Romance de Séville

In trivia someone has stated this was the first British sound film in colour.This is wrong on both counts.Firstly it is not a sound film.It is a silent with an added music track which includes some songs,not synchronized in any way.Secondly Pathe colour was only stencil colour.Kinema colour was a red green process that was used from well over 100 years ago.I think the first British colour sound film would be Wings Of the Morning.Turning to the film itself it is only 58 minutes long but feels a lot longer.It is terribly dull and I doubt that BIP got much further mileage out of this by reissuing it in this form.The acting style would have been outdated then,and having to read so many inter titles must have put people off going to see it.

Alexander D'Alcy and Eugenie Amami have been engaged since they were babies. They are, understandably, shy when they meet as adults. Miss Amami confesses she loves Hugh Morton, and D'Alcy is very understanding. He positions them to sit where the duenna and her cockatoo can see their backs, and goes off to admire Marguerite Allen, who flicks her fan haughtily at him, until banditos overwhelm her. Instantly, D'Alcy is over her balcony to rescue her, as well as her father, tied up below. She is engaged to student Cecil Barry, who owes immense gambling debts to Randle Ayrton, a villain you can hate because of the sloppy way he eats nuts. The last two are conspiring to steal the diamonds that will comprise Miss Allen's dowry.

All of which is an indictment of the Spanish system of having parents choose your bride for you. Although it's directed in a serious manner, it's not particularly distinguished, despite some very nice photography by Claude Friese-Greene. At 62 minutes it doesn't take long to sort out these love affairs. Alma Reville had a hand in the script. I'm guessing that Hitchcock said he wasn't interested.