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Ministry of Fear

Ministry of Fear

1944
Drama, Suspense/Thriller
1h 26m
Stephen Neale is released into WWII England after two years in an asylum, but it doesn't seem so sane outside either... (imdb)
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Ministry of Fear

1944
Drama, Suspense/Thriller
1h 26m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 58.6% from 284 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(284)
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Rated 11 Oct 2009
84
77th
Wonderful noirish crime thriller that keeps the audience guessing and plays on fears and suspicions. The characters could use more depth but it's an acceptable tradeoff for the brisk pace. The biggest problem is the ending, which is abrupt and contains 10 seconds of the most obviously tacked on footage I've ever seen. The cut is completely jarring, the tone and visuals are completely off and a cheesy joke is thrown in for no reason.
Rated 06 May 2010
72
63rd
There are some great moments in this otherwise by-the-numbers espionage thriller making it somewhat memorable.
Rated 20 Feb 2011
80
81st
too hurry in its ending.
Rated 04 Apr 2011
77
60th
"Wrong man" spy thriller very much in the vein of Hitchcock, or Lang's previous Spione. Calling this noir is a big stretch, but it's a fun little adventure that moves briskly and keeps you guessing. Ray Milland is good, the rest of the cast a little uninspiring but they manage. Pretty lousy score, but some mighty fine camerawork. A couple of minor disappointments: there could be more of a psychological angle, and the coda involves a dumb bit of a comedy. Overall, slight but very enjoyable.
Rated 02 Jan 2014
75
41st
A lean, well-shot but somewhat underwhelming spy thriller. Lang of course has a great eye so the film looks great, and there are some memorable scenes involving some odd plot devices (there's a really cool seance scene that feels right out of one of Lang's 20s films), but it just isn't taut or thrilling enough to make a huge impact.
Rated 24 Jan 2016
68
69th
The first half of this thriller was taunt, mysterious and exciting, on the same level as Hitchcock. However after the apartment bombing it started to lose focus and intensity. The ending is a bit rushed and somewhat unsatisfying.
Rated 01 Mar 2016
4
74th
In many cases it is worth comparing Lang to Hitchock, only to find the most important juxtapositions are where they differ. Hitchcock's wartime thrillers are morally signposted, with unambiguous heroes and villains. Lang's vision is of twisted perspectives and nightmarish logic. With Ministry of Fear, propaganda goes down a very sinister rabbit hole. A not-so-innocent Ray Milland caught up in an uncertain underworld, a dark and expressionist spell that recalls the filmmaker's early masterworks.
Rated 31 Mar 2017
72
63rd
Lang playing at Hitchcock is great, esp as his "wrong man" gets a touch of madness and actual guilt to his character, a signature move from lang. Pardonia seeps the beginning of the film, though as it progresses it fades. The ending rushes at you but i did enjoy the energy of the rooftop shootout. This being my first hollywood Lang film i can't help but notice he appears to have streamlined and softened the dark, moody, mildly unnerving style of his german films.
Rated 29 Apr 2018
70
45th
Considering the film started off with Milland getting released from a mental asylum I expected more paranoia and madness, but it was (a bit) disappointingly tame. Still, it kept my interest, had some twists and turns, and was a delight to watch on the visual level. Lang's cinematography mesmerizes me. Too bad Reynolds is wretched in her portrayal of an Austrian. And the final scene was completely ill-conceived.
Rated 25 Dec 2007
80
74th
Good--and maybe the best thing about it is the title. (The book is very good too.)
Rated 03 Feb 2008
90
86th
Fun, very well acted suspense thriller
Rated 26 Nov 2009
60
62nd
Classic
Rated 20 Dec 2009
86
71st
Excellent spy thriller with paranoid atmsophere.
Rated 02 May 2010
58
48th
It starts out so strange and mysterious, with a series of such weird sequences about a séance and a pretend blind man stealing a cake from the protagonist who won it in a charity fair. The war is a backdrop to this foreboding, ambiguous weirdness. It then evolves into a fairly standard film noir and espionage thriller, which I found disappointing. Everything about it is absurdly unrealistic anyhow, so it might as well have kept away from the clichés and stuck to surreal eccentricity.
Rated 12 Jul 2013
78
67th
Lang, bildiği sularda yüzerken, biz sevenlerini yine şaşırtmıyor. Finali, bir miktar oldu bittiye getirilmiş hissi verse de, bütüne bakıldığında baştan sonra usta bir yönetmen tarafından kotarılmış bir noir soslu II. Dünya Savaşı dönemi paranoyası.
Rated 28 Dec 2013
60
54th
watched: 2013, 2016
Rated 10 Nov 2014
85
89th
The medium session with Hillary Brooke is now one of my favorite scenes of all time! Pure, essential Fritz Lang.
Rated 25 Oct 2015
100
0th
"But you don't always see what everyone else is seeing." http://illusionpodcast.blogspot.com/2015/06/episode-63-films-noir-of-fritz-lang.html
Rated 25 Mar 2016
48
19th
Hollywood Lang has never completely convinced me, and Ministry of Fear is no exception. Lacking the sense of invention of his classic silent German films, Ministry of Fear features a rote noir plot that contains little in the way of surprise. Visually it's nothing special either, recycling techniques from his earlier better films to lesser effect. It's a shame as it gets off to a decent start, but the mysterious atmosphere is sidelined in favour of routine plot mechanics.
Rated 17 Sep 2016
73
56th
Great start, rubbish ending. Hard to rate.
Rated 19 Jan 2018
40
38th
Set against the London Blitz of the winter of 1940-1, this is a visual treat of the highest calibre, but the pacing is uneven, and there should be a lot more tension in some of the scenes.
Rated 20 Feb 2019
82
14th
81.50
Rated 10 Apr 2019
70
96th
Fritz Lang directs a thrilling film. Some slow spots and the climax wasn't handled as well as the build-up, but that doesn't stop Ministry of Fear (1944) from becoming a exciting Nazi spy hunt with cakes and bombs!
Rated 06 Oct 2019
78
63rd
The concept of an innocent man getting mixed up in criminal activity is enlarged here with a wartime theme. The first hour is mostly very good and the pace holds up until the poor ending which could've been something completely different.
Rated 01 Jan 2020
83
73rd
Há 75 estreava em Los Angeles. Pensa numa estória que cairia como uma luva para Hitchcock, Ainda bem que caiu em mãos não menos apropriadas do que a do Lang, diria que em Hitch talvez haveria mais humor, o que não deixa esse filme menos excelente. BlurayRip no MakingOff.
Rated 16 May 2020
80
45th
Not Lang's best, but it is still so pretty.
Rated 31 Mar 2021
85
59th
Viewed March 24, 2021.
Rated 27 Apr 2021
81
66th
A good time, love the expressionist flourishes.
Rated 16 Jun 2021
60
50th
A breezy, well-mannered little thriller.
Rated 22 Jun 2022
73
49th
Well structured Nazi conspiracy thriller with some very good scenes. The séance scene is fantastic and I wonder how they did some of the lighting for it. Some parts are predictable but others are legitimate surprises as the somewhat (okay, pretty) convoluted plot resolves itself. Acting solid but unspectacular. Entertaining watch, which is no surprise from Lang.
Rated 09 Sep 2022
65
42nd
It’s unfortunate that Ministry of Fear's closing line is so jarringly comical, delivering a punchline to be ashamed of; but it barely robs the film of anything more than it already lost by shooting at the middle of the road. Overall, it’s enjoyable enough, but undeniably a disappointment. However, if you’re a fan of Greene's novel, of Lang or of the genre, I’d still say it’s worth a look.

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