Saboteur

"Unmasking the man behind your back!"

1942 1h 49m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 566

ThrillerMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Aircraft factory worker Barry Kane flees across the United States after he is wrongly accused of starting the fire that killed his best friend.

“Unmasking the man behind your back!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

PhiloSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Robert Cummings
Barry Kane
Priscilla Lane
Pat Martin
Otto Kruger
Charles Tobin
Alan Baxter
Freeman
Clem Bevans
Neilson
Norman Lloyd
Frank Fry
Alma Kruger
Mrs. Henrietta Sutton
Vaughan Glaser
Mr. Miller

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writers: Joan Harrison, Dorothy Parker, Peter Viertel
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.8M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

84 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, shot by Joseph A. Valentine. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Frank Skinner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Otto Ludwig shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Robert Cummings and Priscilla Lane and Otto Kruger carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Unmasking the man behind your back!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0035279 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Alfred Hitchcock directs. Joseph A. Valentine behind the camera. Frank Skinner scores. Otto Ludwig cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.8M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
284 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, shot by Joseph A. Valentine. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Frank Skinner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Otto Ludwig shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Robert Cummings and Priscilla Lane and Otto Kruger carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Unmasking the man behind your back!".
8IMDB entry: tt0035279 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Joseph A. Valentine
Original score: Frank Skinner
Editing: Otto Ludwig
Costume design: Irene Saltern
Runtime: 109 min · 1h 49m
Status: Released
Budget: $780,000
Box office: $1,250,000
Return: 160% of budget
Original language: EN
IMDB: Saboteur (1942)

Also by

Alfred Hitchcock

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2019-09-02
★ 8/10
North By Northwest's parent movie. This is one that I actually feel deserves a higher rating on internet sites, is it fair to say that this film can be called the black & white North By Northwest? since thematically it's the same so it is something of a forerunner to that great film. Simplistic plot of innocent man on the run trying to find the real culprit after he is blamed for a fire that killed his best friend. Whilst on the run he meets an array of interesting Hitchcockian characters, from spies to circus freaks and of course the delicious lady of the piece, in this case Pricilla Lane. Enough suspense to mark it out as a film from the maestro, witness a scene as the main protagonist Barry Kane is trying to split his handcuffs on the roadside, and the ending at the statue of liberty is a cracker, making this a very tidy suspenser that earns 8/10 from me. Tidbid; Hitchcock had wanted Gary Cooper & Barbara Stanwyck for the lead roles here and although that sounds mightily great, he didn't have to worry because Lane & Robert Cummings did just fine.
CinemaSerf2022-06-26
★ 6/10
A rather run-of-the-mill espionage thriller, this one, with Robert Cummings wrongly accused of complicity in a fire that destroys a large part of an aircraft construction factory. He manages to avoid the police long enough to travel the breadth of the United States on the trail of a group of wealthy, powerful, fifth columnists. Priscilla Lane is the initially sceptical sidekick as they try to ensnare Otto Kruger and his network of traitors. Unfortunately, there is just too much inevitability about the story; very little suspense and the performances are really quite dry - especially the rather daft circus act storyline. It is fine to watch, but nothing notable to remember, I'm afraid.