The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)

For the next series of reviews I will do for “Halloween Month,” I will look at the all-mighty king of horror himself, Alfred Hitchcock. Over the course of the next five days, I will review all of his films that I have seen. Bear in mind that I have not seen “Psycho” or “The Birds” yet, but we’ll save that for another year. So, let’s not waste any more time. Let’s get started with our very first Hitchcock review, the 1934 film, “The Man Who Knew Too Much.”

As the film begins, we see a British couple named Bob and Jill Lawrence and their daughter named Betty, played by Nova Pilbeam, vacationing in the Alps. In this vacation spot, they are interacting with different Europeans, more specifically Germans and Frenchmen. Then the film takes a sudden change when a Frenchmen named Louis Bernard, played by Pierre Fresnay, gets shot while dancing with Jill.

Before he dies, he gives Jill his hotel key and says to go to his hotel, find his brush and take it to the British Consul. Next thing you know, we are embarking on what looks like a start to World War III. Bob finds the brush with a message in it. He’s prepared to take it to the British Consul when he receives a letter saying that Betty has been kidnapped and that if he gives the brush to the British Consul, Betty will be killed. However, if he doesn’t say a single word to anyone, a diplomat will be murdered with what looks like World War III to start.

This is where the suspense begins. The acting in this film is just great. Leslie Banks and Edna Best are convincing as Bob and Jill Lawrence, and to add to the creep value, the ever scary Peter Lorre is in here as a German named Abbot. No, not Bud Abbot, that’s another person. Hitchcock does a good job here with the camera shots and pacing, a sign that his directing was some of the best for is time. One scene at the Royal Albert Hall, where Jill attends a performance by of Arthur Benjamin’s The Storm Cloud Cantana, she has been warned in advance about a terrible act going to happen. She carefully looks around the concert hall and sees that a diplomat is about to get murdered. An online reviewer that goes by the name “Eyeless in Gaza” says, “Hitchcock manipulates the performance skillfully, so that the outward, contrived drama of the chorus singing the cantata begins to mirror Jill’s own, very real, internal drama: her conflicted anguish between her desire to save her daughter and her awareness of what will take place if she does not interfere.” Hitchcock was well-known to do things like that in his films, which makes it quite wonderful.

I didn’t really find this film scary, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a bad film. There are a few clumsy moments though. One is where kidnappers telephone the Lawrences warning them that they should not tell anyone a single word. However, in order to ease their tension, they put Betty on the phone just to let the parents know she is still alive…for now. Bob keeps insisting Jill to ask Betty where they are holding her. This reason you could relate to if you are a parent. If your child was kidnapped, you would want to know where your child is being held because the kidnappers won’t tell you. When Jill asks her, a shriek is heard and then the line cuts off.

Now the final shot in Sydney Street is well done. However, when you look at the number of spies, they decrease from 7 to 6 to 2, “Eyeless In Gaza” comments, “Scotland Yard might swarm in and overwhelm their opponents.” That doesn’t happen though. Instead, the spies step off a whole bunch of policemen, even as they get down to their last gun. At least that gives us a nice climax to the movie.

The flaws I talk about are very minor and not ones to go on about. It’s one of Hitchcock’s best when he was working at the British studios. This film was Peter Lorre’s first speaking role in English, and I would assume anyone who can guess that this film led to his debut in British cinema coming soon.

Well, that’s my first review of the “Hitchcock-a-thon.” I personally think this is a good movie, and you should check it out if you get the chance around the Halloween time. I would give this film an 8 since it’s suspenseful, but don’t expect a Hitchcock film that will psychologically scare you.

Stay tuned tomorrow when I continue my “Hitchcock-a-thon,” but with films that star a very beloved and great actor for his time.