The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965)

Timing: 1:52 (112 min)

7.1/10
325

7.565/10
1522

7.5/10
21000

All about film

Video 4

Photo 6

Actors and characters

Release date

1965-12-16

Country

United Kingdom

Production

Salem Films Limited

Genre

Drama, Thriller

Budget

$0

Revenue

$7 600 000

Website

Director

Martin Ritt

Actors

Richard Burton, Claire Bloom, Oskar Werner, Sam Wanamaker, George Voskovec, Rupert Davies, Cyril Cusack, Peter van Eyck, Michael Hordern, Robert Hardy
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Martin Ritt

Operator

Oswald Morris

Composer

Sol Kaplan

Artist

Audition

Editing

Anthony Harvey
All team (20)

• The film is based on the novel of the same name by David Cornwell, better known to readers as John le Carré. The cover of the first edition featured a review by Graham Greene: “It is the best spy story I have ever read.”
• Le Carré received the “Golden Dagger” for this novel in 1963 – an award from the British Association of Detective and Political Fiction, and in 1965 – the “Edgar” Award, presented by the “Mystery Writers of America.” It was the first book to receive awards from both of these organizations.
• In 2005, the novel was included in Time magazine's list of the 100 best novels published between 1923 and 2005.
• For the role of Limas, Ritt initially wanted to cast Paul Newman, who had just appeared in his epic drama "Hud." He asked the renowned playwright John Osborne to write the screenplay, but Osborne declined, noting that he had been drawn to the "excellent dark material" but was put off by the presence of the handsome Newman in such a serious role. Newman was replaced by Burt Lancaster, but he was unable to take the part due to commitments to other projects. The final choice was British actor Richard Burton. The director had to work hard to convince Paramount Pictures to approve Burton for the role and accept his fee of $750,000.
• The director was extremely unhappy with Burton's alcoholism and his wife Elizabeth Taylor's jealous attitude towards him. Knowing that Burton had previously had an affair with his co-star Claire Bloom, Taylor would not allow even a friendship between them on set.
• The film's principal photography took place in wintertime Ireland, near Wicklow, in order to capture a somber atmosphere, which led Ritt to decide to shoot in black and white. The remaining scenes were filmed on Trafalgar Square, at Ardmore Studios, and in the German community of Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
• For this novel, Le Carré received the "Golden Dagger" in 1963 – an award from the British Association of Detective and Political Fiction, and the "Edgar" Award in 1965, presented by the Mystery Writers of America. It was the first book to receive awards from both of these organizations simultaneously.
• In 2005, the novel was included in Time magazine's list of the 100 best novels published between 1923 and 2005.
• For the role of Limas, Ritt decided to invite Paul Newman, who had recently starred in his epic drama "The Hud". The director asked the renowned playwright John Osborne to write the screenplay, but he refused, noting that he was attracted by the "excellent dark material", but was put off by the presence of the handsome Newman in such a serious role. Newman was replaced by Burt Lancaster, but he was unable to play the role due to commitments to other projects. The final choice was the British actor Richard Burton. The director had to work hard to convince Paramount Pictures to approve Burton for the role and accept his fee of $750,000.