Movie Description

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is a 1965 British Cold War spy film directed by Martin Ritt and starring Richard Burton, Claire Bloom, and Oskar Werner.

Based on the 1963 John le Carré novel of the same name, the film depicts British agent Alec Leamus' mission as a faux defector to East Germany who is tasked with sowing damaging disinformation about a powerful East German intelligence officer. As part of a charade, Leamus pretends to quit British intelligence and live as an embittered alcoholic. He allows himself to be recruited by East German agents in England and is taken to continental Europe to sell his secrets for money. His mission seems almost complete when his charade crumbles and he is revealed to still be working for British intelligence, a revelation that achieves the real objectives of the mission, much to his surprise.

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was a box-office success, receiving positive reviews, and several awards, including four BAFTA Awards for Best British Film, Best Actor, Best Cinematography, and Best Art Direction. For his performance, Richard Burton received the David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actor, the Golden Laurel Award, and an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. The film was named one of the top ten films of 1966 by the National Board of Review in the United States. The screenplay was written by Paul Dehn and Guy Trosper.