Les 39 marches

If what you want from a thriller is in-yer-face mugging, special effects, noise, a booming soundtrack, gore, nudity and flashy editing, this one is not for you.

However if you are a more discerning moviegoer who values a great script, exquisite understated acting, wit, humour and intelligence, and you are willing to overlook the technically rough bits (come on, this was 1935, you cannot measure it by 2005 standards !!) - then enjoy, because you are in for a treat.

Robert Donat is one of the most charming heroes that ever graced the screen, and but for his frail health and loathing of the Hollywood pzazz (he later refused some great movie parts offered to him, which eventually went to the likes of Erroll Flynn and Douglas Fairbanks Jr) he might have become one of the greatest. Watch the dinner scene with the crofters, in which he manages to convey his plight to the wife entirely without words. Great acting. Also the wickedly funny bravura piece at the political rally.

Madeleine Carroll must be among the coolest and feistiest of Hitchcock's favoured blondes, not as insipid or irrelevant as many of the others were. She is a veritable icicle and it takes a long time for her to thaw, but then watch the sparks fly.

I feel a little sad for the people who cannot be bothered to check out this movie because of the tinny sound or the b&w photography. Forget about those superficialities and concentrate on the real values - the script, the acting, the lighting, photography and camera work -, just allow yourself to get carried away with the fast paced action, and you'll love it.

Nearly every era in Hitchcock's directing career has incredible strengths. When we view a later film like "North by Northwest" we are tempted to say that "The 39 Steps" is simply a training film for the bigger budget, star studded film that came later. This is not true. This movie stands on its own. With wonderful actors like Robert Donat and Madeline Carrol, we are led on an intense ride, culminating in a crowded theater. There are amazing shots of the characters weaving their way through crowds, close ups used strictly for the purpose of moving the plot. With Hitchcock there is no excess. He is a poet with a camera. As the tension mounts and Donat's character becomes swept away in its arms, we are taken with it. His wisecracking character is out of words and must act, just as Cary Grant did in the aforementioned film. There is something lurking and we have to find out who it is and why does he need to know what he knows? I've seen this many times and will see it again.

For sheer entertainment, it would be hard to top "The 39 Steps". While Hitchcock made other movies with more psychological depth and more fascinating characters, there is as much fast-paced suspense here as you will find in any of his later films, along with a good dose of humor and a wide variety of creative settings.

This is one of several movies on Hitchcock's theme of the unjustly accused man. In a nicely-crafted sequence at the beginning, Richard Hannay (Robert Donat), a Canadian visiting London, is caught up in a spy plot and suspected in a murder, and he spends the rest of the film trying to evade both the police and the actual killers. The settings include a London music hall, a train, the Scottish moors, a political meeting, and several others that add to the exciting story. For much of the action, Hannay is entangled with a skeptical blonde played by Madeleine Carroll, and the two have good chemistry in a running verbal battle. There are also several entertaining minor characters that add wit and interest, especially the music hall performer "Mr. Memory".

It all moves quickly and holds together well, resulting in great entertainment that will be enjoyed by anyone who likes classic thrillers.

The 39 Steps is one of Hitchcock's most economical and greatest films. In this plot-heavy film, Richard Hannay - a young bachelor - experiences a series of very improbable events, starting with the murder of a mystery woman in his apartment by what he believes to be foreign agents and a picture perfect frame-up. Dogged by the police, Scotland Yard and jealous husbands, Hannay runs for his life. Catapulted from one humorous quasi-romantic encounter, plot twist, and narrow escape to another, our protagonist searches frantically for a way out and ends up with much more than he could have expected.

A lot of good intellectual analysis has been written here on IMDb and elsewhere about The 39 Steps. And the film deserves it. The 39 Steps is not only a great romantic adventure with the usual Hitchcock humor blended seamlessly into the mix, but it is also rich in allegory, metaphor and even subtle symbolism. Many of Hitchcock's typical themes appear throughout the film - marriage in its various forms, human relationships, and the many varieties and scales of deceit. But the purpose of this review is not to indulge in the meta-text of The 39 Steps, but rather, to discuss its entertainment value.

It is lovely to look at, but lacks much of the cinematographic experimentation and play of Hitchcock's earlier films. It is perfectly scripted - each character has a distinct personality and predicament, and they are all very believable and very well acted. The plot provides suspense, comedy, a powerful but unexaggerated analysis of belief, paranoia and propaganda. Suffice to say that the film can be seen from many perspectives and tends to hit its audience at many levels.

The camera work is more consistently focused on the story than many of Hitchcock's films, and the script offers a lot of activity jammed into a relatively short length. No time is wasted and the film zips by. Despite the lean and economical style, The 39 Steps is easily followed and doesn't require a great deal of thought or interpretation. However, as previously stated, the film can certainly inspire interpretive and critical thought if that's what you are looking for.

The 39 Steps is a gift, and never a burden. Highly recommended.

...with Robert Donat as a Canadian ex-pat living in London who gets accused of murder. He goes on the run, avoiding the authorities in hopes of clearing his name, with the trail leading to the Scottish countryside. He eventually ends up involving a reluctant Madeleine Carroll. With Lucie Mannheim, Godfrey Tearle, Helen Haye, Wylie Watson, John Laurie, and Peggy Ashcroft.

Highlights for me: the Scottish Highlands, Madeleine Carroll removing her stockings while handcuffed to Donat, and Peggy Ashcroft's brief turn as the unhappy wife of a country farmer. Donat's easy charm and affable demeanor foretell the similar performances by Stewart and Grant in Hitchcock's later thrillers. There are some glaring plot-holes (why don't the villains deal with Donat when they off the woman in his apartment at the film's start?), but they can be ignored thanks to the pace of the proceedings.

The Criterion DVD bonus features include commentary by Hitchcock expert Marian Keane; a "visual essay" by Hitchcock expert (how many are there?) Leonard Leff; Hitchcock: The Early Years (2000), a short British documentary; excerpts from a 1966 British TV interview; more audio-only excerpts of Truffaut's Hitchcock interviews; a booklet/essay from critic David Cairns; and the complete Lux Radio Theatre adaptation, with Ida Lupino and Robert Montgomery. Truly the best way to see it, and thus why I bring it up.