THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1934) B/W 75m dir: Alfred Hitchcock

w/Leslie Banks, Edna Best, Peter Lorre, Frank Vosper, Hugh Wakefield, Nova Pilbeam, Pierre Fresnay, Cicely Oates, D.A. Clarke-Smith, George Curzon

This is one of Hitchcock's very best British films, made at the outset of his prolific four years at Gaumont British Pictures (1934 - 38). (The other films he made during this period are: THE 39 STEPS, SECRET AGENT, SABOTAGE, YOUNG AND INNOCENT, and THE LADY VANISHES.) The story involves a British couple and their daughter who, while vacationing in Switzerland, become involved with spies, murders, an assassination plot, and a kidnapping, all of which climaxes in a hair-raising sequence recreating the famous siege of Sidney Street in London.

From The Movie Guide: "It is in this film that Hitchcock showed his development of a theme he would repeat in films to come --- the innocent victim suddenly caught up in a terrifying situation with apparently no way out, coupled with breathless chases in popular public places. This was Lorre's first English-speaking part; he had been brought to England at Hitchcock's request after the director saw him in Fritz Lang's impressive M. Hitchcock, who was not known to favor child actors, got along so well with the young Pilbeam that he gave her her first adult leading role in his film YOUNG AND INNOCENT, three years later."

This film was remade in America by Hitchcock in 1956 in widescreen and color with James Stewart and Doris Day playing the vacationing couple, this time in Morocco.

Notes for lecture on the film:

Gaumont British & Gainsborough 1934-38:

between leaving British International Pictures & joining Gaumont:

            Hitchcock: directed musical for Tom Arnold: 1933: WALTZES FROM VIENNA:

                        from successful play: star of film: Jessie Matthews:

            Hitchcock's image: director of thrillers: but: important to note: 1^st 7 years as director:

                                    only handful of films conform to that image:

                        at time: Hitchcock considered metteur-en-scène:

                                    competent director: knew his craft

                        his ascension to status of auteur: director whose authorship marks his films:

                                    occurred during time at Gaumont

Michael Balcon: head of production at Gaumont: also: gave AH start directing: Gainsborough Pix: 1920s

            invited AH to join him at Gaumont: a return for Hitchcock to more congenial artistic atmosphere:

                        like he'd experienced at Gainsborough

            renewed relationship: Hitchcock & Balcon: produced series of thrillers:

                        for most people: constitute "essential British Hitchcock"

"classic spy thriller sextet":

all 6 films: spy thriller sextet: produced at Gaumont British: Michael Balcon

            5 of 6 films: written by Charles Bennett

Bennett: wrote play: BLACKMAIL based on:

                        his material: proved high point of Hitchcock's time at BIP

            AH: final year at BIP: he went from prestigious productions to "quota quickie": to turn quick $

                        when Hitchcock left BIP: his career in decline

            Bennett: crucial to his success at Gaumont: wrote screenplays that solidified template for spy thriller

Charles Bennett:

b. 1899: Sussex, England: English playwright & screenwriter: 1^st success as playwright: 1920s

            best known for work with Hitchcock: BLACKMAIL: plus 5 spy thrillers:

                        THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (TMWKTM)

                        THE 39 STEPS

                        SECRET AGENT

                        SABOTAGE

                        YOUNG & INNOCENT

            left England to work with Hitchcock in US:

                        AH's 2^nd US film: FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT: 1940

            stayed in Hollywood: wrote screenplays for many successful films:

                        1942:   REAP THE WILD WIND / JOAN OF PARIS

                        1944:   THE STORY OF DR. WASSELL

                        1957:   THE STORY OF MANKIND / NIGHT OF THE DEMON

            directed 2 films: 1949: MADNESS OF THE HEART / 1953: NO ESCAPE

            later: wrote for US TV: series: VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA

                        WILD, WILD WEST / LAND OF THE GIANTS

            d. 1995: L.A., CA: age: 95 years old

6 films of spy thriller sextet: general introduction:

1934: TMWKTM: Hitchcock's 1^st film for Gaumont: after WALTZES FROM VIENNA:

            based on Bulldog Drummond: character created by H.C. McNeile: "Sapper":

            developed with Charles Bennett & D.B. Wyndham-Lewis    

            at time: became Hitchcock's greatest success: 1^st in series of spy thrillers:

                        would become part of popular image of Hitchcock

            favorable press: focus on Hitchcock: returning to his essential interest: thrillers:

                        crystallizing public image: based on his distinctive version of genre

            film didn't have smooth time being made:

                        C.M. Woolf: distribution head: threatened he might call for re-shoots:

                                    but eventually: film released

US films: still dominated British screens: despite Quota Act: 1927 bill:

            called for percentage of films shown on British screens: be of British origin:

                        1927: 5%: plan: by 1936: increased to 20%: 20% quota: actually reached by 1932

            by 1936: almost 30% of feature films shown in Britain: were made in England

                        Quota Act: sacrificed quality for quantity: term: "quota quickie": disparaging

Gaumont: in particular: pursued policy: importing US stars, directors, crew:

            view to breaking into US market: but not reflected in TMWKTM

                        Gaumont's belief: with 1 or 2 US names: film would be success

            Hitchcock's subsequent thrillers feature British stars: like Donat & Carroll:

                                    already worked in US films --- or ---

                        US stars: like Robert Young & Sylvia Sidney: brought over by Balcon

Hitchcock & Genre: "The Classic Thriller Sextet":

            1934:   TMWKTM

            1935:   THE 39 STEPS

            1936:   SECRET AGENT

                        SABOTAGE

            1937:   YOUNG & INNOCENT

            1938:   THE LADY VANISHES

Gaumont thrillers: enabled Hitchcock to discover a specific artistic identity:

            after decade of experiments: in variety of film genres & with variety of styles

            genres: inevitable artistic consequence of mass-production cinema:

                        that's based upon studio system

            Hitchcock: despite earlier intermittent excursions: into "typical Hitchcock territory":

                                    LODGER / BLACKMAIL / MURDER / NUMBER 17:

                        not until 1934 did he realize that thriller genre was:

                                    "a form ideally suited to his talents & temperament"

            all 6 films in sextet: made at Gaumont

Michael Balcon: by mid-1930s: had established himself as leading film producer:

            supervised entire output of Gaumont British & Gainsborough studios:

                        liberal regime: atmosphere: encouraged directorial initiative

            Ivor Montagu: started Film Society & "saved" LODGER:

                        drafted to work with Hitchcock by Balcon:

                        associate producer on 1^st 4 films of sextet

            degree of continuity: also maintained among other production crew:

                        Montagu, Bennett & Alma Reville: important creative ensemble:

                                    provided substantial degree of stability & continuity:

                                                collaborative approach to filmmaking

            Hitchcock: bounced ideas off writer & producer also: got ideas from places he went:

                        Albert Hall, on bus: got atmosphere of local scenes & sets thru collaboration

            consistently creative context created by Balcon: helped by: continuities in technical personnel

                        this stable studio context: let Hitchcock work:

                                    with leading British film actors & imported US stars

            consistencies found in Hitchcock's films: made during period: 1934-37:

                        related to consistencies in production context:

                        in this steady& secure period of production: provided by Balcon

            high critical reputation of Hitchcock's films: related to increasing production values at Gaumont:

                        high production values: meant Hitchcock had access: to important stars thru studio system

                                    & to US production policies that Gaumont put into practice

            thus: Hitchcock was lodged in studio production schedules as kind of genre in himself by mid-1930s:

                        he was firmly established in his "directorial identity" at Gaumont:

                                    in contrast to career at BIP: could be called meandering

increase in production of espionage-oriented films during this period:

            1928-33:  2 or 3/year // 1936: 8 // 1937: 12

            sources for films: newspaper articles / adaptations / plays:

                        leading directors: Victor Saville, Anthony Asquith, Carol Reed

Hitchcock & Genre:

Hitchcock's cultivation of his "authorial legend": director of suspense / thriller films:

            masks his status as director of genre pix:

Hitchcock: during Gaumont period: became specialist thriller director:

            although: his reputation as director: established with variety of genres:

                                    thriller gave him particular identity

            conscious decision on Hitchcock's part: mixing together:

                        generic elements from previous films:

                                    in blend to guarantee their appeal to audiences:

                        his own special concoction: crime / sex / suspense

            within broad category of 1930s British crime film: sub-genre: thriller:

                        within that sub-genre: sub-sub-genre: spy-thriller

Hitchcock: thriller genre sextet: 5 of 6 are spy thrillers: excepting YOUNG & INNOCENT:

            4 of 5 spy thrillers: based on literary sources directly:

                        5^th: loosely based on Bulldog Drummond character

TMWKTM (1934):

Hitchcock’s greatest British success: big hit in US, too:

            made list: New York Times best 10 films of 1935

            caught attention of David O. Selznick: later: talk of remaking film in US: not until 1956

Hitchcock: insisted on casting Peter Lorre: had just been in Fritz Lang’s M: 1931:

            Lorre's 1^st English-speaking role

TMWKTM: like other Hitchcock spy-thriller films of this period:

            revolves around couple: this couple married picture of family unit in film

film opens: San Mauritz: Switzerland: where Alfred & Alma spent their honeymoon:

            using location: contrast between snowy Alps:

                        & London: where story moves to: congested streets:

underlying moral dilemma:

            should mother: save her daughter & say nothing?

