Mother Night (1996)

Directed by

Keith Gordon

Genre

drama film, war film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 54m

Rated

13

Rating

6.7 of 10 from 61 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

An American playwright living in Germany becomes a spy for the U.S. during World War II by broadcasting Nazi propaganda with coded messages. After the war, he must hide his identity as the public sees him as a traitor while he faces accusations of war crimes.

melancholiccontemplativetensesomberslow-burncynicalgloomycerebralunsettling

What happens

Mother Night is a 1996 American romantic war drama film produced and directed by Keith Gordon. It is based on Kurt Vonnegut's 1961 novel of the same name. Nick Nolte stars as Howard W. Campbell, Jr., an American who moves with his family to Germany after World War I and goes on to become a successful German-language playwright. As World War II looms, Campbell meets a man who claims to be from the United States Department of War, and is recruited to spy for the U.S., transmitting Nazi propaganda containing hidden messages that can only be decoded by Allied intelligence. After the war, Campbell relocates to New York City, where he attempts to live in obscurity. Since the U.S. government keeps his true wartime role a closely guarded secret, Campbell is forced to live under an assumed identity. The film is narrated by Campbell, through a series of flashbacks, as he sits in a jail cell in Israel, writing his memoirs, and awaiting trial for war crimes. The film also stars Sheryl Lee, John Goodman, Kirsten Dunst, Alan Arkin, and Frankie Faison. Vonnegut makes a brief appearance in a scene in New York City. Much of the film was made in Montréal. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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