For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

What made this film so excellent was the excellent plot twists. You go from moment to moment wondering who is for the good and who is for evil, even when in reality you know.Robert Donat is marvelous here as the English chemist who goes to Czechoslovakia to destroy a Nazi based gas plant. Along the way, he meets with the Hobson character, a Czech playing woman who appears on the onset to be a collaborator of the worst kind. Go know that she is really working for the Czech anti-Nazi underground.Glynis Johns appears briefly as the young lady who attempts sabotage in the film and then condemns herself to death as she realizes that Donat saw her do this and that he would blow his cover if he said otherwise.Exciting with a host of Nazi characters, one worse than the other.

"Sabotage Agent" (aka, The Adventures of Tartu) is an excellent WWII action film. It begins with the bombing of London in 1940. It then moves into an espionage and spy thriller, and gives a very good account of the underground that operated in Nazi-occupied countries. The area covered is the Czech Republic. Until the fall of the Iron Curtin 20 years ago, very little was known about the underground that operated in eastern European countries. This film tells one story about it. The acting is top notch by all involved. The plot, writing and direction are first rate. A "best" movie for the quality of the production and what it shows about one aspect of WWII that is still so little told or understood today. The film has considerable historical value for these reasons, as well. A first-rate war, action and intrigue film produced in England. Excellent all around.

When the film begins, Robert Donat is a bomb disposal expert working during the Blitz. However, he's asked by superiors to go behind enemy lines to sabotage a Nazi gas factory. The reason he was chosen was his knowledge of languages, background in chemistry and time he spent in both Romania and Germany.A serious problem develops, however, when his contact person in Czechoslovakia is captured. Because of this, he still needs to contact the Underground but has no way of doing it. So, he takes a risk and drops his cover for a Czech he thinks will work with him. Why did he pick her? Well, he could "see in her eyes that she hated the Nazis"!! Despite this stupid plot element, the rest of the film is pretty interesting--especially when the Underground decides he is a Nazi and mark him for death! Oops.But, before they can kill him, Donat is transferred to the gas factory. This is a very large and impressive underground facility. I was actually very surprised that the British film industry had such sets or had access to a factory like this--it was huge and impressive. Perhaps they achieved this effect with matte paintings...I just know it looked pretty realistic.Now that he works in this factory, he still needs help from the Underground. That's because the gas factory is way ahead of schedule and they'll soon be dropping these poison gas bombs on Britain. So it's up to him to scramble quickly--there isn't any time to lose.Overall, it's a well made and entertaining film--even though I must admit that the ending seemed a tad far-fetched. While far from Robert Donat's best, it's a solid WWII propaganda movie from start to finish.

Robert Donat's Eastern European background and fluency in a few languages make him the ideal choice for British Secret Service to send on a mission to destroy a Nazi poison gas factory in occupied Czechoslovakia. In a brief prologue with Donat disarming a buzz bomb that landed in a hospital, we see an example of how he keeps his cool under fire.Sabotage Agent next has Donat in Czechoslovakia disguised as a refugee from the Nazi sympathizing Iron Guard of Romania. Donat moves effortlessly from the stiff upper lip British agent to the bumptious Jan Tartu of Romania. He keeps his wits about him pretty good in a whole bunch of situations.Especially since he loses his contact upon arriving in Czechoslovakia almost immediately and is flying blind. Another agent is Valerie Hobson who like Donat is always good. She's a Czech who's a collaborator officially, but is really working for the Czech underground. She doesn't know what to make of Donat. One thing is sure, her Nazi boy friend Walter Rilla is plenty jealous.I have to say that the action packed ending was a bit much. It was like Donat was trying to compete with Errol Flynn. Something a little more clever I would have expected from his character. This was more like something from James Bond.Nevertheless Donat and Hobson give good characterizations and also Glynis Johns as another Czech patriot gives a memorable performance.