Eye of the Needle (1981)    United Artists/Suspense-Thriller    RT: 111 minutes    Rated R (violence, nudity, sexual content)    Director: Richard Marquand    Screenplay: Stanley Mann    Music: Miklos Rozsa    Cinematography: Alan Hume    Release date: July 24, 1981 (US)    Cast: Donald Sutherland, Kate Nelligan, Ian Bannen, Christopher Cazenove, Stephen MacKenna, Philip Martin Brown, Arthur Lovegrove, Barbara Ewing, Patrick Connor, David Hayman, Alex McCrindle, Jonathan Nicholas Haley.    Box Office: $17.5 million (US)

Rating: *** ½  

 I must have mentioned at some point that summer ’81 was a great time for movies. Youth-oriented titles like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Superman II, Clash of the Titans and The Cannonball Run dominated the box office. What truly made it a great summer is that studios offered up a few movies for adults as well. One of the best is Eye of the Needle, a WWII spy thriller adapted from the novel by Ken Follett. I don’t know what I would have thought of it at 13, but adult Movie Guy 24/7 loves it.

 It stars Donald Sutherland (Ordinary People) as a German spy known as “The Needle” because of his preferred weapon, a stiletto. While stationed in Britain, he discovers information about the Normandy invasion that could turn the tide of the war in Germany’s favor. He’s ordered to rendezvous with a U-boat and personally deliver the information to the Fuhrer in Berlin. With British intelligence agents in close pursuit, he steals a fishing boat only to run into bad weather. He ends up stranded on an isolated island off the coast of Scotland where he’s taken in by a family of sheep farmers.

 Lucy (Nelligan, 1979’s Dracula) is unhappily married to Dave (Cazenove, Until September), a former fighter pilot who lost the use of his legs in a car accident on his wedding day. He’s a bitter drunk who spends most of his time with a local who’s in charge of the island’s only radio transmitter. Feeling alienated by her husband, Lucy becomes attracted to their guest. They begin an affair. Although he’s attracted to her too, his main objective is to get to the radio and signal the waiting U-boat to pick him up.

 I don’t want to ruin Eye of the Needle for those that haven’t seen it so I’ll say no more about the plot. I will say that it features great performances from its two leads. Sutherland is chilling as the cold, calculating spy who kills without passion. He’s all about whatever mission he’s on and won’t let anything or anybody prevent him from completing it. The actor, who excels at such roles, makes us feel his character’s loneliness and isolation. Director Richard Marquand (Return of the Jedi), working from a screenplay by Stanley Mann (Damien: Omen II), provides hints that explains his psychology- i.e. his parents didn’t love him, he grew up in boarding schools, etc. Whatever the reasons, he is one seriously bad guy. His sinister nature always bubbles beneath the surface even when he shows affection to Lucy.  Nelligan is equally great as another lonely soul. She’s looking for affection and the mysterious stranger, who claims to be a writer, is all too willing to provide it even if his motives are treacherous.

 Marquand keeps Eye of the Needle moving at a deliberate pace that some will find too slow. It’s not one of those movies that runs headlong into the action. It takes the time to build suspense and develop its characters. In many ways, it’s like one of those old British war movies of the 40s. I don’t find it boring at all. I’d also like to compliment the cinematography by Alan Hume. He uses the rough, stormy scenery of Scotland to its fullest potential. The locations really add a measure of drama to the movie’s second half. I should also mention the music, composed by Miklos Rozsa and performed by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It augments the movie’s dramatic aspects and enhances the elements of intrigue throughout, especially in the movie’s exciting third act.

 Eye of the Needle is one of those movies that deserve more recognition than it got upon its initial release. I have to admit that I didn’t see this one in theaters (it’s rated R and I was 13, so…….), but when I finally saw it on home video many years later, I was impressed! This is what movie watching is all about. It’s not about huge explosions, car chases, mass destruction and bloody carnage (although these things can be entertaining sometimes); it’s about great acting, well written screenplays, intelligent plots and interesting characters. This movie succeeds across the board; in fact, it’s one of the best spy flicks I’ve ever seen.