Starring: Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave, Paul Lukas
Directed By: Alfred Hitchcock
Year: 1938
Plot: Iris is heading to get married. She boards the train
with a knock on her head from a falling box. She befriends a kind little old
English lady who loves tea and music. Mrs. Froy kindly helps Iris rest after
her little bump on the head. The mystery thickens when Iris wakes up and no one
has ever heard of Mrs. Froy. She is gone, vanished or has seen and just what
conspiracy is happening to the soon to be married beautiful Iris.
My Review and Thoughts:
This very old masterpiece classic of suspense and mystery is
done by the master himself Alfred Hitchcock. This 1938 expression of pure
cinematic wonder is by far one of the best films ever created. This is what
classic cinema is all about. The pure dark and twisted nature of this brilliant
directed mystery is a true one of a kind that few movies even today good touch.
The acting and the dread and edge of your seat classic suspense plays with the
viewer in all the expected ways of terror and the pure anticipation of what is
happening and where did the lady vanish.
Miss Froy is gone, vanished, and disappeared on a train. A
nice kind little old woman simple vanishes without a trace. Her friend Iris
played by the wonderful beautiful talented one of a kind starlet Margaret
Lockwood steps in to try and solve what has happened. No one believes poor Iris
and she finds herself on a journey to solve a most odd and strange ordeal.
Soon Iris finds a man willing to help named Gilbert played
by the phenomenal Michael Redgrave. The twists and turns and the thick plot
plays out in perfect Hitchcock ways. This is one of two movies that brought
Hitchcock into his stardom and his push to Hollywood, the other being the
masterpiece 39 Steps. This is what great classic film making is all about. This
is what pure mystery and pure black and white entertainment is about. A perfect
example to curl up with a bowl of fresh buttered popcorn with all the lights
out and adventure into this one of kind film.
This movie was remade in 1979 but the remake has nothing on
the original and the new one is a joke in my book and just about everyone
else’s. In the original it starts out with an amazing opening of the snow
covered mountains and the camera does a long shot of the train station and
village, closer and closer it gets giving a stunning and remarkable effect of
how far away and close up of the action is.
Brilliant as if the camera is bringing you into the story,
ready to board the train. Flawless acting. The dialogue and story is wonderful.
The humor is great and amazing making the viewer giggle with funny antics,
bumping of the heads, wardrobe humor and just harmless laughs. Like all
Hitchcock films or his later works there is a massive story at the start
leading to the train. The first 24 minutes is character development as he
introduces you two person before the train ride so that you will know each and every
one of them.
In classic suspense fashion the night before the train ride
a murder. Hitchcock has introduced you to countless characters so which one is
the murderer that is the mystery as the train boards. Soon Iris is on board and
the little old English lady Mrs. Froy she had befriended is gone. Soon Iris
questions everyone but they act dumb founded and confused. They have not seen
her.
No one remembers her accept poor Iris making the plot drip
with intrigue and that reality of what is going on. The two main stars of the
show in my viewpoint is Naunton Wayne who plays Caldicott and Basil Radford who
plays Charters both give a surprising performance as two Englanders trying to
get home for a cricket game. They act like a married gay couple. The two men
are flawless always worried about Cricket and come off with the attitudes that
everything has a rational answer to it.
These two are truly comical little genius is the dry humor.
The train action, sets and costumes and the wonder and beauty of this film is
amazing. Wonderful story, great effects and an awesome mystery. The dramatic
acting and emotional ordeal of Iris is stunning and award worthy. Priceless
piece of
British Cinema. Perfect ending.