I'll take any opportunity to hiss a for of freedom and the perpetrators of world terror. The Nazi's of World War II have been gifted every single negative reaction that I can give a TV or movie screen, and only a handful of them have not yet crossed my path. "Hostages" is one of the rarer entries of the anti-Nazi propaganda, neglected and forgotten even though its star was two time Oscar winning actress Luise Rwiner, away from the screen for four years when this came out, and her last major role, even though she would be busy on stage, do television and make one more film appearance, much later in her life. This is a war drama about the Czechoslovakian occupation where the resistance is as strong from the underground as the Nazi's are above ground.This deals with the off screen murder of a Nazi official and the group of men who are held as suspects and sentenced to be executed if the real killer is not revealed. Paul Lukas, who would win an Oscar that year, for playing an adamant anti- Nazi, plays a calm Nazi officer here, while Katina Paxinou, who also won for playing a freedom fighter in "For Whom the Bells Toll", plays another leader of the resistance here, telling her on-screen mother who is worried about her grandson's future that his future is actually what she is fighting for. The very American William Bendix plays one of the prisoners whose life is on the line here. It's obvious where the conflict lies as the actual killer is on the outside and revealed early on, while others strive to protect him as well as free the hostages.Another reminder that often, the greatest enemies of the world are hiding behind an air of civility and grace, this may not be well remembered among anti-Nazi propaganda. Certainly, if you look at films made each year between 1940 and 1946, a good majority of them were war related. If you look at the lists of the best films made during that time, a good majority of them are war related as well. The Nazi's here quickly reveal who they are behind the polite façades, even Lukas who rises in viciousness as the film goes on. Rainer is overshadowed by the two Oscar winners who took home the prize that year for other films. She obviously felt that the subject matter warranted her participation, and does have one great scene where she makes it clear to Paxinou that she's on her side when suspected of being a traitor. As Paxinou tells her, if they didn't believe in humanity, they really would have nothing to fight about.

Lt Glasenapp (Hans Conried) commits suicide at a club which leads the Gestapo to arrest everyone who is present. It gives them an excuse to execute the 26 Czech citizens that they now have in custody under the pretext of the murder of Glasenapp. Unknowingly, they have arrested the leader of the resistance (William Bendix) posing as a washroom attendant. A group of resistance fighters, led by Maria (Katina Paxinou), need contact with Bendix to establish the time to blow up a German ammunition supply and so devise a plan to rescue the prisoners. Also amongst the prisoners is Pressinger (Oskar Homolka) who is Czechoslovakia's most wealthy Nazi sympathiser. His daughter, Milada (Luis Rainer) and her boyfriend Jan (Roland Varno) try to secure his release with the help of Paul Breda (Arturo de Cordova), pitting their wits against Reinhardt (Paul Lukas), the Gestapo Commissioner ...... There are some twists along the way ..... the citizens are to be executed in 72 hours.The film contains obvious propaganda with all German soldiers portrayed as vile, vicious, shouty headmaster types. I found that Bendix's portrayal of a simpleton employed as a washroom assistant made me sometimes think "you're having a laugh!" - no-one is going to believe that slow, measured, deliberate delivery. Anyway, its a good film....and the rest of the cast do well. It's an involved story so you will need to follow carefully or you may find it confusing. It moves at a quick pace and when the film ends, a lot has happened!

A group of twenty-six Czechoslovakian citizens are jailed until a 50,000 crown reward by the Gestapo uncovers the supposed killer of a Nazi officer whom virtually everyone suspects committed suicide. The hostages include the leader of the underground resistance movement (as played by William Bendix), whose cover is that of a washroom attendant in the nightclub where the "victim" was last seen alive. Will the hostages be released in dangerous world of bribery, deception and corruption that characterized invading armies during World War Two?