In the early stages of his directing career, Alfred Hitchcock made a number of hackneyed studio films which barely resemble the works he would go on to direct. The society drama Easy Virtue is one of the nine silent movies Hitchcock directed. The film opens with Larita Filton posing for her portrait in an artist's studio. The behavior of her boorish, philandering husband, Aubrey Filton, drives her into the artist's arms where her husband discovers her. In the melee that follows, the artist
shoots the husband, wounding but not killing him. Aubrey sues for divorce and Larita falls from grace in the courtroom while journalists feed the public a salaciously inflated account. Ruined, Larita flees to the south of France and meets John Whittaker, a young, upstanding British man. They fall in love, marry, and the happy couple returns to England to mummy. Mother Whittaker, a Victorian in the modern age, strenuously opposes the union and upbraids John for bringing scandal upon the family name. Neither John nor his father has the strength to withstand Mother Whittaker's onslaught, and the film, and Larita, end miserably. Hitchcock does one of his wordless cameos in the film. ~ Brian Whitener, Rovi
The first half of the film, an addition detailing events only described in the play, is pure Hitchcock, its combination of conciseness and idiosyncrasy demonstrating his mastery of silent narration.
Sure this isn't the Hitchcock we would come to know in later days, but this early silent gem has a lot to offer. Not only does it feature motifs that Hitchcock would use throughout his career such as the everyday man being caught up in the most extraordinary of situations, but it is an engaging story that was a nice
departure from the crime centered films that I normally associate with Hitchcock. It is an interesting glimpse into the morality imposed upon people in the first part of the 20th century. There are, as usual with Hitchcock, some clever camera tricks that help lift it out of same league as other silent offerings as well. While it may not merit repeat viewing, there is still enough there for it to be worth your time. It also features one hell of a downer ending and for that, I am thankful.
November 16, 2011
Reid Volk
Super Reviewer
This is an okay movie, you can see from Hitchcock's early films the creation of his styles, but his early films are not as suspenseful as his other films.
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