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The Deadly Affair

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The Deadly Affair

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Summary

Spy drama based on John le Carré's novel Call for the Dead, starring James Mason and Simone Signoret. Investigating the apparent suicide of a diplomat, a British intelligence officer is warned by his superiors not to delve too deeply. He decides to continue his enquiries on an unofficial basis.

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IMDB

Review

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

David Parkinson

James Mason worked regularly with Sidney Lumet on both stage and television, but this gripping adaptation of John le Carré's novel Call for the Dead was their first film collaboration. Mason gives a studied performance as the intelligence officer (George Smiley in the original book, but renamed Charles Dobbs here) investigating the suspicious suicide of a diplomat. Director Lumet expertly weaves Mason's deplorable domestic situation into the equation, coaxing an unsympathetic portrayal from Harriet Andersson as his promiscuous wife. Simone Signoret and Maximilian Schell are less inspired in their roles, but the ever-dependable Harry Andrews is on bristling form as a no-nonsense copper.

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6.7/10

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Credits

Cast

rolenameCharles DobbsJames MasonElsa FennanSimone SignoretDieter FreyMaximilian SchellAnn DobbsHarriet AnderssonInspector MendelHarry AndrewsBill ApplebyKenneth HaighVirginLynn RedgraveAdam ScarrRoy KinnearAdviserMax AdrianSamuel FennanRobert Flemyng

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Crew

rolenameDirectorSidney Lumet

Details

Theatrical distributor

Columbia Picture Corp. Ltd

Released on

1967-04-07

Languages

English

Guidance

Contains some violence and swearing.

Available on

video, DVD and Blu-ray

Formats

Colour

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