Rent The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
3.5 of 5 from 109 ratings
1h 12min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Bob Lawrence (Leslie Banks), is holidaying in Switzerland with his wife Jill (Edna Best) and daughter Betty (Nova Pilbeam). A Frenchman they have befriended is murdered in front of him, whispering about a planned assassination that will put the British government in jeopardy. Betty is abducted to ensure Bob's silence until after the assassin (Peter Lorre) has carried out his grim task in the planned setting of the Albert Hall, how can Bob do his patriotic duty but at the same time keep his daughter out of danger? Hitchcock enjoyed this thriller so much he remade it in Hollywood twenty years later. With an excellent cast, superb chase sequences and the terrible drama of an innocent man caught up in circumstances he cannot control, this however remains the superior version. - Actors:
- Leslie Banks, Edna Best, Peter Lorre, Frank Vosper, Hugh Wakefield, Nova Pilbeam, Pierre Fresnay, Cicely Oates, D.A. Clarke-Smith, George Curzon, Frank Atkinson, Betty Baskcomb, Cot D'Ordan, Tony De Lungo, Clare Greet, Pat Hagan, Joan Harrison, Mitchelson-Hill, Alfred Hitchcock, James Knight
- Directors:
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Producers:
- Michael Balcon
- Writers:
- Charles Bennett, D.B. Wyndham-Lewis
- Studio:
- Carlton Video
- Genres:
- Classics, Thrillers
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like Rebecca, 10 Films to Watch if You Like: Operation Mincemeat, Action & Adventure, Alfred Hitchcock's British Films, Bond Villains: The Connery Years, British WWII Films: The Home Front and Europe, Drama Films & TV, Films by Genre, Films to Watch If You Like..., Getting to Know..., Getting to Know: Doris Day, Hitchcock in the 1940s, Introducing a British Film Family, A Brief History of Film..., Top 10 British War Films (1939-45), Top 10 Winter and Snow Films, Top Film and TV Detectives: Guide to Screen Sleuth, Top Films
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 19/01/2015
- Run Time:
- 75 minutes
- Languages:
- English Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono
- Subtitles:
- English
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Introduction by Charles Barr
- Aquarius: Alfred the Great - Hitchcock is interviewed on the 1972 Arts programme
- Image Gallery
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Reviews (2) of The Man Who Knew Too Much
Classic Hitchcock. - The Man Who Knew Too Much review by Steve
Everything suddenly clicks for Alfred Hitchcock in the film which began his long sequence of suspense classics. A couple on holiday in Switzerland (Leslie Banks and Edna Best) find their daughter (Nova Pilbeam) has been kidnapped by a ring of spies to prevent them going to the cops with information about an assassination attempt at the Albert Hall.
Michael Balcon gave Hitch his first chance in pictures back in the silents, and he rescued the Master's career after a string of substandard- often strange- productions. This is a welcome return to form. Charles Bennett's screenplay contributes some sophisticated and witty dialogue.
The ensemble playing is good, with Peter Lorre a superior villain. We get European locations and political intrigue and a quite shameless McGuffin. It's the start of a series of Hitchcock suspense thrillers in the mid '30s, which convey a premonition of political threat from Europe.
It's not flawless. Banks and Best are a touch frumpy. But it's a fine Hitchcock thriller. And the famous climax at the Albert Hall is sensational, with the assassin ready to shoot on the clashing of the symbols... Hitch reshot the story in Hollywood in '56, but the original is best.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Dated but still worth watching - The Man Who Knew Too Much review by RJ
At a spritely 88 years old, it's hardly surprising that this film is a little dated. It begins with a skiing sequence which seems like it has come from a silent film, with a few rudimentary sound effects added. It then introduces us to a married couple (Bob and Jill) and their daughter (Betty), who are about to be drawn into a political assassination attempt. They have an engagingly odd relationship with another man (Louis) at the ski resort, with whom Jill openly flirts, although Bob seems to be absolutely fine with this. But this relationship dynamic will not be the focus of the film as Louis is swiftly dispatched, using his dying breath to introduce the film's MacGuffin - a piece of paper hidden in his shaving brush which contains information about the planned assassination. The shadowy assassins kidnap Betty in order to ensure that Bob and Jill don't spill the beans, but of course they end up drawn in to the whole affair and thus the plot is set in motion.
The film has a nice sharp script and some good performance, especially from Leslie Banks as the quintessential unflappable Englishman, Frank Vosper as the smarmy clay pigeon shooter/assassin and of course the peerless Peter Lorre who is as irresistibly watchable as always.
Very enjoyable, and at a mere 75 minutes long it doesn't outstay its welcome.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.