It still feels rooted in the silent era, naturally, with awkward pacing and such, but it still relies heavily on visuals to create suspense, instead of trying to exploit the fancy new technology.

It's incredible to think that one of Hitch's earliest films is better than some of his later, more well-known output. It feels oddly primitive at times, as if he's finding his feet, but on the other hand that's some pretty amazing feet he's finding. Some of the sound manipulation is M-like clever, and a couple of the scenes (particularly the chase scene) are very exciting.

date viewed: 7/29/10-generally recognized as the first british talkie. hitch was actually in production on the silent version when the new tech. became available, the version i rented had a very annoying 8 minute segment with no captions at the beginning. interesting film from the master. fans of his and of those who enjoy films from this era should enjoy it, memorable touchs: the british museum chase, the staircase and the neon light in picadilly circus and hitch's cameo on the trolley.

Hitchcock does some great things with sound in this classic!

Even at such an early date in his career Hitchcock gives us some very creative shots, using visual flair to increase the tension and mess with the audience. Despite a slow start it quickly picks up steam and is a fun ride with some shocking scenes, real suspense and a bit of his trademark dark humour.

One of the best pre 1930 Hitchcocks

Obviously started as a silent and then moved to sound. This one is pretty rough and I found myself wishing it would just be over. It's Hitch's forte, but not near the supsensful quality of "The Lodger."

Some truly genius shots in constructing the psychological torment of the character of Alice White, most significantly through the usage of sound.

74.875

A bit uneven at times, with some good acting particularly from the actress playing Alice. I thought the story was very predictable, but I'm also assuming it wasn't when it came out. I also thought the film was at it's best during the time Alice met the painter and until she and Frank met the blackmailer. It gradually lost steam until then. Though, I do like the painting metaphor.

There are two versions of this movie. A silent one and one with sound. I watched the silent version which is a little heavy on the dialog as most of it is reused in the sound version. Overall it's well made.

First Hitchcock flick with sound. It's okay, all considering.

"A little clunky at times for contemporary audiences but still manages to truly perturb at times..."

Decent Alfred thriller that can get interesting but most of the time is too damned slow.

Still taking many of its cues from the silent era, Hitchcock makes an engaging thriller that relies more on visuals than it does on words. That works extremely well for this kind of genre film, heightening the tension in really effective ways. The proceedings take a little while to get going, but as more pieces fall into place, the suspense increases exponentially. Fairly standard in its plotting, but well done all around.