This is surely one of the most extraordinary films to have come out of America during the war. It is also notable for being the only Hollywood movie in which Elsa Lanchester, best known as The Bride of Frankenstein, had the lead part and top billing. She plays a cockney charlady who is convinced she's protected by a "lucky charm" once owned by her late husband (cut to a photo of Charles Laughton) and is resolved to assassinate Hitler. During the London blitz, armed only with her bucket and a mop, she stows away on a ship across the English Channel and proceeds to scrub her way across Occupied Europe by pretending to be deaf and dumb. She lands up in Hitler's HQ in Berlin where language problems are solved by all the 'bad' Germans speaking English with funny guttural accents! Elsa gets a job as a cleaner in Hitler's office but he's out at the time so she delivers a propaganda-like speech to his empty chair. Some 'good' Germans opposed to Hitler (they all speak English with American accents) whisk Elsa back to England in a stolen plane. She is hailed as a heroine only to discover that the "lucky charm" she took with her was part of a job-lot of glass eyes! An absolutely priceless movie, and one which at the end is dedicated to the fighting US forces overseas. One can only wonder what they made of it.
11 Reviews
Silly fun
boblipton6 November 2002
Googily little wartime fantasy about a cleaning lady who, convinced a lucky charm owned by her late husband (played in two photographs by an uncredited Charles Laughton, Lanchester's real-life husband) will keep her from harm, goes to Berlin to "give that blooming Mr. Hitler what for." Ably supported by a cast of first-rate comics, particularly Lumsdale Hare and Fritz Feld, it still requires Miss Lanchester at her most wide-eyed to pull this one off.
It's Elsa against the Reich
blanche-21 July 2015
Preposterous but fun film starring Elsa Lanchester as a British cleaning woman whose late husband (a photo of Charles Laughton) was saved from crocodiles by a glass eye he carried.
She believes this eye to have magic powers. She believes it will protect her against all eventualities, so she decides to go to Germany and kill Hitler.
I had a feeling I'd seen this film, and when I heard Lanchester's name in the film, Mrs. Muggins, I knew I had. I named one of my cats Muggins.
Pretending to be deaf and dumb, Mrs. M gets a job at Hitler's headquarters, though he's out of town at the time. She does, however, manage to pass to an agent information about the whereabouts of his girlfriend. What she doesn't realize is that the Nazis have actually let the woman leave prison and have followed her and the agent, and know of Mrs. Muggins' involvement.
Though Lanchester was 42 at the time of this film, she doesn't look it and is quite pretty. She gives a lively performance and is very funny, though the humor comes out of the seriousness of her character and her belief in this magic piece. Seeing her order a Nazi to get her coat was too much, as was her rehearsal for murder in Hitler's office.
The rest of the cast is good, and despite the fact that it was done on a set, you really do think you're in London and Berlin somehow.
Short, and Lanchester is always a pleasure.
She believes this eye to have magic powers. She believes it will protect her against all eventualities, so she decides to go to Germany and kill Hitler.
I had a feeling I'd seen this film, and when I heard Lanchester's name in the film, Mrs. Muggins, I knew I had. I named one of my cats Muggins.
Pretending to be deaf and dumb, Mrs. M gets a job at Hitler's headquarters, though he's out of town at the time. She does, however, manage to pass to an agent information about the whereabouts of his girlfriend. What she doesn't realize is that the Nazis have actually let the woman leave prison and have followed her and the agent, and know of Mrs. Muggins' involvement.
Though Lanchester was 42 at the time of this film, she doesn't look it and is quite pretty. She gives a lively performance and is very funny, though the humor comes out of the seriousness of her character and her belief in this magic piece. Seeing her order a Nazi to get her coat was too much, as was her rehearsal for murder in Hitler's office.
The rest of the cast is good, and despite the fact that it was done on a set, you really do think you're in London and Berlin somehow.
Short, and Lanchester is always a pleasure.
Passport to Destiny
airearthfire5 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
The majority of reviews written about Passport to Destiny {formerly Dangerous Journey}(1944) are merciless, criticizing the very entertaining tongue-in-cheek qualities it has in common with the great motion pictures All Through the Night (1941), Desperate Journey (1942) and To Be Or Not To Be (1942).
Both Humphrey Bogart and Ronald Reagan used double talk gibberish as a means of escape from Nazis, while Jack Benny masqueraded as Nazi Colonel 'Concentration Camp Ehrhardt' during the fall of Poland. Why is it so much to ask us to believe the exploits of a cockney charlady scrubbing her way across war torn Europe to the Reich Chancellery!
