The connection between Alfred Hitchcock and Fritz Lang is undeniable, and nowhere is this link more apparent than in Lang's 1944 thriller, Ministry of Fear, his most Hitchcockian film.
Ministry of Fear boasts an excellent pedigree, being based on 1943 novel The Ministry of Fear, written by Graham Greene, British author known for his work having been adapted into many great films and the author himself penning the 1949 thriller masterpiece, The Third Man. The novel was written during World War II, which played crucial part in the plot, being set in Britain while it was targetted by German bombers arriving from occupied Europe.
The protagonist, Stephen Neale (played by Ray Milland), is a man with a troubled past, having spent two years in a mental asylum after being convicted for the mercy killing of his terminally ill wife. As he tries to re-enter the noisy London life, he finds himself at a charity event in a small village, where a visit to a fortune teller leads to a cryptic message and a winning cake. The event organizers try to persuade Neale to return the cake, but he refuses, and on the train, a man pretending to be blind (played by Eustace Wyatt) attempts to steal it by force, only to be accidentally killed by a German bomb. Neale, with his criminal record, decides to avoid the police and investigate the matter himself, hiring private investigators and following a trail that leads him to a charity organisation that appears to be a front for a ring of Nazi spies.
Lang demonstrates his superb directorial skills by making the film entirely in Paramount studio sets, yet successfully reconstructing wartime Britain. The black-and-white cinematography by Henry Sharp adds a lot to the film, especially in scenes featuring Lang's masterful use of light and shadow to create suspense. The atmosphere is reminiscent of film noir, with some critics and future film scholars associating it with the genre.
The opening premise of the film is particularly attractive, featuring some very Hitchcockian concepts, such as "the ordinary man in an extraordinary situation" and "the innocent man on the run." The strange coincidence of the protagonist becoming embroiled in a sinister espionage conspiracy is very much like Hitchcock's The 39 Steps.
Ray Milland delivers a nuanced performance as the troubled Neale, an immensely talented actor who would go on to triumph at the Oscars with The Lost Weekend the following year. He has solid chemistry with Marjorie Reynolds, who, while adequate in her role, doesn't quite raise to the standards of Hitchcock’s blondes.
However, Lang fails to recognize serious flaws in the script by Seton I. Miller, which deviates from Greene's original novel due to censorship concerns. The plot becomes too convoluted, with many scenes and characters feeling unnecessary, such as the flirting medium played by Hillary Brooke or the sinister tailor played by Dan Dureya. There are some scenes, like the spiritistic séance, that look like they belong to black comedy, but Lang, for some reason, decides to play the film completely straight. The film loses much of its tempo in the second half, with a rushed and disappointing finale that seems to rush to meet its hour-and-a-half runtime.
While Ministry of Fear is watchable and entertaining enough for viewers accustomed to Classic Hollywood, it represents a disappointment for those expecting a truly Hitchcockian film or something on par with Lang's best works.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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