                        but put man in danger of being shot / killed: which might put world peace in jeopardy

                        tell authorities what she knows? risking life of daughter?

            moral dilemma: forces choice: private interests vs. public duty

end of film: inspired by actual event from real life:

            at time: Winston Churchill:

headed police force

Truffaut: Hitchcock: "The incident took place around 1910, I think,  & was known as the Sidney Street Siege.  Some Russian anarchists were holed up in a house & were shooting while the police were trying to get them out of there.  It was a very difficult operation so they called out the soldiers.  Churchill came down to supervise the operation.  That incident was to cause me a lot of trouble with the censors.  I'll explain why.  You see, the British police don't carry firearms, & during this siege, as I said before, they had to bring out the military.  They were even about to call on the artillery when the house caught fire & the anarchists came out.  So, when I was shooting the picture, many years later, the censors took the view that the incident was a blot on the record of the British police.  Yet they wouldn't allow us to show them carrying weapons.  When I asked how we were going to get the spies out, the censors suggested that we use water hoses.  I did some research & discovered that Winston Churchill himself had made that very suggestion.  Finally, the censors agreed to let the police fire some guns, provided I would show them going to a local gunsmith to pick out all sorts of antique weapons.  This was to make it perfectly clear that the police are not used to firearms.  The whole thing was so ludicrous that I ignored them.  Instead, we had a flash showing the arrival of a truck from which rifles were handed out to the police."

post-screening:

Jill: attitude towards daughter Betty: Betty causes Jill to miss target:

“Let that be a lesson to you: never have any children”

            “If I lose this game I’ll disown it forever”: joking attitude:

Jill: great concern over Betty after kidnapping

            actions towards Louis: playful flirting: playful putdowns of husband:

            dancing w/Louis: “What do you think of the average Englishman?”

                        “Much too cold --- except when he drinks too much, of course.”

                                    remarks: indicate strong relationship: strong enough to be playful

Louis chooses Jill to tell secret to after he’s shot

Bob & Clive: go to Wapping: dentist / go to Tabernacle of the Sun: Bob trapped there

assassination plot: left to Jill to stop it: she goes to Albert Hall by herself:

            Bob & Betty: both in hands of spies

Albert Hall sequence: [Rothman:] constructed around Jill’s POV:

one of Hitchcock’s great set pieces: he places his art most theatrically on display:

            intercutting shots: detail Jill’s growing anxiety: succession of views:

                       together give us overall picture of public space of Hall

            rising excitement of music reinforces & serves as metaphor for:

                        power of cinematic art on display

Jill: appears about to break down: image goes out of focus:

             expressing her near loss of consciousness

when focused image returns to screen: we see black curtain:

             pistol enters frame & slowly turns towards camera

filmed this way: gun appears to be conjured from or projected onto:

                         Jill’s fevered imagination

            as if, for this gun to kill: 1^st: Jill must be possessed of this image

                        then, bullet will hit its mark

            for diplomat to be saved: Jill must find within herself: power to deflect bullet’s course:

                        she does this by voicing a scream

Jill: torn between 2 forms of behavior: 1 trained: behavior expected by society:         

                        don’t disturb concert / don’t make fool of oneself in public

            1 instinctual: to cry out in moment of danger

when Jill cries out: she’s responding to: immediate instinct of saving ambassador’s life:

                        not that she’s trying to hurt her daughter

            thus: her behavior here is a healthy expression of emotion:

                        as opposed to unnatural repression of emotion that's typical of the spies

1956 remake: Albert Hall sequence: much longer: 1934:  6m / 1956: 11m

idea of staging film’s climax at concert:

            allows Hitchcock to work with idea of musical order: 2 ways:

            stylistically: function of music to create suspense

                        music has its own structure: pre-established order

                                   struggles of chars can be timed vs. this structure

            thematically: private interests vs. public duty

                        Jill: must save both Bob & Betty: sharpshooter: doesn’t miss at end:

                                   when it counts

  Bob: not the hero of the day:

            man: relegated to typical “woman’s position”: has to be saved by wife

            patriarchal symbol: sits & waits to be rescued

women in film: in general: strong positions: authoritative: besides Jill:

            Nurse Agnes: takes care of Lorre / preaches at Tabernacle

            Betty: daughter

family: Lawrence family: reunited at end: tender family moment

1956 version: [Wood:]

