JPA.CA The greatness of this film lies in its ability to make you feel absorbed in the story, characters' lives, and outcomes. Negulesco's masterful direction and the excellent cast's strong delivery leaves you wanting to follow every move and hear every word.There is also a nice variety of scenes throughout that engage you in the complexities of the characters' thoughts and lives. It adds to the sense of anxiety they felt during the war, even in neutral Portugal. Through Henreid's early anti-German sabotage in the Netherlands, music at Café Império in Lisbon, barroom conversations and back alley meet-ups, everything feels and moves perfectly, adding depth to the story. No scene, word, or movement is ever out of place.The entire movie was interesting and enjoyable and I watched it several times in 1 week. Isn't one hallmark of a high quality movie the need to watch it several times to pick up all the nuances? Even so, I never felt like it was on repeat.One final note - the picture is a little dark, so I increased the screen brightness and turned off the lights in the room and that helped. Also, wish it were available in HD, but otherwise highly recommend!

carvalheiro "The conspirators" (1944) directed by Jean Negulesco is a plot as old present past to liberate others whom were at the time imprisoned in a jail for scaring anybody else, that caught the viewer for a while in a very busy sequence interesting as example of hypocrisy from the ancient regime. All the darkness particularly in the night scene of the ball where as intruder one of the conspirators is there, where foreigners and local authorities are both entities in a pact, that this movie shows the reverse of the peaceful and apparatus of fake generosity. Within a sense of dramatic expression very sustained before the dangerous and strange move of the characters, facing a treachery for killing someone outside, it shows also the strength of this good screenplay. The contrast between a group of main characters disguised as contacts for something not entirely legal and the commodities that they are concerned with, for their purposes for raising income and by this way merchandising human freedom with some local authorities, it is got without the entire knowledge of the concerned people. From whom one of them meets some inhabitants by night, in an open party boom at a known beach in the outskirts with typical songs and cloths from local fishermen, collaborating now in a neutral country under dictatorship of a specific oligarchy. Preventing uprising in such a shadowy world it is obvious a kind of archaism without democratic stance by its architectonic similitude with a more liberal attitude for business by night under vaults, tunnels and climbs in an old city turned away to the ocean entry in Europe. Where under covered merchants - like in republican times twenty years before - living in a quiet and strange magic tranquility are in cohabitation, like searching an unknown royalty for their benefices out of the church influence in such a pause of war timed in 1943 just after last fascism schism, as only apparently in such a scale of mediocrity to make a living of the last resentment against an oppression less intensive than in other countries smashed nearby by an atmosphere of not far way mystery.

wrbtu This was a solid movie with two of the greatest supporting players,Greenstreet & Lorre, in one of the seven films they made together.I love both of them, & wish they had more shared movies & biggerparts. They were both outstanding actors, but due to their looks(one big & obese, the other very short with unique features) weren'tup to the standards of what Hollywood wanted it's leading men tolook like, therefore their roles were limited to supporting parts. I'mnot a big fan of Paul Henreid, I often have trouble recalling just whohe is, so I could do with less of him in this film. And Hedy, well,she's sure great to look at, but her range is limited. More ofGreenstreet & Lorre would have made this a better film. I rate it7/10.

Jim Tritten Hedy Lamarr is never more beautiful and it is always a pleasure to see Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre together. The story line is fairly good for the era but the on-screen results disappoint. The movie is justifiably compared with the much much better Casablanca. Paul Henreid is escaping from the Nazis in neutral Lisbon. Hedy, Sydney, and Peter all offer help but there are complications. Conspirators abound -- who is to be trusted? All is revealed an a too predictable ending. See this film as an example of movie making during the war or to round out your viewing of its cast. On the other hand, my wife loved it! Go figure.