LeonLouisRicci Odd Combination of Wartime Espionage, Political Intrigue, Nationalism, Film-Noir, and Slapstick. Not Surprisingly Not All of it Worked so Well. Deborah Kerr is an Irish Beauty who Hates the Brits and is Loathsome of Cromwell (much humor is made of this) and is Out to Join the IRA for Some Payback.It's Convoluted Plot Waivers, Confuses, and the Humor Never Meshes. This is One that the Parts are Better than the Whole. Trevor Howard is a Doting and Bland Waste and has a Lot of Screen Time and that Doesn't Help. The Nazi Spies are the Best Part and the Scenes where They are in Full Evil Mode are what Keeps the Movie Afloat. Along with the Effervescent Kerr.Only the Brits Could Find a Horse and Buggy Chase (this is WWII not Sherlock Holmes) Very Exciting and the Bathroom Fight in the End is Just Out of Place and Embarrassing. Overall, Worth a Watch for Kerr, but Film-Noir, Spy, and WWII Fans are Likely to be Divided. Offbeat and Historically Interesting Enough to be Something Special, but as Entertainment and a Full Fledged Film, Not So Much.

sabre-cc Isn't she just absolutely gorgeous! This is an amazing example of film noir that also manages to include a good deal of humour - ironically about times and events that were not particularly humorous. Debora Kerrs character is a beautiful and somewhat naive young lady - but decidedly full of spirit! and operating on the philosophy that 'my enemy's enemy must be my friend'. The film is supported with the introduction of a wide range of characters as the film unfolds. Viewed many times, I could always do so again. For location buffs - The English town scenes are filmed at Dunster (Somerset)- The medieval yarn market is clearly visible in the background, and I adore her assertion that, 'it all depends which side I'm being neutral on!' Perfect.

blanche-2 Deborah Kerr is a determined Irish lass who hates the British and Oliver Cromwell in "I See a Dark Stranger," a 1946 film also starring Trevor Howard and Raymond Huntley. There are also a couple of names in the cast worth noting and watching for: Celia Johnson (The Ladykillers) and Joan Hickson, a well-known Miss Marple is uncredited as a hotel manager.Kerr also narrates the thoughts of her character, Bridey, as she leaves her small town for Dublin in 1944, when she turns 21, determined to join the Irish Republican Army. She is rebuffed but eventually recruited by a German spy. Bridey goes to work at a pub near a British prison for the military. She winds up with a valuable document and, since her contact is dead, she has no idea what to do with it. The Germans are after her and later, so are the bumbling police. On top of this, she has a British officer (Howard) who likes her and seems to be following her around.If you're British or Irish and watch this film, especially if you know something about the British and Irish in World War II, this film will resonate with you in a way that it cannot for Americans. Ireland did not support the British in the war; they remained neutral. That was the country itself. The people in it were divided. The militant part of the IRA bombed different parts of England with the help of the Nazis, for instance. Also, Eamon DeValera, for all the neutrality, didn't want Nazi agents in Ireland and had them arrested."I See a Dark Stranger" vacillates between comedy and drama easily, aided by Kerr's dead serious performance which makes some of the moments even funnier. Bridey has no sense of humor. She's great because an advance by a man doesn't just insult her - it infuriates her - and all of her emotions are that way. The last moment of the film made me laugh out loud. Her thought process told in narration is wonderful. In this movie, she reminds me very much of Maureen O'Hara who often had that same no-nonsense air about her. Trevor Howard gives a performance which offsets Kerr's intensity very well.A young beauty when she made this, this film apparently brought Kerr to the attention of Hollywood as it should have. If you're a fan of hers, don't miss this delightful early performance in this very good movie.

whpratt1 Enjoyed seeing how young Deborah Kerr appeared in this picture at the age of twenty-four years. Deborah plays the role as Birdie Quilty who works in her families pub in England and heard all kinds of stories told by people who visited the pub about how Ireland fought against the British years ago and she starts to form a hated toward the English Government. Birdie becomes of age and wants to go to Dublin, Ireland to live and work and she meets up with some very strange people who have listened to Birdie talk about England and they decide to utilize her hatred towards the British Nation for their own benefits. Birdie finds herself in some very difficult situations until she meets up with a British Lt. David Baynes, (Trevor Howard) who seems to fall madly in love with Birdie at first seeing her and on other dates, it becomes serious. However, Birdie has so many dark secrets that she does not want to show any affections towards David and this still does not stop David from following her from one country to another. This is a very great film with plenty of funny moments and at other times can be very dark and mysterious. Enjoy.