If you want to criticize the credibility about war dramas, just take a good look at Man Hunt (1941), Escape (1940) and Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942), where you'll get to see Walter Pidgeon a big game hunter armed with a rifle within shooting distance of Adolph Hitler's residence in the German Alps, while you'll find Robert Taylor, Ginger Rogers and Cary Grant waltzing in and out of concentration camps like they were simply the county lockup.
Only a few films routinely circulate featuring the multi-talented Elsa Lanchester: Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Lassie Come Home (1943), Bishop's Wife (1947), Big Clock (1948), Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and Mary Poppins (1964). Passport to Destiny needs to be released on DVD!
Both Humphrey Bogart and Ronald Reagan used double talk gibberish as a means of escape from Nazis, while Jack Benny masqueraded as Nazi Colonel 'Concentration Camp Ehrhardt' during the fall of Poland. Why is it so much to ask us to believe the exploits of a cockney charlady scrubbing her way across war torn Europe to the Reich Chancellery!
If you want to criticize the credibility about war dramas, just take a good look at Man Hunt (1941), Escape (1940) and Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942), where you'll get to see Walter Pidgeon a big game hunter armed with a rifle within shooting distance of Adolph Hitler's residence in the German Alps, while you'll find Robert Taylor, Ginger Rogers and Cary Grant waltzing in and out of concentration camps like they were simply the county lockup.
Only a few films routinely circulate featuring the multi-talented Elsa Lanchester: Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Lassie Come Home (1943), Bishop's Wife (1947), Big Clock (1948), Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and Mary Poppins (1964). Passport to Destiny needs to be released on DVD!
A Common Scrubwoman Does Her Part to End WWII
LeonLouisRicci9 July 2015
Offbeat and Wild RKO Comedy Starring Elsa Lanchester. Showcasing Her considerable Comedic Talents, makes this Farce a Lot of Fun. Watching the Scrubwoman Foil the Nazis one can't help Think of "The Great Dictator" (1940), "To Be or Not to Be" (1942), and Even the Three Stooges.
This little B-Movie Charms its Way through the One Hour Running Time and is Never Boring. Elsa Carries the Show and the Supporting Cast Helps make this a Goofy Gamble that Works its Wonders with its Fantasy Plot, the Assassination of Adolf Hitler, by a Commoner (a Female no less). "Who's a commoner?", says Mrs. Muggins.
The Silliness about Her Dead Husband is Overplayed a bit, and the Deal about the "Magic" Eye had to be Debunked because of the Hays Code's "Religion" Clause, but Aside from that, the Movie is quite Entertaining.
This little B-Movie Charms its Way through the One Hour Running Time and is Never Boring. Elsa Carries the Show and the Supporting Cast Helps make this a Goofy Gamble that Works its Wonders with its Fantasy Plot, the Assassination of Adolf Hitler, by a Commoner (a Female no less). "Who's a commoner?", says Mrs. Muggins.
The Silliness about Her Dead Husband is Overplayed a bit, and the Deal about the "Magic" Eye had to be Debunked because of the Hays Code's "Religion" Clause, but Aside from that, the Movie is quite Entertaining.
Elsa's Plan to Kill Adolf
wes-connors21 May 2013
During World War II, London widow Elsa Lanchester (as Ella Muggins) reminisces about her deceased husband Albert. A notorious liar, he claimed to have "magic eye" which protected him from harm. Sadly, Albert wasn't carrying the glassy object when he expired. Locating the magic eye in an attic, Ms. Lanchester carries it safely through a German air raid. Convinced she now possesses a charmed life, Lanchester wisely decides to assassinate Adolf Hitler. She stows away on a ship and makes her way to Germany...
In Berlin, Lanchester looks up Hitler in the local phone book. She poses as a deaf mute cleaning woman attending to Nazi officials. These scenes are amusing. In a subplot, resistance officer Gordon Oliver (as Franz von Weber) seeks to rescue his sweetheart Lenore Aubert (as Greta Neuman) from a Gestapo prison. Reliably funny Fritz Feld and effectively villainous Lionel Royce have the best supporting material. The photograph of "Albert" is, as you might suspect, Lanchester's real-life spouse Charles Laughton.
