IMDb RATING
6.4/10
1.6K
YOUR RATING
A German spy ring plans to publicize a false rumor that Russia, who is fighting Germany, plans to invade neutral Turkey in order to ally them with the Nazis.A German spy ring plans to publicize a false rumor that Russia, who is fighting Germany, plans to invade neutral Turkey in order to ally them with the Nazis.A German spy ring plans to publicize a false rumor that Russia, who is fighting Germany, plans to invade neutral Turkey in order to ally them with the Nazis.
Rafael Alcayde
- Turkish Husband on Train
- (uncredited)
Nino Bellini
- Turkish Secretary
- (uncredited)
Eumenio Blanco
- Syrian Vendor
- (uncredited)
John Bleifer
- Secretary
- (uncredited)
Walter Bonn
- German Officer
- (uncredited)
Dick Botiller
- Plane Announcer
- (uncredited)
Mary Chan
- Club Patron
- (uncredited)
Jack Chefe
- Elevator Operator
- (uncredited)
Pedro de Cordoba
- Baba
- (uncredited)
Jean De Briac
- Levantine Porter
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThere was an assassination attempt on German ambassador Franz von Papen as depicted in this film. It occurred on February 24, 1942 and was carried out by the Soviet NKVD. However, in reality, the bomb malfunctioned and killed the would-be assassin - he did not get away by car as shown in this film.
- GoofsWhen the train is shown leaving Ankara Station for Istanbul (48 minutes in) you see a bit of stock footage showing a (British) Southern Railway class M7 suburban tank engine running somewhere on the South Eastern and Chatham system which runs between London and Kent.
- Quotes
Nikolai Zaleshoff: How did you know the gun wasn't loaded?
Joe Barton: By its weight.
Nikolai Zaleshoff: There might have been one bullet in it.
Joe Barton: That's the chance I had to take.
Nikolai Zaleshoff: YOU had to take?
- ConnectionsFeatured in Warner at War (2008)
Featured review
Ambler's intrigue turned into pro-Allies propaganda with decent enough cast
During the Second World War years, Hollywood found in the European-intrigue novels of Eric Ambler a pliable resource for converting into thrillers that beat drums for the anti-Axis cause. So, like tanks off an assembly line, rolled Journey into Fear (1942), Background to Danger (1943) and The Mask of Dimitrios (1944). They benefitted from name directors respectively, Orson Welles (at least in part), Raoul Walsh and Jean Negulesco but none of them is particularly remarkable; they're not much more than shortish propaganda programmers.
Background to Danger reunites the sinister but winning Warner Bros. team of Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre, but, instead of the expected Humphrey Bogart as plucky hero, plunks George Raft down in a strange land, this time Turkey, strategically situated at the convergence of the Middle East, the Balkans and the Soviet Union. The plot involves forged maps which Nazi agent Greenstreet hopes to use to foment a panic about plans to invade Turkey by the U.S.S.R., then an Ally, hence destabilizing the region and the balance of power. But Walsh forgoes the depth that a geopolitical perspective might have lent in favor of bombs and handguns, captures and hair's-breadth escapes.
Raft's wooden affect sometimes paid off in the noir cycle (Noctune, Red Light) but here his gaudy patter only makes viewers wish for Bogart. And while Greenstreet reprises his polished, blustering heavy, Lorre gives a droll, airy performance that verges on the comic (clearly, unlike his Gargantuan partner, he didn't take to type-casting). Raft's love interest, playing Lorre's sister, is Brenda Marshall, a.k.a. Mrs. William Holden or Ardis Ankerson, by all accounts a difficult woman but, judging by Strange Impersonation and her few other movies, not a negligible presence. Turhan Bey shows up as Raft's native sidekick, à la From Russia With Love. He brings a final touch of authenticity to the back-lot Ankara and Istanbul, which Walsh, to his credit, takes care to make more vivid than just generically exotic.
Background to Danger reunites the sinister but winning Warner Bros. team of Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre, but, instead of the expected Humphrey Bogart as plucky hero, plunks George Raft down in a strange land, this time Turkey, strategically situated at the convergence of the Middle East, the Balkans and the Soviet Union. The plot involves forged maps which Nazi agent Greenstreet hopes to use to foment a panic about plans to invade Turkey by the U.S.S.R., then an Ally, hence destabilizing the region and the balance of power. But Walsh forgoes the depth that a geopolitical perspective might have lent in favor of bombs and handguns, captures and hair's-breadth escapes.
Raft's wooden affect sometimes paid off in the noir cycle (Noctune, Red Light) but here his gaudy patter only makes viewers wish for Bogart. And while Greenstreet reprises his polished, blustering heavy, Lorre gives a droll, airy performance that verges on the comic (clearly, unlike his Gargantuan partner, he didn't take to type-casting). Raft's love interest, playing Lorre's sister, is Brenda Marshall, a.k.a. Mrs. William Holden or Ardis Ankerson, by all accounts a difficult woman but, judging by Strange Impersonation and her few other movies, not a negligible presence. Turhan Bey shows up as Raft's native sidekick, à la From Russia With Love. He brings a final touch of authenticity to the back-lot Ankara and Istanbul, which Walsh, to his credit, takes care to make more vivid than just generically exotic.
helpful•255
- bmacv
- Nov 14, 2002
- How long is Background to Danger?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Komplott i Ankara
- Filming locations
- Estressin, Vienne, Isère, France(second crew or archive shot of train station at the Syria-Turkey border)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 20 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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