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The Mask of Dimitrios
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Mask of Dimitrios (U.S. title: A Coffin for Dimitrios) (1939) is a novel by Eric Ambler.
| The Mask of Dimitrios | |
|---|---|
 Movie poster for 1944 film |
|
| Directed by | Jean Negulesco |
| Produced by | Henry Blanke |
| Written by | Eric Ambler (novel A Coffin for Dimitrios) Frank Gruber (screenplay) |
| Starring | Sydney Greenstreet Zachary Scott Faye Emerson |
| Music by | Adolph Deutsch |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | June 23, 1944 (U.S. release) |
| Running time | 95 min. |
| Country | US |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Ambler, a major influence on such writers as Len Deighton and an inventor of the modern "thriller" genre, is at his best in this tale of a mystery writer in Istanbul who stumbles on the trail of one Dimitrios Makrapolous, whose corpse has just been fished out of the Bosphorus by the police. The writer sets out to discover Dimitrios' past and is soon being followed from Smyrna to Athens to Sofia. Confronting his stalker, the writer receives the following proposition: "You have a piece of information which by itself is worthless; I have a piece of information which by itself is worthless; combined, however, they are worth a quarter of a million francs."
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The novel was made into a black-and-white film noir in 1944 directed by Jean Negulesco. The film starred Sydney Greenstreet, Zachary Scott (as Dimitrios Makropoulos), Faye Emerson and Peter Lorre. This was the first film for Scott, after signing a contract with Warner Bros. pictures.
A Channel 4 review states "the film promises more action than it delivers, but there are opportunities for fine performances by Lorre and, especially, Greenstreet as the master crook. Atmospheric cinematography and an intriguing script turn this into a fine example of film noir with an immensely entertaining cast." [1]
TV Guide calls the movie "One of the great film noir classics to come out of the 1940s." [2]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Sydney Greenstreet | Mr. Peters |
| Zachary Scott | Dimitrios Makropoulos |
| Faye Emerson | Irana Preveza |
| Peter Lorre | Cornelius Leyden |
| Victor Francen | Wladislaw Grodek |
| Steven Geray | Karel Bulic |