I Was a Spy was also the first film dubbed in Poland (while there were earlier examples of films dubbed in Polish, they were recorded in Paramount studio in Joinville, France), released in 1935 as Siostra Marta jest szpiegiem, starring Lidia Wysocka as Martha Cnockhaert's voice. The screenplay was written by Ian Hay, W. P. Lipscomb and Edmund Gwenn.[2]
I was a Spy was released to cinemas in the United Kingdom on 4 September 1933. It was voted the best British film of 1933 and the performance of Carroll was praised.
Filming took place in Shepherds Bush. Producer Michael Balcon sent Herbert Mason (who was initially production manager before becoming an assistant director) to take the script to Belgium and give it to Marthe Cnockaert to look at.[4][3][5]
The script was written by Edmund Gwenn who also portrayed the burgomaster.[6]
In a poll conducted by the magazine Film Weekly, the film was voted the best British movie of 1933,[5][8][9] and Madeleine Carroll's performance was voted the best in a British movie.[10][11]
The Daily Mail (21 November 1933) described it as "the most splendid film produced in this country."[11] The Daily Despatch (21 November 1933) described it as a film "equal to Hollywood's best."[11]Variety and motion picture critic Mordaunt Hall (for The New York Times) praised Carroll's acting.[11]
William Troy for The Nation said, "It is the kind of picture calculated to make us believe that there is something beautiful and touching about war, after all."[12]
Film historian and critic Paul Rotha for Cinema Quarterly said, "I raise my hat to Gaumont for attempting a film of serious stature, but replace it when I see the spirit in which the deed is done."[12]
The Evening News (Rockhampton) (30 May 1934) praised the acting and described it as "[spectacular] in its sweep, human in its emotions, dramatic in its intensity and profoundly gripping in its appeal."[13]
Although it was very successful at the box office,[3] this was not Saville's reaction. He watched the completed I Was a Spy with one of the Assistant Directors, Herbert Mason, and was devastated: however, Mason reassured him that it was his "best to date."[14]
Halliwell's Film & Video Guide described the film as "[good] standard war espionage melodrama."[15]
Adrian Turner for Radio Times said that, "Fans of vintage British cinema will enjoy this sprightly espionage yarn, set during the First World War and bearing a close resemblance to the Mata Hari legend."[16]
In 2021, film critic and author Derek Winnert praised the cast and their performances.[3]
^"I Was a Spy". trove.nla.gov.au. The Sun (Sydney). 13 May 1934. p. 46. Retrieved 6 August 2022. "I Was a Spy," that phenomenal British success, is now being screened at the Lyric
^Brian McFarlane (2005). The Encyclopedia of British Film (2nd ed.). Methuen. p. 622. ...the true war story I Was a Spy, voted Best British film of 1933
^"BEST FILM PERFORMANCE LAST YEAR". The Examiner (LATE NEWS EDITION and DAILY ed.). Launceston, Tasmania. 9 July 1937. p. 8. Retrieved 4 March 2013 – via National Library of Australia.