Blackmail (1929)
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"See and Hear It - Our Mother Tongue As It Should Be Spoken."
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Synopsis
Alice White is the daughter of a shopkeeper in 1920's London. Her boyfriend, Frank Webber is a Scotland Yard detective who seems more interested in police work than in her. Frank takes Alice out one night, but she has secretly arranged to meet another man. Later that night Alice agrees to go back to his flat to see his studio. The man has other ideas and as he tries to rape Alice, she defends herself and kills him with a bread knife. When the body is discovered, Frank is assigned to the case, he quickly determines that Alice is the killer, but so has someone else and blackmail is threatened. (© IMDB)
Technical Information
- black & white
- sound mix: mono (RCA Photophone System)
- aspect ratio:
- running time: 84 minutes
- production studios: British International Pictures and Gainsborough Pictures
- also known as:
- Chantage (1929) - France
Film Connections
Originally conceived as a silent film, a large portion of the film was then reshot with sound, using the RCA Photophone sound-on-film process. Both versions of the film were released theatrically, although the sound version is the one modern audiences will be the most familiar with. In "Hitchcock/Truffaut", Hitchcock relates how he used the Schufftan process to shoot certain scenes in the British Museum, where the light levels were too low. (See IMDB.)
DVD Recommendations
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Recent DVD Releases
- to view all of the DVD releases of this film, see Blackmail (1929) - DVD releases
released in 2008
| Chantage (1929) / The Skin Game (1931) - Studio Canal (France, 2008) R2 PAL 1.33:1 
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released in 2007
| Blackmail (1929) - Optimum Releasing (UK, 2007) - part of a box set PAL 1.33:1
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released in 2005
| Chantage (1929) - Studio Canal (France, 2005) - part of a box set Amazon (France) PAL 1.33:1 [01:21:57]
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| Blackmail (1929) - Westlake Entertainment Group (USA, 2005) NTSC 1.33:1 [01:24:27]
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| Blackmail (1929) - St. Clair Vision (USA, 2005) - part of a box set Amazon (USA) NTSC 1.33:1 [01:24:21]
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See Also...
For further relevant information about this film, see also...
- 1000 Frames of Blackmail (1929)
- Articles about Blackmail (1929)
- Books about Blackmail (1929)
- Web links to information, articles, reviews, etc
Image Gallery
Images from the Hitchcock Gallery (click to view larger versions or search for all relevant images)...
Film Frames
Themes
- the MacGuffin - the glove
- the icy blonde - Alice White (Anny Ondra)
- the knife as the main murder weapon, and the use of the word "knife" at the breakfast table
- the Hitchcock cameo - trying to read a book on the Underground
Cast and Crew
Directed by:
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Frank Mills - assistant director
Starring:
- Anny Ondra - Alice White
- Sara Allgood - Mrs White
- Charles Paton - Mr White
- John Longden - Detective Frank Webber
- Donald Calthrop - Tracy
- Cyril Ritchard - The Artist - Mr Crewe
- Hannah Jones - The Landlady - Mrs Humphries
- Harvey Braban - The Chief Inspector
- Sergeant Bishop - The Detective Sergeant
- Joan Barry - Alice White (voice)
- Phyllis Konstam
Produced by:
Written by:
- Charles Bennett - original play
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Benn W Levy
- Michael Powell
Photographed by:
Edited by:
| Hitchcock's Major Films | |
| 1920s | The Pleasure Garden · The Mountain Eagle · The Lodger · Downhill · Easy Virtue · The Ring · The Farmer's Wife · Champagne · The Manxman · Blackmail |
| 1930s | Juno and the Paycock · Murder! · The Skin Game · Rich and Strange · Number Seventeen · Waltzes from Vienna · The Man Who Knew Too Much · The 39 Steps · Secret Agent · Sabotage · Young and Innocent · The Lady Vanishes · Jamaica Inn |
| 1940s | Rebecca · Foreign Correspondent · Mr and Mrs Smith · Suspicion · Saboteur · Shadow of a Doubt · Lifeboat · Spellbound · Notorious · The Paradine Case · Rope · Under Capricorn |
| 1950s | Stage Fright · Strangers on a Train · I Confess · Dial M for Murder · Rear Window · To Catch a Thief · The Trouble with Harry · The Man Who Knew Too Much · The Wrong Man · Vertigo · North by Northwest |
| 1960s | Psycho · The Birds · Marnie · Torn Curtain · Topaz |
| 1970s | Frenzy · Family Plot |
| ( view full filmography ) | |