Britain's first talkie, Blackmail has Hitchcock start production as if it were a silent film, then makes an about-face that you can sort of spot, and its silent film heritage is where its weaknesses lie. Anny Ondra, as a woman weighed down by guilt after she kills a man, is definitely acting in that mold, which is to say over-emoting. And the dialog can be, overall, a little slow, in order to match lips to looped sound (and by looped, I mean on-set simul-recording). That said, it's hard to imagine parts of this film as silent, hinging as it does on key conversations, like the blackmail negotiation. (Not to say most of it is quite visual, of course, but even the visual fixation on the knife is supported by sound here.) But even at this early juncture, Hitchcock is still creating potent tension builders, most cleverly in just WHO will be blackmailed and WHY - the answer keeps changing. Hitch also gives us an early chase through a landmark to a vertiginous spot, which would not only become one of his personal tropes, but eventually become a cliched element in 75% of action movies.
Hitchcock filmed the silent and talkie versions simultaneously. Personally, I prefer the silent version. In the talkie, because of her czech accent, Anny Ondra had to be dubbed live while filming, stunting her performance a bit.
Also this has my favorite (and longest) Hitchcock cameo about 10 minutes in!
Sorry Ben Mankiewicz (TCM) but if that was a silent movie, I must be hearing things. There was enough dialog in there to definitly qualify as a talkie. I'd like to view the talkie version to see the difference. Maybe then I'd understand why this is considered a silent.
This film has two releases, a silent version and soundtracked dialog. However, it was shot to be silent, and only later did the studio request voices be recorded to meet the demands of the times.
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Siskoid
Britain's first talkie, Blackmail has Hitchcock start production as if it were a silent film, then makes an about-face that you can sort of spot, and its silent film heritage is where its weaknesses lie. Anny Ondra, as a woman weighed down by guilt after she kills a man, is definitely acting in that mold, which is to say over-emoting. And the dialog can be, overall, a little slow, in order to match lips to looped sound (and by looped, I mean on-set simul-recording). That said, it's hard to imagine parts of this film as silent, hinging as it does on key conversations, like the blackmail negotiation. (Not to say most of it is quite visual, of course, but even the visual fixation on the knife is supported by sound here.) But even at this early juncture, Hitchcock is still creating potent tension builders, most cleverly in just WHO will be blackmailed and WHY - the answer keeps changing. Hitch also gives us an early chase through a landmark to a vertiginous spot, which would not only become one of his personal tropes, but eventually become a cliched element in 75% of action movies.Camille Deadpan
https://ok.ru/video/1691329563334fragilelabyrinth
Hitchcock filmed the silent and talkie versions simultaneously. Personally, I prefer the silent version. In the talkie, because of her czech accent, Anny Ondra had to be dubbed live while filming, stunting her performance a bit.Also this has my favorite (and longest) Hitchcock cameo about 10 minutes in!
ClassicLady
Sorry Ben Mankiewicz (TCM) but if that was a silent movie, I must be hearing things. There was enough dialog in there to definitly qualify as a talkie. I'd like to view the talkie version to see the difference. Maybe then I'd understand why this is considered a silent.akira7
This film has two releases, a silent version and soundtracked dialog. However, it was shot to be silent, and only later did the studio request voices be recorded to meet the demands of the times.