A young man accused of sabotage goes on the run to prove his innocence.A young man accused of sabotage goes on the run to prove his innocence.A young man accused of sabotage goes on the run to prove his innocence.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
- Philip Martin aka Mr. Miller
- (as Vaughan Glazer)
- Fat Woman - Circus Troupe
- (as Marie Le Deaux)
- Lorelei - Circus Troupe
- (as Anita Bolster)
- Siamese Twin
- (as Jeanne Romer)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSir Alfred Hitchcock's original cameo was cut by order of the censors. He and his secretary played deaf pedestrians. When Hitchcock's character made an apparently indecent proposal to her in sign language, she slapped his face. A more conventional cameo in front of a drugstore was substituted.
- GoofsAt the beginning, a soda-ash fire extinguisher is filled with gasoline. Soda-ash units are pressurized when they're turned upside down. This opens a stopper, releasing sulfuric acid into the water which is mixed with baking soda. This results in a large amount of carbon dioxide being generated, pressurizing the canister. Without this gas the gasoline would hardly come out.
- Quotes
Barry Kane: You can't get away with this, Tobin! Even if I don't stop you, there will be others that will. A man like you can't last in a country like this.
Charles Tobin: Very pretty speech - youthful, passionate, idealistic. You see I've already sent for the police.
Barry Kane: You can't bluff me. You're hooked and you know it.
Charles Tobin: Must I remind you that *you* are the fugitive from justice and not I. I'm a promient citizen, widely respected. You are an obscure young workman, wanted for the committing of an extremely unpopular crime. Now which of us do you think the police will believe?
- Crazy creditsRather than finishing with "The End", the word "Finis" appears. This is perhaps an allusion to the fall of France, which is referred to in Pat's conversation with Fry inside the Statue of Liberty.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Making of 'Psycho' (1997)
- SoundtracksTonight We Love
(uncredited)
Music from "Piano Concerto in B Flat Minor" by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Music adapted by Freddy Martin and Ray Austin
Lyrics by Bobby Worth
Sung by the men in the car
Others include "Young and Innocent", "Saboteur", "Spellbound", "Stage Fright", "Strangers on a Train", "I Confess", "To Catch a Thief", "The Wrong Man", "North by Northwest", and finally "Frenzy". "Saboteur" starts Robert Cummings as Barry Kane, a wartime aircraft plant worker during wartime accused of murdering his co-worker and best friend during an act of sabotage on the plant. He meets up with model Patricia Martin, played by actress Priscilla Lane, during his run from the law, and later, of course, the various Nazi/Fascist sympathizers along the way.
"Saboteur" is mainly like "The 39 Steps", even including similar plot devices such as handcuffs, the blonde who doesn't trust the main character in the beginning, a race across the country (in one case London to Scotland, and in the other California to New York), and meeting the "colorful" locals along the way. And so, just like "The Man Who Knew Too Much", I believe this is an American remake of one of Hitchcock's earlier works.
I think Robert Cummings was chosen because he comes across as a very ordinary American, sort of an "everyman" with whom the audience can identify. I like Priscilla Lane because her character is a more involved in the action than Madeline Carroll in "The 39 Steps" and Ruth Roman in "Strangers on a Train". As mentioned elsewhere, though, Otto Kruger steals the show as the villain. I also liked Vaughan Glaser's performance as the blind uncle; his lines are great. There are some funny touches all along the way for some comic relief, such as road signs featuring Priscilla Lane's character on them, and circus sideshow performers, and the truck driver, Murray Alper. Contrary to other opinions here, there aren't too many characters who believe Barry Kane's innocence immediately.
There are some slow parts, mainly when the action first moves to New York, but it picks up quickly when the last planned act of the fifth columnists gets underway.
It's one of my favorite films from Hitchcock (I put it in my top 5), especially in these days of the new war on terrorism. I think it hits home.
It makes you think, "Could my coworker be involved in something evil?" In fact, one of the movie posters for "Saboteur" proclaimed "Watch Out for the Man behind your back!" Imagine how that played in the mind of adults during the Second World War.
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Saboteure
- Filming locations
- Hoover Dam, Arizona-Nevada Border, USA(known as Boulder Dam when filmed)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross worldwide
- $110
- Runtime1 hour 49 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1