Review of The Safecracker

I just watched this film, which surely has not any pretensions to be a major spy or war or even police story, and for this reason the mistakes about the types of cars or planes etc that have been mentioned, do not affect me personally. I would not be able to spot them,anyway, my attention was concentrated elsewhere. This film seemed to me as an interlude rather than a musical symphony, a short chapter than a full book, some verses from a longer poem... Despite the smaller scale, though, the film touched a sensitive cord for some of its viewers! I suspect, moreover, that its intention was not to be touching: Very abstractedly, almost like a play by Albert Camus, it relates how this man lost his freedom first, and then his very life, not because he was greedy for money or power, but because of his love for beauty, wherever it may be found, fine art, a car, a woman... This love, implanted in him quite unaccountably, and in direct contrast to his average social background and financial situation, alienated him from everyone, and so he kept silent about it. While others who could afford it, paid huge sums of money with utter nonchalance,(but without any personal risk), to illegally possess a rare art object, he had to steal it, risk his freedom for it. This became an obsession, he could not stop, so he was finally caught, and put to prison. When British intelligence requested his skills as a Safecracker to snatch military secrets from the enemy, he accepted, but not out of patriotism.He was totally indifferent to war, arm service, ranks, heroism, discipline and such notions. He just wanted to be liberated from prison, so he went along with the project, but with his mind elsewhere... And when the mission was accomplished, he delayed there, to steal a last piece of fine art, and was shot by a German. No matter, he was happy to die holding that "beauty" in his hands ... Equally happy was his mother, when she was informed of his "heroism" by the army officials... Neither she, nor them, were ever able to understand him! Ray Milland is excellent in the role of this dreamer, creating a fine portrait of the rather complex hero, while never over-dramatizing. The film was shot on 1958, Ray was 51 years old then, always very handsome and impressive, more so than many of much younger age. As he has said himself, he was obliged to play the lead in the films he wanted to direct, and I would not have it any other way! As a director, he once again keeps a perfect pace,very easy to follow, not too quick, not too slow, like narrating a charming story, and he does this in such an unaffected way! It is a special film,a little out of the ordinary, difficult to put a label to or file it in a genre , but 100% worth seeing, so I recommend it to all lovers of beauty and to all fans of beautiful films! I only deduct 1 point from it, for not paying full attention to car and plane models...