The Iron Curtain (1948)

67% want to see it
(17 ratings)

Another of 20th Century-Fox's "drawn from today's headlines" dramas of the late 1940s, Behind the Iron Curtain (a.k.a. The Iron Curtain) is based on the true-life defection of Soviet Embassy code specialist Igor Gouzenko. Portrayed by Dana Andrews, Gouzenko is brought to Canada under a cloud of… More Another of 20th Century-Fox's "drawn from today's headlines" dramas of the late 1940s, Behind the Iron Curtain (a.k.a. The Iron Curtain) is based on the true-life defection of Soviet Embassy code specialist Igor Gouzenko. Portrayed by Dana Andrews, Gouzenko is brought to Canada under a cloud of secrecy by Russian "special agents", the better to help them in their espionage efforts. Despite the fact that he is far from Russia, Gouzenko is hounded by his suspicious superiors and denied the simplest basic rights. When Gouzenko realizes that his government will soon call him back to Russia to engage in the "class struggle," the code clerk decides to defect, stealing secret information and turning it over to the Canadian Ministry of Justice. At first, Gouzenko is ignored, but when his information is digested by the Canadian government, the authorities round up the Communist spy ring. Gouzenko and his family are put in protective custody by the Canadian government, while several of Gouzenko's Russian superiors are punished by the Communist higher-ups for allowing the clerk to slip through their hands. Filmed in a semi-documentary style, Behind the Iron Curtain is more matter-of-fact and less paranoic than other "Red scare" films of the period. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 27 min.
Directed By: William A. Wellman
Genres: Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense, Classics

Critic Reviews

Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Seems like a museum piece...

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

No Featured Audience Ratings Found…

Cast

            Dana Andrews as Igor Gouzenko

            Leslie Barrie as Editor

            Gene Tierney as Anna Gouzenko

            June Havoc as Karanova

            Berry Kroeger as Grubb

            Helena Dare as Mrs. Kulin

            Edna Best as Mrs. Foster

            Eduard Franz as Major Kulin

            Reed Hadley as Commentator

            Nicholas Joy as Dr. Norman

            Eula Morgan as Mrs. Trigorin

            Christopher Olsen as Andrei

            John Ridgely as Policeman Murphy

            Stefan Schnabel as Ranov

            John Shay as Sergeyev

            Frederic Tozere as Col. Trigorin

            Peter Whitney as Winikov

            Victor Wood as Capt. Class

            Robert Adler as Wilson

            Matthew Boulton as Inspector Burns

            Harry Carter as Fairfield

            Noel Cravat as Bushkin

            Arthur E. Gould-Porter as Mr. Foster

            Mauritz Hugo as Leonard Laetz

            Joe Whitehead as William Hollis

            John Davidson as Secretary

            Michael Dugan as Policeman

            Anne Curson as Helen Tweedy
See full cast

Now you can share movies with your friends on Facebook!

Discover movies your friends are watching
Keep track of what you want to see
Add your reviews to your Timeline

Get Started