The Iron Curtain

Igor Gouzenko, an expert at deciphering codes, arrives at the Soviet embassy in Ottawa to help establish a hidden base of operations. The assignment is presented as highly sensitive and top-secret, setting a dangerous tone for what follows.

Igor is warned about the delicate nature of the work and undergoes a test by his superiors, who enlist Nina Karanova to try her wiles on him. The aim is to probe his loyalty and commitment to the cause.

Nina Karanova makes a deliberate bid to seduce Igor, testing whether he can be swayed from his duties. Despite the temptation, Igor remains loyal to his wife and to the mission.

Anna Gouzenko arrives in Ottawa with news that she is pregnant, seeking to support Igor and start a family. The pregnancy adds pressure as Igor weighs personal risk against duty.

Trigorin and Ranov meet John Grubb, founder of Canada's branch of the Communist Party, to discuss operations. They target uranium for atomic energy and attempt to recruit Dr. Harold Norman.

Over the following years, the war ends with the atomic bomb, and Anna has given birth to a son. Igor begins to have serious doubts about their future as the political dangers grow.

Kulin, a colleague, suffers a breakdown under mounting pressure and is arrested, highlighting the increasing scrutiny within the operation. Igor's doubts about safety and loyalties intensify as the situation tightens.

Igor is told he will be reassigned back to Moscow. He resolves to act to protect the materials, taking secret documents from the embassy and asking Anna to hide them; he refuses to return the papers despite threats from Trigorin and Ranov.

Grubb and several others are called back to the Soviet Union to answer for their failures. Canada uses the documents Igor took to dismantle the communist cabal operating in the country.

The Canadian government places the Gouzenkos in protective custody and grants them residence, with ongoing protection by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. They begin a fragile new life while remaining under peril.

The film ends with the Gouzenkos living in hiding, yet they maintain faith that the ultimate security for themselves and their children lies in the survival of the democratic way of life. The message emphasizes resilience in the face of ideological threat.