meet. aka: The Quiller Memorandum the first in a series of 19 Quiller books. The films featured secret agent is the very un-British Quiller (George Segal), a slightly depressive American operative on loan to Britains secret services (take that, Bond!). Where to Watch. Slow-moving Cold War era thriller in the mode of "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold," "The Quiller Memorandum" lacks thrills and fails to match the quality of that Richard Burton classic. Director Michael Anderson Writers Trevor Dudley Smith (based on the novel by) Harold Pinter (screenplay) Stars George Segal Alec Guinness Max von Sydow See production, box office & company info This isn't your average James Bond knockoff spy thriller; the fact that the screenplay is by playwright Harold Pinter is the first clue. When Quiller passes out at a traffic stop, the other car pulls alongside and abducts him. Our hero delivers a running dialogue with his own unconscious mind, assessing the threats, his potential responses, his plans. Thought I'd try again and found this one a bit dated and dry - I will persevere with the series, Adam Hall (one of Elleston Trevor' many pseudonyms) wrote many classic spy stories, and this one is considered one of his best. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. Elleston Trevor (pictured) himself was a prolific, award-winning writer, producing novels under a range of pen names nine in total! A handful of engaging spy thrillers followed before the author paused his novels to focus on journalism, although its also worth noting that he has freelanced. International in its scope its contributors include scholars from Australia, Quiller . It's a bit strange to see such exquisitely Pinter-esque dialogue (the laconic, seemingly innocuous sentences; the profound silences; the syntax that isn't quite how real people actually talk) in a spy movie, but it really works. The setting is Cold War-divided Berlin where Quiller tackles a threat from a group of neo-Nazis who call themselves Phoenix. Another isQuillers refusal to carry a weapon hebelieves it lends the operative an over-confidence and cangive the opposition an opportunity to turn your firearm against you. The Quiller Memorandum was based on a novel by Elleston Trevor (under the name Adam Hall). He also works alone and without contacts. The Quiller series is highly regarded by the spy-fiction community, and as strange as it may seem - because I have had most of the books for years - I have never actually read them. ago Just watched it. [3], In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "Clearly, 'The Quiller Memorandum' is claptrap done up in a style and with a musical score by John Barry that might lead you to think it is Art. The novel was titled The Berlin Memorandum and at its centre was the protagonist and faceless spy, Quiller. The casting of George Segal in the lead was a catastrophe, as he is so brash and annoying that one wants to scream. I probably haven't yet read enough to be fully aware of what the typical Quiller characteristics are, but never mindthe key thing is that it was a pacy, intense and thrilling read. He steals a taxi, evades a pursuing vehicle and books himself into a squalid hotel. CIS: The Quiller Memorandum revisited | Crime Fiction Lover It's not my intention to be obnoxious and list every point in the movie that strays from the book, but it's truly a shame that such well-crafted material--intriguing back stories, superior spy tactics--is wasted here. Summaries In the West Berlin of the 1960s, two British agents are killed by a Nazi group, prompting British Intelligence to dispatch agent Quiller to investigate. The intense first person narration which is the defining characteristic of the Quiller books comes into its own during this interrogation scene, and also during the latter chapters of the books as events begin to come to a head. In fact, he is derisory about agents who insist on being armed. As a consequence I was left in some never-never land and always felt I was watching actors in a movie and never got involved. The mission in Berlin is a mess, two of the Bureaus spies have been murdered already by the shadowy Phoenix. 1966's The Quiller Memorandum is a low-key gem, a pared-down, existential spy caper that keeps the exoticism to a minimum. Finally, he is placed in the no-win position of either choosing to aid von Sydow or allowing Berger to be murdered. Its there to tackle the dirty jobs, and Quiller is the Bureaus go-to guy. And of course, no spy-spoof conversation would be complete without mentioning 1967s David Niven-led piss-take on the Bond films, Casino Royale. 1966's The Quiller Memorandum is a low-key gem, a pared-down, existential spy caper that keeps the exoticism to a minimum. Fans of "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" will notice that film's Mr. Slugworth (Meisner) in a small role as the operator of a swim club (which features some memorably husky, "master race" swimmers emerging from the pool.) Quiller slips out though a side door to the small garage yard where his car is kept. Quiller's assignment: to discover the location of the neo-Nazi . Clumsy thriller. Quiller avoids answering Oktober's questions about Quiller's agency, until a doctor injects him with a truth serum, after which he reveals a few minor clues. With what little information the British operatives are able to provide him especially in his most recent predecessor, Kenneth Lindsay Jones, working alone without backup against advice, Quiller decides to take a different but potentially more dangerous tact than those predecessors in showing himself at three places Jones was known to be investigating, albeit in coded terms, as the person who has now taken over the mission from Jones in the probability that the Nazis will try to abduct him for questioning to discover what exactly their opponents know or don't know, and to discover in turn their base of operations in West Berlin. If your idea of an exciting spy thriller involves boobs, blondes and exploding baguettes, then The Quiller Memorandum is probably not for you. Director Michael Anderson Writers Trevor Dudley Smith (based on the novel by) Harold Pinter (screenplay) Stars George Segal Alec Guinness Max von Sydow See production, box office & company info Hall is not trying be a Le Carre, hes in a different area, one he really makes his own. Lindt (Berger) is a school teacher who meets Quiller to translate for him. Corrections? His dry but quick Yiddish humor shines through on many occasions, providing diversions that masquerade his underlying desire to expose the antagonists' machinations. The sentences are generally clipped and abrupt, reminiscent of Simon Kernicks style wherenot a word is wasted, but predating him by a generation. Unfortunately, the film is weighed down, not only by a ponderous script, but also by a miscast lead; instead of a heavy weight actor in the mold of a William Holden, George Segal was cast as Quiller. Don't start thinking you missed something: it's the screenplay who did ! What is the French language plot outline for The Quiller Memorandum (1966)? Drama. Really sad. Although the situations are often deadly serious, Segal seems to take them lightly; perhaps in the decade that spawned James Bond, he was confused and thought he was in a spy spoof.