Man Hunt (1941)

I wanted to but couldn't!

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

For this movie to make sense, you have to understand 2 things. First. the story takes place before England declares war on Germany. Second, at the time the action takes place, England is still appeasing Germany, so the main character would have to be extradited to Germany for his "crime". If you don't understand those 2 points, then you won't understand the overall film.I'm not sure which is stronger here -- the story or the actors. The story is simple -- big game hunter (Walter Pidgeon -- stalks Hitler as he might stalk big game, with no real intent to assassinate him. But then when he has the chance to shoot him, he tries, but is captured just before pulling the trigger. Nazi (George Sanders) has him tortured due to his refusing to sign a confession of his crime. Pidgeon is ultimately pushed off a cliff to make it appear as an accident, but survives the fall and escapes back to England. Sanders and another Nazi -- John Carradine -- stalk him back in England. Can he get away.Walter Pidgeon is superb here. I wonder if this might be his finest role. Joan Bennett, as the female lead...well, I found her very annoying here, and generally I felt she was a decent actress. George Sanders was a true class act, and he is also superb here as the relentless Nazi. John Carradine turns in an electric performance! Ahem. And the annoying young Roddy McDowall is along for the boat ride.I give this film a good, solid "7", and for a war movie (or in this case, a pre-war movie) that's pretty good for me. Recommended!

English hunter Walter Pidgeon is caught by Nazis as he aims his rifle at Hitler. He escapes to London but he's not safe for long as Nazis George Sanders and John Carradine are on his trail. Gripping, exciting WW2 thriller expertly directed by Fritz Lang. One of his best American films. Walter Pidgeon is great. Joan Bennett steals the show as the lively and lovely working class girl who helps him. She was a truly underrated talent. Roddy McDowall is also good in a small part as a boy who is instrumental in helping Pidgeon make it to London. Sanders and Carradine make for great villains. Love the ending. Very cool and fitting.

Captain Alan Thorndike (Walter Pidgeon) is captured by the Nazis after having been caught aiming a rifle at Adolf Hitler. He insists that he wasn't consciously making an assassination attempt, that he was merely a hunter relishing the prospect of taking down "big game". They naturally don't believe him, and try to make him a sign a "confession" that he was acting on behalf of his government. He refuses to sign his name to a lie, and they proceed to torture him and set him up for execution, but he escapes. Soon he makes it back to London, but they continue to pursue him on his home turf. Fortunately, he receives the help of a street waif, Jerry Stokes (Joan Bennett), who quickly overcomes her distrust and becomes quite taken with him. He tries not to put her in harms' way while evading sinister Nazi officials such as the well-spoken Major Quive-Smith (George Sanders).Fritz Langs' wartime film, based on the story by Geoffrey Household, may not suit all tastes because it doesn't actually have a sense of urgency, at least not all the time. It even gets lighthearted and romantic at times, as Alan and Jerry start hitting it off. There still are some wonderfully moody moments, such as Alan managing to sneak onto a ship (where a precocious lad, well played by a very young Roddy McDowall, helps to hide him), and the sequence where a Gestapo thug portrayed by an effectively creepy John Carradine tails Alan into a subway tunnel. You do worry for the safety of Alan, especially when the odds are so stacked against him. Pidgeon does indeed have an interesting "devil may care" quality to him at times, and he and the lovely Bennett do have nice chemistry. Ms. Bennett is appealing playing a "common" type of gal who relishes in the comfort of a mansion at one point. Sanders is excellent, delivering just the right amount of quiet, refined menace.Langs' direction keeps you riveted, especially in the opening few minutes where very little dialogue is spoken. The material may strike some viewers as far-fetched, but in his hands it makes for stylish entertainment.Eight out of 10.

The movie had all the elements which could have made it one of the greatest thriller of all time. Daring assassination attempt which could lead a continent into a war, thrilling escapades, cunning secret service agents following the trails of the wanted. Lang with his natural brilliance in this genre captivates the audience from the very first scene itself. However, unfortunately the taut suspense that the movie builds slacks through the introduction of the romantic angle in the movie. The romantic interludes slows the pace and acts as a dampener. If the screenplay could have pared these excesses of romantic interludes or could have integrated the same in a better way with the main narration of the film, this film could have become, as I said in the beginning, one of the greatest thrillers of all time.