  Ben: plays the more active role: sedating Jo: the point is her passivity:

            fights / rings bells / bursts in on assassin / rescues Hank

but recurring motif in film: Jo has right instincts & perceptions, makes right decisions:

            she’s suspicious of Bernard

            realizes Ambrose Chapel not a person

            saves the Prime Minister

            her song saves Hank & redeems Mrs. Drayton

1956 version: raises major feature of gender division in US:

            men are rational // women are emotional/intuitive

film suggests men are more impoverished by this division

             Ben’s rationality: leads him to sedate Jo:

                        subjugating her emotional response to kidnapping

             film unambiguous in suggesting monstrousness of this:

                        colors our reading of Ben’s character

structuring motif in film: that Jo knows better than Ben:

             her insights & decisions all can be justified rationally, but she came to them intuitively

  most obvious difference: length of 2 films: 1934: 75m / 1956: 2h

            follows general pattern of filmmakers who re-make early film late in life:

                        Ozu: STORY OF FLOATING WEEDS / FLOATING WEEDS

                        McCarey: LOVE AFFAIR / AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER

            more leisurely style to tell same story: speaks to director’s age & inclinations

  basic narrative structure: the same in both versions:

1. family abroad (Switzerland, Morocco): exposition
2. police investigation
3. father goes to investigate (dentist, taxidermist)
4. chapel sequence: closest to a direct remake: some of original dialog repeated

5. Albert Hall sequence
6. final climax & resolution (siege of Sidney Street, embassy)

  but internal differences show difference in film’s viewpoint / philosophy:

            difference between Hitchcock in 1934 & Hitchcock in 1956

1. vacation spot: San Moritz / Marrakech:

            1934 version: holiday resort: untroubled by external pressures or internal tensions

            1956 version: world whose alienness stressed at every point: e.g., restaurant scene

                        starting point for entire action: position of Moslem women:

compulsory wearing of veil: signifier of husband’s possession of his wife:

                                               no other man may possess her by the look

2. expositions: up to point where couple goes to London:

differences in 2 versions: not because of greater complexity in espionage plot:

                      rather, necessitated by critical concern: marriage, family & position of women:

                               not there in 1934 version

                      concern also reflected in Draytons: childless couple who mirror the McKennas

3. 1934 version: marriage stable: pinpointed in 1 detail: Jill’s humorous flirting w/Bernard:

                        testifies to solid base of Lawrences’ marriage

            1956 version: marriage unstable: we couldn’t imagine Jo Conway flirting like Jill does:

                        testifies to precarious place their marriage is in: it couldn’t sustain flirtation: not funny

            Jill joking re: not wanting children: confirms strength of family

4. sharpshooting regarded as “masculine” activity: but it’s a hobby her marriage can accommodate

     singing: Jo had a career: her marriage depended on its renunciation

5. most obvious change in 2 versions: sex of child:

            1956: Jo “compensated” for losing career by having a son:

                        male child: substitution for female of male power

            1934: Jill presented as totally content w/her position: has renounced nothing

            1956: Jo not contented: takes too many pills / must be sedated / wants another baby

                        compensation hasn’t worked successfully

6. American version privileges Jo over Ben: underlined by:

            substitution for Bob’s visit to dentist of Ben’s visit to taxidermist:

                        remake: Ben going to taxidermist: represents husband’s 1^st solo venture

                        British version: underlines Bob’s heroism: he discovers important facts, etc.

            Ben’s visit to wrong Ambrose Chappell: a complete fiasco:

                        learns nothing / loses control of situation / reduced to humiliation

                        total opposite of Bob @ dentist

Jo’s singing at end: magical resolution of apparent oppositions:

             predestination vs. free will: “Que sera, sera” but they are helping themselves

             also resolves more practical opposition of motherhood vs. career:

                        represents Jo’s triumph simultaneously as mother & performer

             shots of voice traveling up stairs (so to speak):

                        lead to Hank’s whistling & to Mrs. Drayton’s scream:

                                    which answers Jo’s scream in Albert Hall: the screams of women who know better

Mr. Drayton’s rationality: darker side of Ben’s rationality: tells him Hank must be murdered

             Mrs. Drayton’s emotional/intuitive understanding: tells her Hank must be saved

                       her scream directly produced by sound of approaching footsteps:

                                     which she mistakenly believes are her husband’s but they’re really Ben’s

              parallel between 2 couples: introduced in exposition: sustained to denouement                                    

Rothman:

imbalance of no male figure to balance out Jill’s strength:

            imbalance redressed: Stewart instead of Banks:

                        Stewart: a caricature of “Americanness: but he’s also a great actor/personality

what 1934 version lacks: male protagonist in whom audience takes strong personal interest

Albert Hall sequence: 1956: we see auditorium thru gap in poised cymbals: cymbals rule over scene

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