The Odessa File (1974)

Woodward and Bernstein may have been intrepid, but they have nothing on Peter Miller, a freelance reporter who goes underground to reveal Nazis working in postwar West Germany to destroy Israel, circa early 1964.

Okay, Miller isn't real, but rather a character in Frederick Forsyth's novel "The Odessa File" brought to screen in 1974 with Jon Voight in the role of Miller. Not to be confused with the later, weaker Nazi-hunting potboiler "Boys From Brazil" (though the real-life Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal is a character in both), "Odessa File" benefits from a very involving opening and a clever, cathartic twist of a closer, though the two-plus-hour film gets soggier than sauerkraut much of the time in between.

Are we speaking German in this movie, or English? Director Ronald Neame can't seem to make up his mind, and it's a bit disconcerting to hear an old German army vet give a speech in accented English before his comrades break into a Teutonic sing-along. Voight often seems lost in a film where he is bounced around like a pinball, his gaze like that of a deer in the headlights, albeit a righteous deer. A lot of the actors around him similarly feel unmotivated, even the great Maximilian Schell who plays Miller's chief prey, a former camp commandant named Eduard Roschmann. Efficient though Roschmann may be, there are some gaping holes in the Nazi secondary Miller more stumbles through than exploits.

"The Odessa File" also has one of the oddest movie scores, fronted by a credit theme which, as all taut thrillers must, features Perry Como and a children's Christmas chorus. I kid you not. The incidental music is electronically processed '70s drivel that seems more suited for "Logan's Run," and was the brainchild of none other than Andrew Lloyd Webber, apparently wanting to try something different while waiting for inspiration for another libretto to strike then-partner Tim Rice.

But the film does deliver in the suspense department, setting up a nicely paranoid atmosphere wherein the sweet woman sent by the police to look after your girlfriend could be a spy helping a team of killers track you down. It may oversell the reach of the real ODESSA, a Nazi relocation group, in West Germany, but the screen treatment is at times quite gripping and believable, and of course features Nazis as bad guys, which seldom fails for entertainment.

You understand a bit of the mania behind Miller's actions, if not exactly his methods, when you see in flashback the way Roschmann handles his captives at Riga. Even after "Schindler's List" and other films have presented the same material in more graphic fashion, there's a lot of power in the scene of a woman looking at her husband before the door of a deadly truck closes over her face, or a moment when Roschmann toys with a man awaiting execution for a giggle.

If it's not as good as Forsyth's book, the film suffers from the same faults. The improbability of the scenes grows more apparent with repeat viewings, but a first-timer will likely be too involved much of the time to pay this much mind. And, like the novel, "Odessa File" the movie has a good heart. And what an ending! Don't let anyone spoil that for you, if you are the least bit tempted about seeing this; see it for yourself.

Fmovies: From the skillful and adroit hand of master novelist Frederick Forsythe comes this suspenseful story which begins in the wet streets of Berlin and traces itself to a WW II concentration camp called Riga. The movie is called " The Odessa File " and is based on the secret organization which helps ex-Nazis escape justice. Jon Voight plays Peter Miller a young German journalist who is intrigued by the diary of a survivor of the Riga death camp and left a journal identifying the 'Butcher' of Riga. With that diary, Miller decides to investigate if in fact Eduard Roschmann (Maximilian Schell) is still at large. Endangering his life and that of his girlfriend, Miller learns that Mossad, the Israeli Intelligence arm is also trying to locate the source of a electrical missile guidance system threatening Israel. With the help of Simon Wiesenthal (Shmuel Rodensky) and Mossad, Miller infiltrates the Oddessa organization and soon discovers Klaus Wenzer (Derek Jacobi) the man behind the false identifications given to escaping Nazis. However, Oddessa agents also discover who Miller really is and send their own men to dispose of him. The film is filled with intrigue, dark drama and tingling suspense and with Voight at the helm, this movie will soon join only the best which have all become Classics. ****

Movie-making at its best. A wonderful performance from John Voight (who remembers Joe Buck?) as a journalist "son" of Germany who receives a report written by a survivor of a concentration camp that committed suicide fueled by the horror of discovering a secret society conformed by high ranking former Nazi officials. "Voight's" struggle to investigate and uncover such an evil organization (Odessa) is the theme of this film that will keep you at the edge of your seats! The versatility and talent of Mr. Voight as a 1st line actor is evidenced here. After enjoying this film you will wonder where has all good movie making gone. Buy it or rent it....you will not regret it :)

The Odessa File fmovies. This film is remarkable on many levels, but two stand out: 1) the realistic portrayal of the events in Riga, wherein thousands of Jews were massacred by the Nazis, and 2) the fact that the "butcher" of these events in the film was not a fictional ploy but an actual SS officer named, as in the film, Rosschmann. The latter point is of interest, since the film provoked a world wide hunt for this murderer, who was located in South America, and who then fled to Paraguay where he died in 1977. The first part of the film is near perfect, though it gets more melodramatic in the latter part, with a number of unconvincing dramatic events added. One example: the journalist(Voight)attacking the burly professional hit man sent to kill him, and then actually winning a hand to hand struggle with him.

Just a sad reminder of how gripping thrillers were a dime-a-dozen in the 70's, as compared to the suspense-bankrupt modern day. 2 hours of entertainment & not one single explosion!! Jon Voigt once again establishes himself as one of the best actors of the decade in his principal role as the tenacious journalist bent on revenge. The film & its subject matter could have easily been more confusing, and tho some scenes defy logic (a supposedly lethal hit man is reduced to dunderhead status in the film's pivotal fight scene), the story steams ahead fluidly til the climactic denoument. This is Voigt's movie, but the supporting cast is effective in small roles, especially Maximillian Schell in his few scenes & Mary Tamm, as Voigt's along-for-the-ride girlfriend who also happens to be very easy on the eyes. And look, there's Derek Jacobi, long before he met Kenneth Branagh, in a tiny, yet pivotal role! Forge, Derek, forge!! Not as good as "The Conversation" but infinitely better than any movie starring Sharon Stone or Steven Seagal (or both). 7 out of 10.

Jon Voight does an excellent job in this intriguing film about a reporter searching for a war criminal who escaped Germany after World War II with the help of an organization called Odessa. His investigation leads him to Simon Wiesenthal and to a group of Israelis who train him to infiltrate Odessa. The historical setting is 1963 Germany, at the time of the Kennedy assassination This is a very suspenseful film with wonderful performances from the supporting cast as well: Mary Tamm, Maximillian Schell, Maria Schell, and Derek Jacoby.

For me, The Odessa File has always had an old-fashioned feeling to it -it was made in 1974, set in 1963, and almost seems like it could have been made in the '40s. Truly an excellent film.

As a bit of trivia no doubt already mentioned, Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote the music for the film, which I frankly found rather intrusive.