In the 1930s Hitchcock hired a PR firm to get his name in the news and very soon he was cultivating the black humour and publicity gimmicks that would ultimately make him as well-known as the films he made.
During this decade he would make 13 films in all (if you count the German-language edition of Murder! released as Mary). The most successful were probably those made in collaboration with Charles Bennett, who had provided the play basis for Blackmail. They turned a Bulldog Drummond story into The Man Who Knew Too Much and radically re-fashioned stories by Conrad, Buchan and Maugham into very personal thrillers that were huge hits.
Having made one of the first really successful British sounds films with Blackmail, Hitchcock was also canny enough to shoot it as an alternate to the silent version he started with so that as many people as possible would see it. In the early 30s he made several different types of film as he re-established himself for the new sound medium. These included adaptation of John Galsworthy (The Skin Game) and Sean O’Casey (Juno and the Paycock) as well as the underrated social comedy Rich and Strange before embarking on that run of spy thrillers beginning with The Man Who Knew Too Much that would make his name and pave the way to Hollywood.
But which are your favourites? Don’t forget to to pick the two you like the best from the list below – and if you haven’t already, don’t forget to vote in the poll for the best 2 from his films released in the 1920 which I posted yesterday here. Then we move on to the 1940s and his first batch of Hollywood classics!
This poll will stay open for a week and I will provide all the results once we have reached the 1970s in a week’s time. Thanks for taking part.
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The competition is stiffer here, naturally. Still, not as hard to make a choice as the next decades will be.
Just prepping the 1940s – it’s a toughie! I re-watched YOUNG AN D INNOCENT yesterday and it was even better than i remembered, just superbly funny and surprisingly touching too
Yes, it’s a good, if neglected one. I forgot when voting and only chose one title – that might well have been the other one, had I not been so boneheaded.
You should be able to vote again … or maybe not actually – you’re not the only one still getting the hang of this thing!
Nope, there’s only one bite at the cherry – it will reach me to be more attentive in the future though. 🙂
If you PM me I’ll update it for you chum (given how important this is 😉
In that case, you have mail.
Sorted it will be … (as Yoda might have said, had he been from the East End)
That is a serious perplexing choice….mmmm….what to pick….
Go for it!
PS and don’t forget, you get 2 to choose from until the finals! 🙂
Sergio, I have seen only two of these 12 films. Clearly, I’m not a Hitchcock fan yet! My dad recommended “The Man Who Knew Too Much” in the seventies and that was probably the first AH movie I ever saw. And, of course, there’s that song eternal.
Ah yes, that would be from Hitchcock’s own 1956 remake starring James Stewart and Doris Day – the British version from the 1930s is about an hour shorter, doesn’t have the song, but is probably a better film!
So glad to have the chance to vote for the under-rated Young and Innocent. My other choice is more of an accepted favourite – both mine based on books that I’ve featured on the blog fairly recently…
Actually 3 of this tranche are based on books I know, love and have featured….
It is interesting to note just how few of Hitchcock’s films were not based on some sort of pre-published source – you can pretty much count them on the fingers of one hand (North By Northwest is probably the most prominent of all of them)
Ah excellent, really love that movie too – thanks Moira!
I voted for TMWKTM and TLV.
Great choices Santosh, thanks.
Ooh, this is a tough one, Sergio! And I’m really enjoying this series. I look forward to your post about the top vote-getters.
Thanks Margot – more tomorrow …
I’m afraid I haven’t had the opportunity to watch most of the titles from these years, Sergio.
It’s the 1940s tomorrow Jose Ignacio, after he moved to Hollywood, which I imagine may be more familiar to most viewers
Much more familiar, Sergio thanks.
Excellent!
As a couple of others mention, I haven’t seen many of these (I’ll do better in the up-and-coming poll)–I guess that made my votes easy. Can’t vote for what you don’t know. 🙂
Thanks Bev – hope aftr the move to Hollywood it all becomes a lot more familiar 🙂
As Colin said, this is where the competition picks up.
Thanks Mike – let’s see the fur fly! 🙂
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Wasn’t too difficult, since I was only familiar with a few of them.
Much appreciated though, all the same 🙂
I show a lot of Hitchcock to my film classes as he offers an object lesson in how to use a camera to manipulate an audience. That tracking shot in Young and Innocent right to the murderer’s twitching eye earned that film one of my votes! But there’s so much great stuff to choose from, and I am already sweating what my second vote will be in the 1950’s, the super decade!
I’d forgotten how funny and charming that film was but yes, that tracking shot is beautifully done. Yes, I know what you mean about the 50s – There are three I feel I have to vote for so even though it’s my poll I know it will drive me a little nuts!
That ‘twitching eye’ is really classic.
It’s a great one (not sure how well the minstrel look stands up, ahem …)
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The 39 Steps for me. Can’t forget the eyes of the bespectacled man peering at our hero over the newspaper that he is purportedly reading. Still sends shivers down my spine.
It’s a great movie, easily one of Hitchcock’s best.
Yes 39 steps for me (has anyone seen the stage show ? it is a scream). Robert Donat’s voice, the wit, great performance by John Laurie, decades before Dad’s Army, and young Peggy Ashcroft. Second choice the Lady Vanishes – so much better than the remake with shrieking Cybil.
Great choices – and no, not seen the show – it seemed to be on forever at the Criterion but have never managed it (so far)
You really must go. It is based on the film, I think, rather than the book, and certainly ‘one for all the family’. We took our rather naive 12-year-old and our highly cynical 16-year-old and we all loved it. It does depend on the excellence of the cast so I hope the present cast is as good.
Thanks for that Rosemary – I’ve got my 11-year old nieces (12 in September, as they keep reminding us …) visiting in July so just might try it on them 🙂
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