The Unwritten Code

The Unwritten Code

61 mins | Drama, Romance, War | Oct. 26, 1944

The Unwritten Code is an offbeat, better-than-average Columbia wartime "B" picture. Though Ann Savage and Tom Neal are top-billed, the central character is supporting-actor Roland Varno. He plays a Nazi spy who sneaks into the U.S., hoping to release hundreds of German prisoners. He fails, but not until plenty of bullets have been spent. The most interesting aspect of The Unwritten Code is the casting of Savage and Neal as the "good" characters: in 1945, these two cult favorites would play the decidedly unsavory protagonists of the film noir classic Detour.

The Unwritten Code

61 mins | Drama, Romance, War | Oct. 26, 1944

The Unwritten Code
The Unwritten Code is an offbeat, better-than-average Columbia wartime "B" picture. Though Ann Savage and Tom Neal are top-billed, the central character is supporting-actor Roland Varno. He plays a Nazi spy who sneaks into the U.S., hoping to release hundreds of German prisoners. He fails, but not until plenty of bullets have been spent. The most interesting aspect of The Unwritten Code is the casting of Savage and Neal as the "good" characters: in 1945, these two cult favorites would play the decidedly unsavory protagonists of the film noir classic Detour.
Producers Columbia Pictures
Original title The Unwritten Code
Directors Herman Rotsten
Writers Robert Wohlmuth, Leslie T. White, Charles Kenyon

Cast

Ann Savage

as Mary Lee Norris

Tom Neal

as Sgt. Terry Hunter

Roland Varno

as Cpl. Karl Richter

Howard Freeman

as Mr. Norris

Mary Currier

as Mrs. Norris

Bobby Larson

as Willie Norris

Teddy Infuhr

as Dutchy Schultz

Marie Blake

as Nurse (uncredited)

Blake Edwards

as Swede (uncredited)