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DramaThrillerCrime

Blackmail

- A romance of Scotland Yard

London, 1929. Frank Webber, a very busy Scotland Yard detective, seems to be more interested in his work than in Alice White, his girlfriend. Feeling herself ignored, Alice agrees to go out with an elegant and well-mannered artist who invites her to visit his fancy apartment.

Release Date : 1929-07-11

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : British International Pictures

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Anny Ondra

Character Name : Alice White

Original Name : Anny Ondra

Gender : Female

Sara Allgood

Character Name : Mrs. White

Original Name : Sara Allgood

Gender : Female

Charles Paton

Character Name : Mr. White

Original Name : Charles Paton

Gender : Male

John Longden

Character Name : Detective Frank Webber

Original Name : John Longden

Gender : Male

Donald Calthrop

Character Name : Tracy

Original Name : Donald Calthrop

Gender : Male

Cyril Ritchard

Character Name : The Artist

Original Name : Cyril Ritchard

Gender : Male

Hannah Jones

Character Name : The Landlady

Original Name : Hannah Jones

Gender : Female

Harvey Braban

Character Name : The Chief Inspector

Original Name : Harvey Braban

Gender : Male

Ex-Det. Sergt. Bishop

Character Name : The Detective Sergeant

Original Name : Ex-Det. Sergt. Bishop

Gender : Male

Alfred Hitchcock

Character Name : Man on Subway (uncredited)

Original Name : Alfred Hitchcock

Gender : Male

Johnny Ashby

Character Name : Boy (uncredited)

Original Name : Johnny Ashby

Gender : Male

Joan Barry

Character Name : Alice White (voice) (uncredited)

Original Name : Joan Barry

Gender : Female

Johnny Butt

Character Name : Sergeant (uncredited)

Original Name : Johnny Butt

Gender : Male

Phyllis Konstam

Character Name : Gossiping Neighbour (uncredited)

Original Name : Phyllis Konstam

Gender : Female

Sam Livesey

Character Name : The Chief Inspector (silent version) (uncredited)

Original Name : Sam Livesey

Gender : Male

Phyllis Monkman

Character Name : Gossip Woman (uncredited)

Original Name : Phyllis Monkman

Gender : Male

Percy Parsons

Character Name : Crook (uncredited)

Original Name : Percy Parsons

Gender : Male

Reviews

C

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2023-11-02

I saw the silent version recently with an expertly played piano accompaniment that added loads to an, admittedly rather too long, drama. "Alice" (Anny Ondra) has a silly spat with policeman boyfriend "Frank" (John Longden) and then rather foolishly hooks up with an odious artist (Cyril Ritchard) who attempts to push his luck too far and whom she accidentally, rather brutally, despatches. Terrified that nobody would believe her, and rather than call the authorities, she flees the scene - but not before she is spotted and subsequently has to deal with the venal aspirations of her blackmailer (a perfectly cast Donald Calthrop). Meantime, the police get the wrong end of the stick during their investigation and another tragedy ensues - leaving poor old "Alice" riddled with even more guilt! The one thing that takes a bit of getting used to is the really rather static nature of the photography, but once you adopt a perspective that you are in the same seat (in the cinema) as the cameraman then that actually starts to work quite well as we become more immersed in a solid story of fickleness and deceit. The inter-titles are sparing but do all that is necessary to augment Hitchcock's innate ability to tell us a story using the limited technology available in 1929, that capitalises on light, shade, and the environment around the characters. Somehow, I reckon that the talkie version that followed almost immediately would be anywhere near as effective.