The Celluloid Curtain – Europe’s Cold War in Film

Film
Friday, 6 to Monday, 9 May 2011
Riverside Studios, Crisp Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9RL

The Goethe-Institut London and EUNIC London present a joint programme of European spy films from the Cold War era. Please see The Celluloid Curtain website for full details of films and screenings. 

When the film The Spy Who Came in from the Cold arrived in cinemas in 1965, the spy film was already one of the most popular genres in Europe.

By then deep into the Cold War, the figure of the spy was a source of great fascination for people on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The secret agent reflected the political ambitions of east and west as well as their contradictions. He was either seen as a golden hero or an evil mole; as representing either the superiority of a political system or of its detested enemies. The spy film therefore crossed over easily with the political propaganda film.

Our film series marks the fiftieth anniversary of the building of the Berlin Wall. Curated jointly by Oliver Baumgarten and Nikolaj Nikitin, The Celluloid Curtain shows spy films made between 1960 and 1974 on both sides of the Iron Curtain. These remarkable films shed light on the popular spy genre, aimed both at entertainment and at cementing the divisions of the Cold War.

To complement the film programme we have invited a distinguished international panel of experts in espionage and film history to debate the topic From Cold War to WikiLeaks. As well as discussing the featured films and the politics of the Cold War, they will bring the story right up to date by looking at the legacy and impact of the Cold War – and of its films – on spying, politics and the arts today.

In addition, we have a fascinating exhibition of the original spy film posters and graphics from the period. This unique collection of art work covers films from the whole of Europe, including some rare and forgotten east bloc films.