Diagonaldi Very well executed

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Siflutter It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

jacobjohntaylor1 Alfred Hichcock could make a good movie. This is not one of the them. If you want to see a good Alfred Hichcock movie see Psycho. Do not see this. This has an awful story line. It has an awful ending. It is not a good movie.

alexanderdavies-99382 Hitchcock began filming the movie of "Blackmail" as another silent one. However, halfway through filming, he changed his mind and began from square one in making his talkie film debut. Many of the hallmarks of Hitchcock's best work are in evidence here. The camera work that illustrates the setting of each scene by being as descriptive as possible. A murder scene which is partly fuelled by or related to some kind of sexual interaction. An innocent character who has to clear his/her name after being wrongfully accused of a crime. In London, the girlfriend of a police officer is accosted by a man who invites her back to his flat on the grounds of wanting to paint her portrait. After rejecting his advances, the man attacks the woman. To defend herself, she stabs him to death. The way Hitchcock shot this moment, was to make it suggestive. We the viewers don't actually see the weapon used. All we see is one of the woman's arms reach from behind a curtain for any means to protect herself. Thus, we are left to our imagination as to whereabouts the knife is placed and the look of agonising pain on the man's face as he dies. The woman walks the streets of the city in something of a stupor after the traumatic events. What the lady doesn't realise, is that she was seen leaving the building by a man watching her. He is the one who discovers the body and attempts to blackmail the woman. There is quite a sinister scene at the home of the woman's parents. It is breakfast time, the lady has just returned and sits down with her family. She gazes into the distance as her mum keeps repeating the word "knife" during this scene. Hitchcock emphasises the character's trauma and distress as she is being constantly reminded of what she has done. No doubt it was her conscience speaking for her but the tension in that scene is all too clear. There is some marvellous photography as the police give chase at the end. Alfred Hitchcock had successfully met the challenge of making talkie films, although the man himself often stated that he preferred silent cinema as it was more pure.

Drewchristiansen78-4-616661 Being some years since I viewed the commonly available talkie version of Blackmail, in which I did moderately enjoyed, I had the great experience, that I wouldn't take back for anything, to view the restored silent version of Blackmail at the historic Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor, MI accompanied by a live organist.This movie is incredibly moving. Throughout, I had to shake my head a few times to make sure I wasn't dreaming that I was seeing some movie Alfred Hitchcock made in 1929, just to find out it wasn't really a movie "like this" and be teased. No, this was reality, and yes that's how good I think this film is.Without the dubbing of Joan Barry (who is an otherwise excellent actress) the actress who plays Alice, shines much brighter. This movie was simply meant for the silent screen.The plot is different from usual Hitchcock formula. There is no completely wrong perpetrator. It's more a situation of your everyday human beings, with all their good and bad side, caught up in a web that's hard to break, without breaking someone in it. As the drama unfolded, I felt my arm tightening from the suspense.Not exactly an overlooked film, at least not usually, but I would say Blackmail is a bit underrated. Compared to most of Hitchcock's movies from the 1920's through 1933, this is by far the best. But beyond that, I think it ranks up with the silent greats from Murnau, Vidor, or Griffith. Very enjoyable, especially theatrically.

TheLittleSongbird Is Blackmail among Alfred Hitchcock's best films? No. Is it one of his better early era efforts(pre-39 Steps)? Alongside The Lodger, yes. It isn't without flaws, John Longden's performance is rather stilted with a mixture of over-acting and under-acting, and while the dubbing is not bad at all there were times where with instances of restricted sound technique that the film may have benefited a little better by being silent instead. It looks very good, not among the most audacious of Hitchcock's films but a significant improvement over the production values of Juno and the Paycock. The expressionistic images still look great and give the film an eerie look that suits the story really well without being too obvious. The first class photography helps also, especially in the British Museum sequence. The music is generally fine too, to begin with it could have been much more subtle and been used a little less but quite quickly was much more fitting. The story is taut and suspenseful, even early in his career what was so distinctive and good about what he was most famous for comes through very strongly. It is ambiguous too, but that adds to the suspense and done in a way that doesn't feel heavy-handed. The climax is the first of his films to use a famous landmark, and is very satisfying. Hitchcock directs very assuredly, and it is in Blackmail also where he delivers one of his best cameos(they are always fun to spot). Apart from Longdon, the acting was good, sometimes a little theatrical but considering that some of the roles did need a broad approach at times it wasn't a big issue. Sara Allgood stands out in , bringing out similar qualities to what made her the best thing about Juno and the Paycock, while the best overall performance comes from Anny Ondra who is wonderful. Overall, most interesting. 8/10 Bethany Cox