She is shielding the real murderer and even after the verdict is brought in, only Marshall has his doubts. Who Baring is accused of Murder! is a fellow actress in her theatrical company. The film concerns Herbert Marshall playing an actor/playwright in the tradition of Noel Coward who gets put on a jury where Norah Baring is on trial for Murder!. Murder! is one of Alfred Hitchcock's earliest sound features and one of the first which will employ some clever Hitchcock suspense devices in the dialog and cinematography. Reviewed by bkoganbing 7 / 10 The Play's The Thing All in all, an interesting film but not a great one. And as a few have mentioned the voices and the way the actors speak are very heavily clipped and accented(even for a Hitchcock early talkie), so it is not always easy to understand what is being said. The script has flashes of intelligence especially at the beginning but is tonally disjointed and lacks life in much of the film. A lot of it is rather dull and lacking in suspense, for a Hitchcockian whodunit with the wrong man theme that was somewhat odd and disappointing. Aside the beginning and end, the story didn't come across as involving. Apart from Marshall though the acting does come across as too stagy, Nora Baring and Esme Percy are particularly prone to it, but Marshall is the only actor who doesn't come across as on the stagy side. Herbert Marshall is very good in the lead role. Of individual scenes coming off best were the thrilling beginning courtroom sequence and the suspenseful climax. The music is haunting and never too much or little, the use of the Tristan and Isolde prelude was also a nice touch. The lighting is very fitting to the tone of the story and the costumes and sets are beautifully evoked. Murder! is very well shot and photographed, and Hitchcock directs splendidly with some tautness, subtle humour and a great deal of atmosphere. It is an interesting film, particularly for Hitchcock completists, but it is a long way from one of his best. Of Hitchcock's early talkie films, Murder! is not as good as Blackmail and The Lodger but it is an improvement on Juno and the Paycock. Reviewed by TheLittleSongbird 6 / 10 Interesting if not great Hitchcock
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
March 2023
Categories |