The Lady Vanishes

"Comedy! Chills! Chuckles! in a Mystery Express!"

1938 1h 36m EN

👍

7.4

SOLID

★7.4TMDB · 1,064

MysteryThriller

Synopsis

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On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris befriends elderly Miss Froy. When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.

“Comedy! Chills! Chuckles! in a Mystery Express!”

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Cast

Margaret Lockwood
Iris Matilda Henderson
Michael Redgrave
Gilbert Redman
Paul Lukas
Dr. Hartz
May Whitty
Miss Froy
Basil Radford
Charters
Naunton Wayne
Caldicott
Cecil Parker
Eric Todhunter
Linden Travers
'Mrs.' Margaret Todhunter

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writers: Sidney Gilliat, Frank Launder
Languages: Italian, English, German, French
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

ERA

Did you know

88 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 4 languages: Italian, English, German, French.

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 Louis Levy. 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 R. E. Dearing 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

Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave and Paul Lukas carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Comedy! Chills! Chuckles! in a Mystery Express!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0030341 — 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. Louis Levy scores. R. E. Dearing cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in Italian, English, German, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

188 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Dialogue crosses 4 languages: Italian, English, German, French.
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 Louis Levy. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor R. E. Dearing shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave and Paul Lukas carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Comedy! Chills! Chuckles! in a Mystery Express!".
8IMDB entry: tt0030341 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 13 themes, including "espionage", "secret agent", "flowerpot", "concussion".
10Released under 12 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Jack E. Cox
Original score: Louis Levy
Editing: R. E. Dearing
Runtime: 96 min · 1h 36m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Lady Vanishes (1938)

Also by

Alfred Hitchcock

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-20
★ 8/10
This is a great adventure caper - Margaret Lockwood befriends a charming old lady - Dame May Whitty - in an hotel who subsequently disappears as they travel on a train back to England. She teams up with the pretty exasperating Michael Redgrave and together they try to find the old girl. Paul Lukas is the wonderfully understated doctor and Catherine Lacey has fun being the nun. There are also a few minor storylines running parallel with the search which add some humour and a little diversion as we discover that there are sinister forces at work. It's a simple but compelling Sidney Gilliat screenplay with Hitchcock at his suspenseful best.

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