
A congressional committee visits occupied Berlin to investigate G.I. morals. Congresswoman Phoebe Frost, appalled at widespread evidence of human frailty, hears rumors that cafe singer Erika, former mistress of a wanted war criminal, is "protected" by an American officer, and enlists Captain John Pringle to help her find him...not knowing that Pringle is Erika's lover.... (Full plot summary below)
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A congressional committee visits occupied Berlin to investigate G.I. morals. Congresswoman Phoebe Frost, appalled at widespread evidence of human frailty, hears rumors that cafe singer Erika, former mistress of a wanted war criminal, is "protected" by an American officer, and enlists Captain John Pringle to help her find him...not knowing that Pringle is Erika's lover.
Leave your thoughts about A Foreign Affair.
| Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonA dandy entertainment which has some shrewd and realistic things to say. |
| Chicago ReaderDave KehrWilder's strategy is to play a bubbly romantic comedy in a mise-en-scene of destruction and despair. As usual, it's more clever than meaningful, but this 1948 film is one of his most satisfactory in wit and pace. |
| Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertI can imagine it as a sex comedy, as a romance, as a bittersweet exploration of lonely people. Schleppi has a little of all three elements at work here, but it's Tim Blake Nelson's character who keeps the plot from spinning out of control. |
| Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)Ken HankeLesser Billy Wilder with great actresses and a weak leading man. |
| Film ThreatMerle BertrandFor nothing but pure goofy escapism, A Foreign Affair is at least worth a fling. |
| VarietyScott FoundasAn odd concoction: an English-language movie made by Dutch filmmakers working with an American cast on location in Russia and Mexico. That strangeness, combined with sharp casting and affectionate performances, is a big part of "Affair's" charm. |
| Chicago TribuneRobert K. ElderA Foreign Affair's flaws make it even more of an enigma, as graceless as it is endearing. |
| Los Angeles TimesKevin CrustNeither funny enough to be a comedy nor serious enough to pass for drama, and it ambles along aimlessly before grinding to an unconvincing halt. |
| L.A. WeeklyHazel-Dawn DumpertThe photography is clear and colorful, the acting just fine, and the pace steady. However, the wan script by Geert Heetebrij imbues the brothers with so little personality that their respective transformations -- pack no emotional punch. |
| Chicago ReaderHank SartinThere are a few witty touches (POV shots given to the urn holding the mother's ashes) but the mood swings erratically and ineffectively from deadpan drollery to heartfelt romance. |