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The Iron Curtain ()

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The story of Soviet cypher-clerk Igor Gouzenko who was posted to the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa,Canada in 1943 and defected in 1945 to reveal the extent of Soviet espionage activities directed against Canada.
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Cast verified as complete

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Igor Gouzenko
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Anna Gouzenko
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Nina Karanova
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John Grubb, aka 'Paul'
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Mrs. Albert Foster
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Col. Ilya Ranov
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Dr. Harold Preston Norman, aka 'Alec'
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Maj. Semyon Kulin
Frederic Tozere ...
Col. Aleksandr Trigorin (as Frederic Tozère)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leslie Barrie ...
Editor (uncredited)
Noel Cravat ...
Bushkin (uncredited)
Anne Curson ...
Helen Tweedy, aka 'Nellie' (uncredited)
Helena Dare ...
Capt. Kulin (uncredited)
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Secretary to the Minister of Justice (uncredited)
Michael Dugan ...
Policeman (uncredited)
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Narrator (uncredited)
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Leonard Leitz (uncredited)
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Andrei Gouzenko (uncredited)
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RCMP Officer Murphy (uncredited)
John Shay ...
Lt. Josef Sergeyev (uncredited)
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Bailiff with Hollis (uncredited)
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Radio Commentator (uncredited) (voice)
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Spy on Trial (uncredited)
Joe Whitehead ...
William W. Hollis (uncredited)
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Cipher Lt. Vinikov (uncredited)
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Capt. Donald P. Class (uncredited)

Directed by

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William A. Wellman

Written by

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Milton Krims ... (screenplay)
 
Igor Gouzenko ... (personal story)

Produced by

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Sol C. Siegel ... producer

Cinematography by

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Charles G. Clarke ... director of photography

Editing by

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Louis R. Loeffler ... (as Louis Loeffler)

Art Direction by

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Mark-Lee Kirk
Lyle R. Wheeler ... (as Lyle Wheeler)

Set Decoration by

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Thomas Little

Costume Design by

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Bonnie Cashin

Makeup Department

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Ben Nye ... makeup artist
Dick Smith ... makeup artist (uncredited)
Marie Walter ... hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management

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Robert R. Snody ... production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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William Eckhardt ... assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department

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Donald P. Desmond ... set construction (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Bernard Freericks ... sound
Harry M. Leonard ... sound

Visual Effects by

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Fred Sersen ... special photographic effects

Camera and Electrical Department

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Walter Fitchman ... grip (uncredited)
Lou Kunkel ... camera operator (uncredited)
Ray Nolan ... still photographer (uncredited)
Frank Serjack ... still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Charles Le Maire ... wardrobe director
Sam Benson ... wardrobe supervisor (uncredited)

Music Department

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Aram Khachaturyan ... composer: selected works by (as Aram Khachaturian)
Nicolas Miaskovsky ... composer: selected works by
Alfred Newman ... conductor
Sergei Prokofiev ... composer: selected works by (as Serge Prokofieff)
Dmitri Shostakovich ... composer: selected works by

Script and Continuity Department

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Stanley Scheuer ... script supervisor (uncredited)

Additional Crew

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Darryl F. Zanuck ... presenter
Serge Bertensson ... technical advisor (uncredited)
Crew believed to be complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

Soviet soldier turned bureaucrat Igor Gouzenko is assigned to his first overseas posting in 1943 to Ottawa, Canada, as a cipher clerk for the military attaché, their offices in a secret wing of the Soviet embassy. Igor is not to tell anyone what he does for a living, he given a cover story which he is to recite even when questioned by his own people. He and his wife Anna Gouzenko are supposed to be cordial to their Canadian neighbors and associates, but not fraternize or befriend them, as they are still considered the enemy, despite both countries being on the same side in the war. Igor follows his instructions to a T, but it is more difficult for Anna, who does not have the distraction of work during the day, and who can see that their neighbors are not their enemies but good people much like themselves. Over the next few years, Igor sees that what is happening around him and the work in which he is involved will not result in a world in which he wants to raise his newborn son, Andrezj. As such, the Gouzenkos decide not to return to the Soviet Union. Besides defecting, Igor wants to expose what he is privy to, namely that there is a secret Soviet spy ring operating in Canada, which is comprised of people in authority, such as Canadian military personnel and elected officials. The spy ring's biggest project is to provide the Soviet government with secrets concerning the atomic bomb. Igor being able to get the necessary papers out of the embassy will be difficult enough, especially as he, Anna and Andrezj have been notified that the posting has concluded and that they are scheduled to return to the Soviet Union, but proving his claim to someone in authority in Canada who will listen before the Soviets discover what he is doing is a whole different matter. Written by Huggo

Plot Keywords
Taglines What Was Behind Their Mission... THIS TERROR? See more »
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Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • Behind the Iron Curtain (United States)
  • Le rideau de fer (France)
  • El telón de acero (Spain)
  • 铁幕装置 (China, Mandarin title)
  • 铁幕 (China, Mandarin title)
  • See more »
Runtime
  • 87 min
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Filming Locations

Did You Know?

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Trivia The music in the film became the subject of a minor but telling episode in the Cold War. Alfred Newman, the illustrious head of the 20th Century-Fox music department, scored this picture. It's not readily known who decided to incorporate genuine Soviet music into the film, but Newman's score featured compositions by the USSR's finest: Dmitri Shostakovich, Sergei Prokofiev, Aram Khachaturyan and Dominik Miskovský. All four composers signed (or were ordered to sign) a letter of protest that claimed their music was appropriated via a "swindle" in order to accompany this "outrageous picture". No individuals were named, except "the agents of the American Twentieth Century-Fox Corporation". None of the composers would have had the opportunity to have seen the movie, thus it is to be assumed that they were put up to this protestation by the Stalin regime. Interestingly, the four "protesting" Soviet composers were at that same time under severe scrutiny themselves for composing music that was construed as subversive to the Soviet state, and for a time their heads were on the chopping block. So it's also to be assumed that the four filed this protest as a gesture of their loyalty to Joseph Stalin (or, more likely, to save themselves from being executed). In any case, these composers were often obliged to make statements that they personally had nothing to do with. Coincidentally, Hollywood at this same time was beginning to be scrutinized by the House Un-American Activities Committee for signs of subversion in the United States, resulting its own blacklist. See Slonimsky, Nicolas "Music Since 1900" 5th Ed. p.1066-7. See more »
Goofs The invitation shown from the "Associated Friends of Soviet Russia" requests the "honor" of the recipient's company, and later a newspaper headline reads, "Rumor M.P. To Be Arrested In Spy Probe". As the film takes place in Canada, where British spellings are used, the words should have been spelled "honour" and "rumour". Similarly, a headline in the "The Ottawa Globe" is "R.A.F. Blasts Cologne". British English treats an organization as plural, so it should have been "R.A.F. Blast Cologne". See more »
Movie Connections Featured in Has Anybody Here Seen Canada? A History of Canadian Movies 1939-1953 (1979). See more »
Soundtracks You'll Never Know See more »
Crazy Credits FOREWORD: "This story is based on the Report of the Royal Commission June 27, 1946 and evidence presented in Canadian Courts that resulted in the conviction of ten secret agents of the Soviet government." See more »
Quotes Igor Gouzenko: I'm a very important person, with all kinds of important secrets. Listen, and I will tell you one... my wife is very beautiful.
Nina Karanova: More beautiful than I?
Igor Gouzenko: Hers is a quiet kind of beauty, soft and warm.
Nina Karanova: And mine?
Igor Gouzenko: Your beauty is a thing carved out of granite, with no body or soul.
See more »
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