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Sir Anthony Blunt, celebrated art historian and Surveyor of the Royal
family's pictures since 1945, was exposed in 1979 as a KGB traitor in Andrew
Boyle's book The Climate of Treason. When this was confirmed in Parliament,
Blunt was stripped of his knighthood, leading to much debate as to why this had
been kept hidden for so long since he'd confessed to the authorities in
1964.
Neither as charming or romantic a figure as 'Kim' Philby, nor as pitiable as
Guy Burgess, Blunt has inspired fascination and anger in equal measure, due to
his unrepentant yet seemingly contradictory nature. Apparently as cold blooded
and committed a Communist as Philby, he was also deeply entrenched as part of
the British establishment. Blunt has been the inspiration for many fictional
characters, including the ironically named 'Sharp' (Sebastian Shaw) in High
Season (d. Clare Peploe, 1987).
The first attempt at a historically accurate portrait was Blunt (BBC, tx.
11/1/1987), written by Robin Chapman. Ian Richardson, who had a similar role in
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (BBC, 1979), exudes his trademark mixture of cold
ruthlessness and ironic detachment but also brings a surprising tenderness to
the part. This is particularly true of his scenes with Anthony Hopkins, who
imbues Burgess with a tragic romanticism so palpable that the resolution to
their touching love story becomes the film's dramatic and emotional core.
The narrative focuses on Blunt's role in engineering the 1951 defection of
Burgess and Maclean. Although it speculates about the homosexual aspects of the
story, Chapman's script otherwise sticks closely to the known facts, relying
mostly on the writings and testimony of Dr Goronwy Rees (Michael Williams), who
was recruited by Burgess and worked for the KGB between 1936 and 1939. The film
ends with Rees's decision to confess to MI5 and Blunt's attempts to stop him.
Rees, whose academic career ended over his connection to Burgess, later
helped Boyle expose Blunt, remaining convinced that Blunt was a 'controlled
schizophrenic' who continued to lie about the full extent of his spying and of
his relationship with Burgess. This last part of the film is less successful,
however, casting Blunt in a more conventionally villainous and Machiavellian
mould as he uses his friendship with MI5 Deputy-Director General Guy Liddell to
undermine Rees, later referring to British Intelligence as "...rather like one's
dear old nanny. You just have to tickle her in the right
place".
Sergio Angelini
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1. Gents meeting (2:43)
