Eye of the Needle *** (1981, Donald Sutherland, Kate Nelligan, Christopher Cazenove, Ian Bannen, Stephen MacKenna) – Classic Movie Review 8843

Director Richard Marquand’s 1981 British wartime romantic adventure thriller film Eye of the Needle stars Donald Sutherland, who is on best menacing form as Herr Faber, the deadly Nazi agent who discovers a ruse by the Allies and tries to get the information back to his bosses. With a brisk and efficient screenplay by Stanley Mann, this is a suspenseful movie version of Ken Follett’s bestseller.

Despite his unlikely casting as a German spy, Sutherland is excellent, and he is well matched by Kate Nelligan as Lucy, the British housewife living on a remote island off the Scottish coast, who has a dalliance with him while he waits to be picked up after he is washed ashore during a storm.

Eye of the Needle is rather well done by director Marquand, who had two big hits with Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi and Jagged Edge, but died of a stroke on 4 September 1987, aged 49. His final film was Hearts of Fire (1987).

Also in the cast are Christopher Cazenove, Ian Bannen, Alex McCrindle, Phillip Martin Brown, Stephen McKenna, George Belbin, Faith Brook, Barbara Graley, Arthur Lovegrove, Colin Rix, David Hayman, Barbara Ewing, Chris Jenkinson, Bill Fraser, Sam Kydd (in his final cinema movie), John Paul, Rik Mayall and Bill Nighy.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8843

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com