Ministry of Fear

Innocent? Prove it!

Warning: Spoilers

Ministry Of Fear is directed by Fritz Lang & is adapted for the screen by Seton I. Miller from the Graham Greene novel "The Ministry Of Fear." It stars Ray Milland as Stephen Neale, an ex-insane asylum inmate who is released after a two year sentence for what was allegedly the "mercy" killing of his incurably ill wife. Upon his release Neale buys his train ticket to London but is drawn to a fête being held near the rail station. From here, after a bizarre encounter with a fortune teller and a go at a "guess the weight of the cake" booth, he is thrust into a world of espionage; a world that sees him now have the Nazis on his tail.

The film opens with a ticking clock, the seconds counting d...

Ray Milland is "Stephen Neale" who has recently been released from a psychiatric hospital. On his way back to London he stops off at a village fête where he guesses the weight of a cake correctly - and so has to lug it back on the train with him. When he shares it with a fellow passenger who proceeds to steal the thing, he guesses that there is more to it than just sponge and jam! His subsequent investigations lead him into the midst of a Nazi spy ring which he tries to thwart. Fritz Lang delivers quite a gripping story which Milland holds largely en seul - with a little help from Marjorie Reynolds as "Carla" - and there is just about enough suspense, and guesswork from us required, to sustain it for an hour and a half.