Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
    • Television
      • TV by Decade
        • TV – 1950s
        • TV – 1960s
        • TV – 1970s
        • TV – 1980s
        • TV – 1990s
      • Comedy
      • Drama
      • Kids TV
      • Variety
      • News & Sport
      • Advertisements
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • Music – 1950s
        • Music – 1960s
        • Music – 1970s
        • Music – 1980s
        • Music – 1990s
      • Artists – A to K
        • Artists – A
        • Artists – B
        • Artists – C
        • Artists – D
        • Artists – E
        • Artists – F
        • Artists – G
        • Artists – H
        • Artists – I
        • Artists – J
        • Artists – K
      • Artists – L to Z
        • Artists – L
        • Artists – M
        • Artists – N
        • Artists – O
        • Artists – P
        • Artists – Q
        • Artists – R
        • Artists – S
        • Artists – T
        • Artists – U
        • Artists – V
        • Artists – W
        • Artists – X
        • Artists – Y
        • Artists – Z
      • Artists – 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Playlists
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • Movies – 1950s
        • Movies – 1960s
        • Movies – 1970s
        • Movies – 1980s
        • Movies – 1990s
      • Movies – 0 to 9
      • Movies – A to K
        • Movies – A
        • Movies – B
        • Movies – C
        • Movies – D
        • Movies – E
        • Movies – F
        • Movies – G
        • Movies – H
        • Movies – I
        • Movies – J
        • Movies – K
      • Movies – L to Z
        • Movies – L
        • Movies – M
        • Movies – N
        • Movies – O
        • Movies – P
        • Movies – Q
        • Movies – R
        • Movies – S
        • Movies – T
        • Movies – U
        • Movies – V
        • Movies – W
        • Movies – X
        • Movies – Y
        • Movies – Z
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Movies»Movies by Decade»Movies - 1970s
    Movies - 1970s Movies - L 2 Mins Read

    Looking Glass War, The (1970)

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    This John le Carré story – set during the Cold War – begins with British Intelligence receiving a blurred photograph from East Germany which Director Leclerc (Ralph Richardson) believes to be Soviet missiles being installed close to the border with the west.

    Meanwhile, British agent and courier, Taylor King (Timothy West) receives a further roll of microfilm from a Finnish pilot and is subsequently found dead at the side of a deserted snow-bound highway, apparently killed in a hit-and-run “accident”.

    Ill-tempered German-speaking Polish defector Fred Leiser (Christopher Jones) is reluctantly recruited to cross the border to East Germany to spy on the missiles, in return for being granted the political asylum he seeks and allowed to live happily ever after with his English girlfriend.

    The Pole is trained for the mission – primarily by agent John Avery (Anthony Hopkins) – including how to differentiate the subtle difference between the sound of a gun being cocked and a door clicking shut, as his mentors bicker over the advisability of arming their new recruit (“That’s an act of war”).

    Escaping briefly from his training, Leiser visits the girlfriend he loves not for herself but for the baby she is carrying, only to find that she has thoughtfully provided herself with an abortion.

    Leiser is codenamed “Mayfly” and deployed into East Germany where he meets up with local girl Anna (Pia Degermark), falls in love with her, and decides to flee from all the espionage with her – while the expert ruthless old men use them both as decoys.

    Despite some pretty good performances by some of the lead actors, The Looking Glass War is dull, lacks momentum or suspense, and the characters are all largely unsympathetic.

    Christopher Jones’ voice was dubbed in the movie.

    Fred Leiser
    Christopher Jones
    Anna (“The Girl”)
    Pia Degermark
    Leclerc
    Ralph Richardson
    Haldane
    Paul Rogers
    Avery
    Anthony Hopkins
    Leiser’s pregnant girlfriend in London
    Susan George
    Under Secretary Of State
    Ray McAnally
    Johnson
    Robert Urquhart
    Avery’s Wife
    Anna Massey
    Mrs King
    Vivian Pickles
    Mrs Leclerc
    Maxine Audley
    East German Detective
    Cyril Shaps
    Taylor King
    Timothy West
    Truck Driver
    Michael Robbins

    Director
    Frank R. Pierson

    Related Posts

    • Living Daylights, The (1987)
      Living Daylights, The (1987)
      James Bond roams the world again in search of even…
    • Salon Kitty (1976)
      Salon Kitty (1976)
      Kitty Kellermann (Ingrid Thulin) runs a brothel in Nazi Germany…
    • Aces High (1976)
      Aces High (1976)
      A team of well-trained British fliers soars into action in…
    • Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
      Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
      Alec Guinness is Adolf Hitler trapped in his bunker while…
    • Frankenstein: The True Story (1973)
      Frankenstein: The True Story (1973)
      American TV producer Hunt Stromberg Jnr. wanted to make a…
    • Lighthorsemen, The (1987)
      Lighthorsemen, The (1987)
      It is the end of the third year of the…
    • Soldier Blue (1970)
      Soldier Blue (1970)
      Like Billy Jack (1971), who passionately hated killing but did so anyway,…
    • Swarm, The (1978)
      Swarm, The (1978)
      African killer bees are moving west and threatening to engulf…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleDeath in Brunswick (1990)
    Next Article Ev

    Comments are closed.

    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    You May Also Like
    • Viscounts, The
      British group The Viscounts – Gordon Mills, Don Paul and […]
    • Toxic Avenger (1984)
      Melvin Ferd (Mark Torgl) is a 90-pound weakling who works as the […]
    • Amy Prentiss
      1 9 7 4 – 1 9 7 5 (USA) 3 x 120 minute episodes This crime […]
    • Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush (1967)
      From director Clive Donner (What’s New Pussycat?) this […]
    • Cascades, The
      Rhythm Of The Rain provided The Cascades with a worldwide hit in […]
    • Cost of New Holden Cars (Australia)
      1961 EK $2212 1962 EJ $2102 1963 EH $2102 1965 HD $2320 1966 HR […]
    Twitter Feed
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Popular Tags
    1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games Britpop Canada Crime Disco Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Power Pop Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Surf music
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Copyright © 1998, 2022 Nostalgia Central
    • About
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.