FIVE FINGERS (1952: Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz)
Actor James Mason was the perfect cinematic spy. Exuding natural charm and elegance, as well as being blessed with a voice as smooth as crushed velvet, Mason was born for big-screen espionage. His first foray as an agent was in the British film Candlelight in Algeria (1944), but this was a cheap B picture made for wartime audiences, and Mason was still learning his on-camera craft. It wasn't until the early Fifties, after coming to Hollywood and achieving success with The Desert Fox (1951), that Mason got his first crack at an espionage role of depth, that despite his working-class origins, perfectly suited his cultivated English aspirations. As the real-life Turkish mole code-named Cicero, Mason delivers a masterclass in moral turpitude as the British Embassy valet who sold Allied war plans to the Nazis. Written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, one of Hollywood's most respected intellects, the film provides scene after scene of thrilling literate suspense, galvanized by Mason's greedy cunning. His reputation as a consummate screen performer was now established and his future in America secured. DVD REGION 1 & 2
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