***** Passport to Destiny (1/31/44) Ray McCarey ~ Elsa Lanchester, Gordon Oliver, Fritz Feld, Lionel Royce
In Berlin, Lanchester looks up Hitler in the local phone book. She poses as a deaf mute cleaning woman attending to Nazi officials. These scenes are amusing. In a subplot, resistance officer Gordon Oliver (as Franz von Weber) seeks to rescue his sweetheart Lenore Aubert (as Greta Neuman) from a Gestapo prison. Reliably funny Fritz Feld and effectively villainous Lionel Royce have the best supporting material. The photograph of "Albert" is, as you might suspect, Lanchester's real-life spouse Charles Laughton.
***** Passport to Destiny (1/31/44) Ray McCarey ~ Elsa Lanchester, Gordon Oliver, Fritz Feld, Lionel Royce
Elsa the Lioness
richardchatten13 June 2017
I would have love to have known what Dr.Goebbels would have made of this incredible piece of wartime propaganda about a patriotic cockney cleaning lady from Camberwell who in a twist similar to 'DOA' is emboldened by the possession of a Magic Eye formerly in the possession of her late husband which she believes makes her indestructible, and thus sets off for Berlin to assassinate Hitler (where everyone conveniently speaks in English and she avoids exposure by passing herself off as a deaf mute).
As usual, Hollywood has strange ideas about the way the Nazi hierarchy functioned; and this version would have us believe that Himmler's office was located directly opposite Hitler's in the Chancellery, with Goebbels' cosily adjacent. William Joyce - as portrayed by the ever urbane Gavin Muir - according to this account has the run of the place, but seems to have little time for his Nazi minders nor they for him.
It's all complete nonsense, done on a shoestring; but it lifts the spirits to see the gorgeous Elsa Lanchester for her only time in Hollywood cast in the lead (she had starred in a few short silent comedies back in blighty fifteen years earlier) and she rises to the occasion with a gusto that amply makes up for the general shabbiness of the rest of the production.
As usual, Hollywood has strange ideas about the way the Nazi hierarchy functioned; and this version would have us believe that Himmler's office was located directly opposite Hitler's in the Chancellery, with Goebbels' cosily adjacent. William Joyce - as portrayed by the ever urbane Gavin Muir - according to this account has the run of the place, but seems to have little time for his Nazi minders nor they for him.
It's all complete nonsense, done on a shoestring; but it lifts the spirits to see the gorgeous Elsa Lanchester for her only time in Hollywood cast in the lead (she had starred in a few short silent comedies back in blighty fifteen years earlier) and she rises to the occasion with a gusto that amply makes up for the general shabbiness of the rest of the production.
One of the strangest wartime propaganda films you can find.
planktonrules22 June 2018
While I have seen a lot of wartime propaganda pictures, I must admit that "Passport to Destiny" is among the strangest of them! The story is about a very weird lady (Elsa Lanchester) who thinks her good luck charm will keep her from all harm. And, because of this, she is going to sneak into Germany and murder Hitler!!
The lady rather easily arrives in Germany and pretends to be deaf and unable to talk. Oddly, the Nazis hire her as a janitor to work in the very building where the top Nazis work...and her plan appears to be going quite well. So what's next? See the film.
The film never really makes much sense and if you are looking for realism, you had best skip this one. Lanchester's character rather easily gets into wartime Germany and gets out even easier! And, she very easily gets a job with access to top Nazis....something else that makes little sense. So, provided you can turn off your brain and just enjoy, the film is worth seeing--otherwise, it's a dopey little film, that's for sure!
The lady rather easily arrives in Germany and pretends to be deaf and unable to talk. Oddly, the Nazis hire her as a janitor to work in the very building where the top Nazis work...and her plan appears to be going quite well. So what's next? See the film.
The film never really makes much sense and if you are looking for realism, you had best skip this one. Lanchester's character rather easily gets into wartime Germany and gets out even easier! And, she very easily gets a job with access to top Nazis....something else that makes little sense. So, provided you can turn off your brain and just enjoy, the film is worth seeing--otherwise, it's a dopey little film, that's for sure!
