Film Review
This second adaptation of John Buchan's 1915 novel
The Thirty-Nine Steps is an earnest
but ultimately misguided attempt to remake Hitchcock's classic thriller
The 39 Steps (1935), in colour
and with more extensive location work. Director Ralph Thomas
later admitted that he was reluctant to make the film and didn't feel
he was up to the job, and the end result pretty well bears this out,
although the film is not entirely without charm. Better known as
a director of comedies, such as the immensely popular
Doctor series, Thomas plays to
his strengths and manages to weave some well-judged humour into the
film, albeit at the expense of sacrificing the tension and unremitting
menace that makes Hitchcock's film such an enduring classic.
Kenneth More, one of the biggest stars of British cinema in the late
1950s, makes a likeable Hannay, although his laid back persona does
little to lift the film out of the sluggish rut it manages to get
itself into almost from the word go. If Hitchcock's film is a
brisk race across forbidding terrain, this remake feels more like a
leisurely stroll in the country. Taina Elg makes next to no
impact as Hannay's reluctant love interest and is too easily eclipsed
by the more talented performers in minor supporting roles, some of whom
(Sid James, Joan Hickson, Leslie Dwyer and Brenda De Banzie) would go
on to far better things in later years. Today the film is dated
most by its dodgy use of rear screen projection, which renders some of
the action sequences more comical than exciting. Despite some
unfavourable reviews from the critics, the film proved to be a box
office winner on its first release, although now it is completely
overshadowed by Hitchcock's vastly superior film, and rightly so.
© James Travers 2013
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Shortly after his return to London, government agent Richard Hannay
witnesses a hit-and-run accident in which a seemingly ordinary nanny
narrowly avoids being killed. Later, the nanny tells Hannay that
she is in fact a secret agent, on the trail of a spy network that has
somehow acquired the plans to a new missile system. When the
woman is stabbed to death in his apartment, Hannay takes flight and
heads for Scotland, hoping to conclude the dead woman's mission and
evade the police for as long as he can. Unfortunately, he cannot
be sure who he can trust and it isn't long before he runs up against
some very dangerous enemies...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.