Review of Decision Before Dawn (1951) by Nik B — 19 Apr 2010

A WWII flick with a twist. We start in at an American base with many German prisoners of war. With many Germans already facing defeat and disillusionment, the US finds a way to recruit many of them to infiltrate the German army as spies for America. The movie is flimed entirely in Europe, which leads to some authenticity and interest. It's not quite the technicolor travelogue of "King Solomon's Mines", or even your average Elvis flick; but still.

We meet one scallywag. A thief with Rutger Hauer type of swagger, he's sent on one then two missions and then we don't see him anymore. I wouldn't mind if he was just a set up to introduce the scenery, but it seemed like an interesting storyline that went away. Then we leave the camp all together and follow a new kid on his behind-enemy-lines trek through Germany. His mission is to find a secret base which will surrender to the Americans if they can find it.

On his way, we meet some interesting characters. A sympathetic whore. An evil Nazi captain. There's a scene in a bar that's somewhat reminiscent of the bar scene in Inglourious Basterds. Same tension. It was an interesting view of the war. A guy who has sentimentality for his homeland while still staying true to his beliefs. Our hero was a traitor; the moral lesson was a gray one.