State Secret
ADVENTURE SWEEPING ACROSS A CONTINENT!
1950 | 104m | English
Popularity: 6 (history)
| Director: | Sidney Gilliat |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Roy Huggins, Sidney Gilliat |
| Staring: |
| While working in England, an American surgeon Dr. John Marlowe is invited to Vosnia (a fictitious East-European country) to receive an award and demonstrate his life-saving surgery. Unwittingly caught in the middle of a dangerous and corrupt series of political events, Marlowe then becomes the object of a shoot-to-kill, vicious pursuit. Fleeing, he seeks help from an English-speaking actress, Lisa Robinson, and the two attempt to escape across the treacherous mountains of Vosnia. | |
| Release Date: | Sep 11, 1950 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Sidney Gilliat |
| Writer: | Roy Huggins, Sidney Gilliat |
| Genres: | Drama, Mystery, Romance, Thriller |
| Keywords | dictator, assassination, based on novel or book, operation, blackmail, letter, murder, conspiracy, british noir, state police, manhunt |
| Production Companies | British Lion Films, London Films Productions |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Jan 28, 2026 Entered: Apr 20, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Douglas Fairbanks Jr. | Dr. John Marlowe |
| Glynis Johns | Lisa Robinson |
| Jack Hawkins | Colonel Galcon |
| Herbert Lom | Karl Theodor |
| Walter Rilla | General Niva |
| Karl Stepanek | Dr. Revo |
| Hans Olaf Moser | Sigrist |
| Guido Lorraine | Lieutenant Prachi |
| Robert Ayres | Arthur J. Buckman |
| Howard Douglas | Clubman |
| Martin Boddey | Clubman |
| Russell Waters | Clubman |
| Arthur Howard | Clubman |
| Carl Jaffe | Janovic Prada / Tugboat Captain |
| Gerard Heinz | Tomasi Bendel |
| Leonard Sachs | Dr. Poldoi |
| Leslie Linder | Andre |
| Leo Bieber | Man at Telephone Box |
| Nelly Arno | Barber Shop Manager |
| Paul Demel | Barber |
| Danny Green | Taxi Driver |
| Anton Diffring | State Police Officer at Theater |
| Olga Lowe | Baba 'Robinson' |
| Therese Van Kye | Teresa 'Robinson' |
| Peter Illing | Macco |
| Arthur Reynolds | Compere |
| Richard Molinas | Red Nose |
| Eric Pohlmann | Cable Car Conductor |
| Louis Wiechert | Christian |
| Gerik Schjelderup | Bartorek |
| Henrik Jacobsen | Mountain Soldier |
| Robert Cawdron | State Policeman |
| Alexis Chesnakov | Francks |
| Marianne Deeming | Sophie |
| Arsene Kirilloff | Vilnik |
| Richard Marner | Second Officer at Billin Police Headquarters |
| Pat Neal | Nursing Sister |
| Arthur Skinner | Man in Background |
| Gordon Tanner | Joe |
| Alessandro Tasca | State Radio Commentator |
| Joe Wadham | Man on Theatre Stage |
| Ian Wallace | Butler in Club |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Edward Scaife | Camera Operator |
| Wilfred Shingleton | Art Direction |
| Lee Doig | Sound Editor |
| Leslie Gilliat | Production Manager |
| Beatrice Dawson | Costume Design |
| Ivy Baker | Costume Design |
| Waleen Whitworth | Hairdresser |
| Derek Armstrong | Assistant Editor |
| Cyril Coke | Producer's Assistant |
| Michael Morris | Makeup Artist |
| Roy Huggins | Novel |
| Thelma Myers | Editor |
| Paddy Arnold | Continuity |
| William Alwyn | Original Music Composer |
| Alan Allen | Sound Recordist |
| Kenneth McCallum Tait | Assistant Art Director |
| Muir Mathieson | Conductor |
| Robert Krasker | Director of Photography |
| Guy Hamilton | Assistant Director |
| Sidney Gilliat | Screenplay, Director |
| John Hawkesworth | Assistant Art Director |
| Gerry Fisher | Assistant Camera |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Frank Launder | Producer |
| Sidney Gilliat | Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 6 | 12 | 2 |
| 2024 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 2 |
| 2024 | 6 | 5 | 20 | 1 |
| 2024 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 2 |
| 2024 | 8 | 7 | 16 | 3 |
| 2024 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 3 |
| 2024 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 3 |
| 2024 | 11 | 4 | 10 | 2 |
| 2024 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 2 |
| 2025 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2025 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| 2026 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 |
Trending Position
Douglas Fairbanks Jr. is "Dr. John Marlowe", lauded by the largely unknown state of Vosnia after he develops an unique form of medical procedure. When he travels there to collect his gong, he finds himself amidst a plot in this totalitarian state to prolong the life of their leader "General Niva". R ... egardless of what happens, he cannot be left alive to tell a tale, and when this dawns on him, he must escape. Fortunately, he alights of Glynis Johns - an English speaking cabaret dancer and with the help of the suitably sleazy Herbert Lom, they make for the border with Jack Hawkins and his soldiers hot on their heals. I enjoyed this, at times it is a suspenseful drama with enough intrigue to sustain it as they face a few perils on their escapade to safety. There's a fun chemistry between the two stars and it builds nicely to an ending with a teeny, weeny twist. Well worth a watch.