Blackmail

"A romance of Scotland Yard"

1929 1h 26m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 292

DramaThrillerCrime

Synopsis

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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.

“A romance of Scotland Yard”

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Cast

Anny Ondra
Alice White
Sara Allgood
Mrs. White
Charles Paton
Mr. White
John Longden
Detective Frank Webber
Donald Calthrop
Tracy
Cyril Ritchard
The Artist
Hannah Jones
The Landlady
Harvey Braban
The Chief Inspector

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writers: Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Powell
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

86 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

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97 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, shot by Jack E. Cox. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Hubert Bath. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Emile de Ruelle shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Anny Ondra and Sara Allgood and Charles Paton carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A romance of Scotland Yard".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0019702 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Alfred Hitchcock directs. Jack E. Cox behind the camera. Hubert Bath scores. Emile de Ruelle cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

186 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
297 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, shot by Jack E. Cox. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Hubert Bath. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Emile de Ruelle shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Anny Ondra and Sara Allgood and Charles Paton carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A romance of Scotland Yard".
8IMDB entry: tt0019702 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Jack E. Cox
Original score: Hubert Bath
Editing: Emile de Ruelle
Runtime: 86 min · 1h 26m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Blackmail (1929)

Also by

Alfred Hitchcock

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-11-02
★ 7/10
I saw the silent version recently with an expertly played piano accompaniment that added loads to an, admittedly rather too long, drama. "Alice" (Anny Ondra) has a silly spat with policeman boyfriend "Frank" (John Longden) and then rather foolishly hooks up with an odious artist (Cyril Ritchard) who attempts to push his luck too far and whom she accidentally, rather brutally, despatches. Terrified that nobody would believe her, and rather than call the authorities, she flees the scene - but not before she is spotted and subsequently has to deal with the venal aspirations of her blackmailer (a perfectly cast Donald Calthrop). Meantime, the police get the wrong end of the stick during their investigation and another tragedy ensues - leaving poor old "Alice" riddled with even more guilt! The one thing that takes a bit of getting used to is the really rather static nature of the photography, but once you adopt a perspective that you are in the same seat (in the cinema) as the cameraman then that actually starts to work quite well as we become more immersed in a solid story of fickleness and deceit. The inter-titles are sparing but do all that is necessary to augment Hitchcock's innate ability to tell us a story using the limited technology available in 1929, that capitalises on light, shade, and the environment around the characters. Somehow, I reckon that the talkie version that followed almost immediately would be anywhere near as effective.

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