The story told in this documentary is riveting for any history buff and I enjoyed it very much despite — or perhaps because of — its eccentricities. The structure is somewhat unusual, jumping in quickly in a way that was slightly confusing until I found my footing. The names of the “talking heads” who help tell the story of Garbo are withheld at first, and it gives the whole thing an added air of mystery that complements the subject. The oddest thing about it is the choice of music. It’s neither strictly contemporary-sounding or vintage and the project almost feels like a conceptual film as much as a documentary. I can’t say I liked the music but the overall effect is like no other doc I’ve seen.
By the end I actually found myself enjoying the unbalanced feeling, attempting to glean details of Garbo’s personal life amidst the deceit he was perpetrating on the Axis. When the director finally breaks down the walls of silence at the end and gives you the information you’ve been searching for, it feels like you’ve cracked a cinematic code and revealed the man beneath the cipher.
Both audio and visuals are fine here, about as good as you can expect from talking head interviews and vintage film footage. Bonus features include a 32-minute interview with intelligence & espionage expert Nigel West, a 27-minute WW II training film entitled “Sonic Deception,” and the theatrical trailer.