Bizarre "Comedy" From RKO
Michael_Elliott27 May 2013
Passport to Destiny (1944)
** (out of 4)
Bizarre "comedy" from RKO about Ella Muggins (Elsa Lanchester), a British woman who keeps with her a special glass eye, which her husband (photos of Charles Laughton are used) used to escape any bad harm. She decides to take this charm to Germany where she's going to work as a deaf and dumb house cleaner and she plans to get into Hitler's office and assassinate him. I'm really not too sure what RKO was thinking but this here is pretty much dead on arrival and if it weren't for the charm of Lanchester then we'd really have a disaster on our hands. This film is clearly just for fans of the actress since this here was her first and only leading role. I thought she managed to be quite charming here and especially during the scenes where she's pretending not to be able to hear anything going on. I'm sure some might take offense to this but the actress does a pretty good job in the part and she certainly helps keep the 65-minute running time moving at a decent pace. The one bit of trivia that might make this film appeal to some is that Lanchester was in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN and co-star Lenore Aubert would eventually appear in the studio's ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN so perhaps Universal monster fans will want to see the two together. Gordon Oliver is also good in his supporting role. PASSPORT TO DESTINY is supposed to be a comedy but for the life of me I don't remember laughing a single time. The film manages to be mildly entertaining simply because of how strange the story is but it's just way too predictable and unfunny to really work.
** (out of 4)
Bizarre "comedy" from RKO about Ella Muggins (Elsa Lanchester), a British woman who keeps with her a special glass eye, which her husband (photos of Charles Laughton are used) used to escape any bad harm. She decides to take this charm to Germany where she's going to work as a deaf and dumb house cleaner and she plans to get into Hitler's office and assassinate him. I'm really not too sure what RKO was thinking but this here is pretty much dead on arrival and if it weren't for the charm of Lanchester then we'd really have a disaster on our hands. This film is clearly just for fans of the actress since this here was her first and only leading role. I thought she managed to be quite charming here and especially during the scenes where she's pretending not to be able to hear anything going on. I'm sure some might take offense to this but the actress does a pretty good job in the part and she certainly helps keep the 65-minute running time moving at a decent pace. The one bit of trivia that might make this film appeal to some is that Lanchester was in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN and co-star Lenore Aubert would eventually appear in the studio's ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN so perhaps Universal monster fans will want to see the two together. Gordon Oliver is also good in his supporting role. PASSPORT TO DESTINY is supposed to be a comedy but for the life of me I don't remember laughing a single time. The film manages to be mildly entertaining simply because of how strange the story is but it's just way too predictable and unfunny to really work.
Deaf, dumb and lame
ejrjr22 May 2007
Allegedly this is a comedy but you will be hard pressed to find a reason to laugh. At other times it drifts into spy drama but the situations are so contrived that you will be hard pressed to believe.
The widow of a British Army Sergeant Major is working during the early years of World War II in London as a cleaning lady. She thinks a glass eye is her husband's mystical lucky charm and will protect her from any harm or danger. Therefore she decides to pursue Adolph Hitler and save the world.
She manages to travel from London to Berlin, working as a cleaning woman, in just three weeks and then obtain a job as a cleaning woman at Hitler's headquarters. Eventually she manages to infiltrate his empty office and while rehearsing the assassination, she is captured by one of Hitler's top aides.
But, somehow we are transported through time and suddenly the Reich Chancery is bombed by the RAF allowing our heroine and two other spies to escape to London by stealing a Luftwaffe airplane which for some unknown reason is a DC-3.
While be feted by the London press, she discovers the magical glass eye was just one of many in a box with her former husband's military uniform.
Why did the Allies waste their time battling the German Army?
The widow of a British Army Sergeant Major is working during the early years of World War II in London as a cleaning lady. She thinks a glass eye is her husband's mystical lucky charm and will protect her from any harm or danger. Therefore she decides to pursue Adolph Hitler and save the world.
She manages to travel from London to Berlin, working as a cleaning woman, in just three weeks and then obtain a job as a cleaning woman at Hitler's headquarters. Eventually she manages to infiltrate his empty office and while rehearsing the assassination, she is captured by one of Hitler's top aides.
But, somehow we are transported through time and suddenly the Reich Chancery is bombed by the RAF allowing our heroine and two other spies to escape to London by stealing a Luftwaffe airplane which for some unknown reason is a DC-3.
While be feted by the London press, she discovers the magical glass eye was just one of many in a box with her former husband's military uniform.
Why did the Allies waste their time battling the German Army?
passport to boredom
mossgrymk16 August 2023
To make a successful comedy/action movie about Hitler and Co, filmed in the midst of World War Two, requires the genius of a Lubitsch (i.e. "To Be Or Not To Be") rather than what we have here, namely Leo Mc Carey's kid brother with about a fifth of his elder sib's talent. It also does not help that the screenplay provides alarmingly few funny lines or interesting characters beyond Ms. Lanchester's indomitable janitor. So we are left with a decent performance by the usually hammy but this time blessedly more restrained Lanchester and comedy that is not all that funny and action that is not all that action-y. And I really could have done without the relatively benign treatment of Lord Haw Haw. Solid C.
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