In order to fool the Germans into thinking the Allied invasion of Sicily will take place elsewhere, British Military Intelligence comes up with a cunning ruse.In order to fool the Germans into thinking the Allied invasion of Sicily will take place elsewhere, British Military Intelligence comes up with a cunning ruse.In order to fool the Germans into thinking the Allied invasion of Sicily will take place elsewhere, British Military Intelligence comes up with a cunning ruse.
- Won 1 BAFTA Award
- 2 wins & 4 nominations total
- Larry
- (as Terence Longden)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn this movie, Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu (Clifton Webb) selects a man who had died of pneumonia, because the corpse would need to have similarly damaged lungs if it had really drowned. There is also a very emotional scene where the man's father is persuaded to allow his son to be used for the deception. In fact, a Welsh vagrant, both of whose parents were dead, was used, and his death was due to his committing suicide by ingesting rat poison. It was judged to make it almost impossible to tell that this, rather than drowning, was the real cause of death. The identity of "the man who never was" was a closely guarded secret until 1998, when it was discovered that he was called Glyndwr Michael. His grave in Huelva, Spain (near the beach at Punta Umbria) now uniquely carries both his fictional and real names.
- GoofsWhen the body is delivered to the submarine the naval party on the dock is called to attention by "Shun!" In the Royal Navy this is "Ho!"
- Quotes
[the military needs a dead body for counterintelligence]
Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu: I can assure you that this is an opportunity for your son to do a great thing for England.
The Father: My son, sir, was a Scotsman. Very proud of it.
Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu: I beg your pardon.
The Father: Never mind. We're used to that. You English always talk about England when you mean Britain.
- Crazy creditsMilitary security and respect for a solemn promise have made it necessary to disguise the identity of some of the characters in this film; but in all other essentials this is the true story of "Major William Martin."
- ConnectionsFeatured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!: Episode #1.16 (1983)
- SoundtracksBless 'em All
(uncredited)
Written by Fred Godfrey (1917)
Revised lyrics by Jimmy Hughes and Frank Lake (1940)
Additional lyrics by Al Stillman (1941)
Sung by the patrons of pub
Clifton Webb stars as the British officer who comes up with the scheme of using "The Man Who Never Was" to trick the Germans into weakening their defenses in Sicily before the planned Allied invasion there. Webb gets to show flashes of his well-known screen sarcasm, but in general he gives a good low-key, all-business performance.
The story divides fairly equally into two parts, first showing the careful development and implementation of the plan, and then following a Nazi investigator (played with believable coldness by Stephen Boyd) as he tries to determine the truth about 'Major Martin'.
The first part is particularly filled with interesting details, and the script very nicely fits them all in without seeming slow or boring. The second part gradually builds up tension, and combines it with the seemingly unrelated tensions in the life of Gloria Grahame's character, bringing things together in a good sequence that sets up the finale while also bringing out some worthwhile thoughts that go beyond the story itself. It all works quite well, both as a historical dramatization and as a story of deception and intrigue.
- Snow Leopard
- Jan 16, 2006
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Der Mann, den es nie gab
- Filming locations
- Huelva, Andalucía, Spain(Spanish town and cementery scenes)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.55 : 1