SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

MusicChat It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

Aiden Melton The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Tyreece Hulme One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

tieman64 Written and directed by Thorold Dickinson, "Secret People" (1952) finds Maria Brenatano (Valentina Cortese) and her younger sister (Audrey Hepburn) escaping a fascist dictatorship and fleeing to 1930s London. Once in London, the duo live with friends and attempt to adjust to local customs.Early in "Secret People", Maria meets Louis (Serge Reggiani), a childhood sweetheart who works for a radical group intent on assassinating the unnamed dictator Maria's family has fled. This dictator is visiting British dignitaries, and so Louis requires Maria's assistance to smuggle a bomb into his presence. Maria thus finds herself torn between loyalty to her adopted homeland and loyalty to Louis' terrorist group. The film ends with Maria betraying Louis and admonishing those who would bring violence to the shores of a kindly, all inclusive, democratic nation like Great Britain. As Britain's long had ties to fascist regimes, as it has long operated fascist groups as the strong-arm of its ruling class, and as it specialises in backing terrorists, dictatorships, theocracies and far-right groups (everything from Mussolini to Charles Maxwell Knight, a proud fascist and wartime head of MI5), the film's creepy message reeks of hypocrisy.If "Secret People" has a bright spot, it's young Audrey Hepburn who twirls her way through Dickson's film like a ray of sunshine. Svelte and chirpy, Hepburn's role here would get her noticed by director William Wyler, who'd cast her in "Roman Holiday". The rest's history.6/10 – See "The Spy Who Came In From The Cold".

howardmorley To answer an earlier user comment, the reason Audrey Hepburn did not continue with classical ballet was because of a serious injury to one of her ankles - always a risk for dancers.Nevertheless Audrey dancing in her tutu was a highlight of this 1952 Ealing film."London Live" commercial channel in the UK have just begun showing a season of classic Ealing films, so you could see Ealing did not just produce film comedies.I am grateful to my wife for pointing me in the right direction so I could see this film, which is not advertised for sale on rare DVD movie sites to my knowledge.The cognoscenti of classic British films from this era will also spot Megs Jenkins, Sam Kydd and Sidney Tafler in other small parts.The above user comments sufficiently describe the plot so I will not dwell further on it.Suffice it to say the theme of terrorism is still very much relevant today with 7/7/2005 much remembered in the UK.My wife and I enjoyed it to the end and I awarded it 7/10.A good evening's viewing with the "Poldark" remake on BBC to follow!

shbruce This is a seriously under-rated work of classical British film art on a compelling subject and is as relevant to London life today as it ever was. Considering this film was released in 1952 it explores so perceptively the path from praiseworthy ideology, through working for a noble cause, into terrifying involvement in an act of pure terrorism. Right through you are steadily but inexorably drawn with a lure of truth and justice, into a slowly evolving web of intrigue, conspiracy and ultimately murder, and it leaves you wondering at which point do you actually stray from idealism and decency into cold depravity? Given the '50s context, centred on an urban minority family, the actual plot is still frighteningly relevant and this film is surely just waiting for a re-make to bring it chillingly up to date. Until then, if you can find a copy of this film, watch it - its a vital and absorbing education, in the grand old style, on the strong subject of ideology.

kinekrom There were such hopes invested in this film, Lindsay Anderson wrote a book about its production, but it has never really recovered from its commercial and seemingly artistic failure. In truth, for a film that aspires to be an intelligent study of anarchists beliefs, it suffers from a timidity that some may find all too typical of the British films of its period, and from punches pulled in a manner that rather typifies the work of that almost brilliant director, Thorold Dickinson. But it is an intelligent study for all that, gripping and persuasive until one too many plot convolutions spoils it. I have never failed to be moved when seeing it, nor to be frustrated that it wasn't just a little bit better. The story revolves around European refugees in London who get caught up in the activities of anarchists. Valentina Cortese gives a haunting performance as the conscience-stricken refugee caught up in an assassination plot, and a young Audrey Hepburn is her ballet-dancing innocent sister whose life she must save.