 
  Popularity: 3 (history)
| Director: | Richard Marquand | 
|---|---|
| Writer: | Stanley Mann, Ken Follett | 
| Staring: | 
| Great Britain, 1944, during World War II. Relentlessly pursued by several MI5 agents, Henry Faber the Needle, a ruthless German spy in possession of vital information about D-Day, takes refuge on Storm Island, an inhospitable, sparsely inhabited island off the coast of northern Scotland. | |
| Release Date: | Jul 24, 1981 | 
|---|---|
| Director: | Richard Marquand | 
| Writer: | Stanley Mann, Ken Follett | 
| Genres: | Drama, Thriller | 
| Keywords | submarine, based on novel or book, husband wife relationship, world war ii, d-day, nazi spy, cold blooded killer, 1940s, isolated island | 
| Production Companies | Kings Road Entertainment, Juniper Films | 
| Box Office | Revenue: $18,000,000 Budget: $0 | 
| Updates | Updated: Aug 04, 2025 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 | 
| Name | Character | 
|---|---|
| Donald Sutherland | Faber | 
| Kate Nelligan | Lucy | 
| Ian Bannen | Godliman | 
| Christopher Cazenove | David | 
| Faith Brook | Lucy's Mother | 
| Barbara Ewing | Mrs. Garden | 
| David Hayman | Canter | 
| Alex McCrindle | Tom | 
| Philip Martin Brown | Billy Parkin | 
| Stephen MacKenna | Lieutenant | 
| George Belbin | Lucy's Father | 
| Barbara Graley | David's Mother | 
| George Lee | Constable | 
| Arthur Lovegrove | Peterson | 
| Colin Rix | Oliphant | 
| Chris Jenkinson | German SS Officer | 
| William Merrow | German Radio Operator | 
| Patrick Connor | Inspector Harris | 
| Rupert Frazer | Muller | 
| Jonathan Nicholas Haley | Jo | 
| John Bennett | Kleinmann | 
| Sam Kydd | Lock Keeper | 
| John Paul | Home Guard Captain | 
| Richard Graydon | Home Guard Private | 
| Michael Mellinger | Portuguese Man | 
| Allan Surtees | Colonel Terry | 
| Don Fellows | American Colonel | 
| Stewart Harwood | Sailor #1 | 
| Rik Mayall | Sailor #2 | 
| Rory Edwards | Sailor #3 | 
| Ellis Dale | Station Master | 
| Bill Fraser | Mr. Porter | 
| Michael Josephs | German Naval Captain | 
| John Rees | German Naval Operator | 
| John Grieve | Inspector Kincaid | 
| Bruce White | Oban Policeman | 
| David Ashton | Oban Radio Operator | 
| Bill Nighy | Squadron Leader Blenkinsop | 
| Stephen Phillips | Home Guard Corporal | 
| Name | Job | 
|---|---|
| Stanley Mann | Screenplay | 
| Richard Marquand | Director | 
| Miklós Rózsa | Original Music Composer | 
| Wilfred Shingleton | Production Design | 
| John Hoesli | Art Direction | 
| Jennifer Patrick | Dialogue Coach | 
| John Comfort | Production Manager | 
| Claude Hitchcock | Sound Recordist | 
| John Bloomfield | Costume Designer | 
| Anthony Squire | Second Unit Director | 
| Wally Schneiderman | Makeup Artist | 
| Mark Nelson | Hairstylist | 
| George Gibbs | Special Effects Supervisor | 
| Valerie Booth | Continuity | 
| David Farrell | Still Photographer | 
| Ken Pattenden | Construction Manager | 
| William Lang | Location Manager | 
| Bob Bremner | Gaffer | 
| Sean Barton | Editor | 
| Bert Davey | Art Direction | 
| Hugh Scaife | Set Decoration | 
| Claude Hudson | Production Supervisor | 
| Roger Simons | Assistant Director | 
| Mike Frift | Focus Puller | 
| Gerry Humphreys | Sound Re-Recording Mixer | 
| Celestia Fox | Casting Director | 
| Jack Lowin | Second Unit Cinematographer | 
| Beryl Lerman | Makeup Artist | 
| Joan Carpenter | Hairstylist | 
| Angela Allen | Continuity | 
| Eddie Stacey | Stunt Coordinator | 
| Nick Hosker | Assistant Editor | 
| Ken Softley | Construction Manager | 
| Lee Bolon | Location Manager | 
| Ken Follett | Novel | 
| Alan Hume | Director of Photography | 
| Alec Mills | Camera Operator | 
| Name | Title | 
|---|---|
| Stephen J. Friedman | Producer | 
| Organization | Category | Person | 
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 18 | 28 | 14 | 
| 2024 | 5 | 19 | 31 | 12 | 
| 2024 | 6 | 21 | 39 | 12 | 
| 2024 | 7 | 21 | 33 | 13 | 
| 2024 | 8 | 19 | 41 | 11 | 
| 2024 | 9 | 13 | 18 | 10 | 
| 2024 | 10 | 20 | 34 | 11 | 
| 2024 | 11 | 15 | 35 | 9 | 
| 2024 | 12 | 13 | 21 | 8 | 
| 2025 | 1 | 13 | 25 | 8 | 
| 2025 | 2 | 9 | 15 | 3 | 
| 2025 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 
Trending Position
**_To kill and love during WW2 with Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan_** A German spy in Britain (Sutherland) has strategic info on the D-Day landing in 1944. As he tries to elude the authorities, he stumbles on a couple living remotely near the coast (Nelligan and Christopher Cazenove). Will h ... e make it out? Who will live and who will die? "Eye of the Needle” (1981) is a war drama/thriller, but not a conventional war movie. The plot has similarities to “The Eagle Has Landed” (1976) with the same actor as the spy (Sutherland). It’s almost as if they’re the same character. The difference is that “Eagle” features military combat whereas this one is decidedly a spy-on-the-run flick with the thrills thereof. Like “Eagle,” this is easily one of Sutherland’s top movies. The British scenery is awesome, the palette is colorful, the adventure is compelling, the drama/romance is good and the suspense is off-the-charts in the final act. There are elements of “The Eagle Has Landed,” “The Heroes of Telemark” (1965) and the later “The House on Carroll Street” (1988). If you like these flicks, this is a must; it’s as good or better than any of ’em. The film runs 1 hour, 52 minutes, and was shot in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, which is located in southwest Scotland, including Oban, nearby Connel Bridge and the Isle of Mull. Studio stuff was done in England in the greater London area, as well as the airport scene filmed at Blackbushe Airport. GRADE: A-