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Movies / On DVD / The 39 Steps
The 39 Steps

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The 39 Steps (1935)

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Reviews Counted:31

Fresh:30

Rotten:1

Average Rating:8.8/10

Consensus: Packed with twists and turns, this essential early Alfred Hitchcock feature hints at the dazzling heights he'd reach later in his career.

Runtime: 89 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Richard Hannay (Robert Donat) is a Canadian rancher on vacation in London who sees a vaudeville act at the Palladium in which Mr. Memory (Wylie Watson) draws on his photographic memory to answer... Richard Hannay (Robert Donat) is a Canadian rancher on vacation in London who sees a vaudeville act at the Palladium in which Mr. Memory (Wylie Watson) draws on his photographic memory to answer questions posed by the audience. When a shot rings out in the theater a frightened young woman approaches Hannay and asks for his help. The woman claims that foreign spies who plan to smuggle valuable military secrets out of the country are after her, and when she herself is later killed, Hannay finds himself both framed as the man responsible for her death as well as the next potential victim of the spy ring. Traversing through rural Scotland, on the run from both the police and the spies, Hannay finds himself attached to a cool but reluctant blonde, and together they have to figure out the meaning of the woman's last words and bring down the spy ring before the precious military secrets are smuggled abroad. THE THIRTY NINE STEPS is the film that established Hitchcock as the master of the mystery spy-thriller. [More]

Starring: Robert Donat, Madeleine Carroll, Lucie Mannheim, Peggy Ashcroft

Starring: Robert Donat, Madeleine Carroll, Lucie Mannheim, Peggy Ashcroft, Godfrey Tearle, John Laurie, Wylie Watson, Helen Haye, Frank Cellier

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Composer: Hubert Bath
Producer: Ivor Montagu

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Jun 19, 1998

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The 39 Steps

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments)
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As dull as anything Hitchcock has done, save the exhilerating final 10 minutes.

comment 1 Comment
12/22/03
Gabe Leibowitz
Gabe Leibowitz
eCinemaCenter.com

For those who love a grand spy mystery, a wild chase, and a harrowing portrait of an innocent man struggling to prove his innocence while the world turns inexplicably against him, The 39 Steps is ideal.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
TV Guide's Movie Guide

All the fun of North By Northwest in a little over half the time, The 39 Steps is – even for the umpteenth viewing – absolutely unmissable.

Full Review Source: Total Film | comment Comment
04/11/08
Total Film

If you can imagine Anatole France writing a detective story you will have some notion of the artistry that Hitchcock brings to this screen version of John Buchan's novel.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Andre Sennwald
Andre Sennwald
New York Times

No review available.

comment Comment
08/13/04
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
New Times

No review available.

comment Comment
10/11/02
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

No review available.

comment Comment
11/14/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

With its great turns by Donat, Carroll (the original Hitchcock blonde) and all the cast, and immaculate direction of a cracking script, this is timelessly enjoyable. A true classic.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
04/11/08
Daniel Etherington
Daniel Etherington
Channel 4 Film

As an artist, Alfred Hitchcock surpassed this early achievement many times in his career, but for sheer entertainment value it still stands in the forefront of his work.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
07/09/07
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This film couldn't be more entertaining, even if it had 40 steps.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
08/23/07
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

No review available.

comment Comment
06/18/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Great fun.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out

No review available.

comment Comment
10/03/04
Greg Maki
Greg Maki
Star-Democrat (Easton, MD)

Hitchcock at his very best.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/11/08
Ian Freer
Ian Freer
Empire Magazine

In Hitchcock's hands, however, this well-known espionage adventure provided the basis for a new sort of thriller and a new sort of comedy.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
09/04/08
J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
Village Voice
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
07/29/05
Jake Euker
Jake Euker
F5 (Wichita, KS)

No review available.

comment Comment
02/17/03
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

At 35, with more than a dozen features already under his belt, the director triumphed with this dazzling mixture of spycraft, banter, expository nonsense and manic chases along the Scottish Highlands.

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
09/04/08
Joshua Rothkopf
Joshua Rothkopf
Time Out New York

A brilliant piece of pure -- and purely enjoyable -- filmmaking.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
08/14/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Laced with comic romantic touches.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
 
 
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