Tracking Edith (2016) User Reviews

Mother to the Cambridge 5

[Minnesota_Reid · 6/10 · 30 April 2017]

The titular Edith is a person of historical significance, of whom I'd never heard. She was a Viennese woman who converted to Communism in the 1920s and joined the Comintern. She met Kim Philby, proposed to the KGB that she recruit him as a spy, and successfully did so. And she proposed that he join the British spy service, where he then recruited Burgess and MacLean and Blunt and Cairncross. Collectively, they were the "Cambridge 5", the most successful spy ring in history. Edith followed to London, and according to the movie, "ran" Philby at least some of the time.

Fascinating stuff.

In addition, she was a professional photographer, talented enough to warrant attention on that ground alone. And her disastrous personal life was also interesting. Finally, the filmmaker is her nephew, so he was able to add some family perspective on the whole spy thing, which only came out decades later.

So, why only 6/10 stars? I'm afraid the filmmaker's storytelling skills were not the equal of the task. Nevertheless, it is a fascinating subject.

Teeters between interesting and boring

[libertyandunion-792-720520 · 6/10 · 1 September 2022]

I would've rated this higher if more compelling information about why Edith mattered as a spy was included. The documentary makers say she changed history, but the case isn't made that well. She seems to have been a big factor in the effectiveness of the Cambridge 5, but it doesn't seem like Edith was central to that whole story. I like the inclusion of many of her photos, and I think the documentary might be more meaningful to people interested in photography rather than espionage. Interviews with her 100+ year old brother are the highlight. Some of the details about her personality and general life are interesting, but the last half hour seems a bit stilted, giving me a "Who Cares?" mindset about the whole thing.

Fascinating documentary on a unique woman whose espionage work for the Soviets changed history

[idan-10572 · 9/10 · 23 January 2018]

Few familiar with the story of Kim Philby and the "Cambridge 5," who rose to the highest levels of the British secret service while spying for the Soviets, are likely to have heard of Edith Suschitzky, a young Viennese woman from a Jewish family who recruited Philby for the NKVD/KGB. This fascinating documentary describes the life of Edith Suschitzky, an ardent communist--motivated by her hatred for fascism--who died in 1973 in obscurity in an English pauper's hospice. She had achieved success as a professional photographer, and her political perspectives are apparent in her photos of the poor in Vienna, as well as workers in Britain, between the World Wars.The director, Edith's nephew Peter Stefan Jungk, tells the story by meticulously weaving together interviews with former KGB agents, Edith's son, her brother, historians, psychologists and museum curators. His sparing use of clever animation offsets the absence of film footage of Edith. Jungk has told audiences at screenings that he does not like dramatic recreations using actors, so he created animated scenes as an alternative. "Tracking Edith" is a joy for history buffs, and it is entertaining for broader audiences. Philby and the Cambridge 5 were the inspiration for John Le Carre's novel "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy," in which the George Smiley British spymaster character flushes out members of the Soviet spy ring at the highest levels of the "Circus," ostensibly the jargon for the British secret service. An interesting bit of information: the film reveals that Edith introduced Philby to his first wife, Litzi Friedmann, a young Viennese Jewish woman, who was also a dedicated communist and Soviet intelligence operative. "Tracking Edith" deserves distribution to a large audience.

But what did she do?

[screenwriter-972-149612 · 4/10 · 29 August 2022]

Had a big problem with this documentary. Nowhere in it, that I can recall, do we ever find out what exactly Edith did as a spy. There's an allusion to carrying messages from spies. There's some evidence that she passed those messages on to other spies. But her 'spying' activities? They are never revealed. And, even after the big names of the Cambridge 5 were revealed to MI5, she was never charged with anything. Never indicted. Sort of just left alone which would befit her role as a mere courier.

And what secrets would she have had access to? She never worked in government. Never on any private projects linked to atomic work. Never, as far as the documentary is able to say was ever even close to confidential information. In short, she was a letter carrier.

Another problem I personally had with this film and so many like it is the fact that those who made and still make excuses for aiding and abetting in one of the most murderous and soul crushing regimes in human history, the USSR, are never challenged over their weak rationalizations for helping to send so many to brutal prison sentences or death.

Want answers to anything about Edith? You won't find them in this film.