Movielogr
Blackmail (1929)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
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Overview
London, 1929. Frank Webber, a very busy Scotland Yard detective, seems to be more interested in his work than in Alice White, his girlfriend. Feeling herself ignored, Alice agrees to go out with an elegant and well-mannered artist who invites her to visit his fancy apartment.
Rated NR | Length 86 minutes
Actors
Anny Ondra | Sara Allgood | Charles Paton | John Longden | Donald Calthrop | Cyril Ritchard | Hannah Jones | Harvey Braban | Ex-Det. Sergt. Bishop | Alfred Hitchcock | Johnny Ashby | Joan Barry | Johnny Butt | Phyllis Konstam | Sam Livesey | Phyllis Monkman | Percy Parsons
Viewing History (seen 2 times)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/26/2019 | Movie Screen | Film | Theater | 7 stars |
| 07/02/2017 | Computer | Streaming | Other | 8.5 stars |
| (Average) 7.75 stars |
Viewing Notes
Really well crafted film from Hitchcock’s early career. This film bridges his silent film and sound work as it started out as a silent film before becoming the first British talkie released.
There are some iconic Hitchcock shots in this including some great stairwell scenes. He also did some early experimenting with sound, including a great scene where sound is blocked out when one of the characters enters a phone booth. Another example is a scene with the shop patron discussing the murder; every time she mentions the word knife, it’s emphasized by making it louder, which grates on the viewer’s nerves, putting us in the place of the protagonist who flinches every time she hears the word. Really well done scene.
The opening scene feels very much of the silent era, and in fact the characters have no accompanying sound to match their voices. The focus on hands and fingerprints early on also raises the issue, without overtly referring to it, at the end of the film.
The rape/murder scene is really well done and builds tension without the usual musical queues that would become convention as sound took over film.
And finally, I loved the ambiguous ending. It’s actually a bit of a shock that it ends the way it does.
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