Jamaica Inn (1939)
1939 · Feature film · 99 min · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
He ruled Jamaica Inn...citadel of sin on the moors, curse-ridden, shunned, reviled. Enough sensations for a dozen pictures. Laughton at his most magnificent.
- Drama
- Adventure
- Crime
Synopsis
In early 19th-century Cornwall, young Mary Yellan travels to live with her aunt and uncle at the remote Jamaica Inn, where she discovers the inn is a front for a violent gang of wreckers who lure ships to their doom along the coast. As she becomes entangled in their crimes, Mary must fight to survive and uncover the truth behind the terror that haunts the moors.
Synopsis from TMDb
Details
- Director
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Writer
- Sidney Gilliat
- Composer
- Eric Fenby
- Cinematography
- Harry Stradling Sr.
- Studio
- Mayflower Pictures
- Released
- 1939-05-11
- Running time
- 99 minutes
Cast & crew
Alfred Hitchcock Director
Frederick Piper
Marie Ault
John Longden
Mervyn Johns
Robert Newton
Leslie Banks
Aubrey Mather
Emlyn Williams
Reviews on the Internet Archive
★★★★ · Maureen O'Hara's First Film · dwj7738 · 2014-09-18
This movie states introducing Maureen O'Hara. Yet under another name Maureen Fitzsimons she was in two movies in 1938
★★★ · Recommend · MogHut · 2007-08-03
I found this movie on video a while back and quite enjoyed it. The dialog at times was a little hard to understand, the acting was good. Just a few weeks ago I picked up the book at a thrift store. Read the book after watching the movie, it's worth it. I think Hitchcock could have done a lot better with the adaptation but standing alone it's decent.
★★★ · Middling Hitchcock · SmokestackJones · 2010-01-15
I dunno, I usually enjoy both Hitchcock and Laughton, but this was a bit of a chore. The good scenes are padded out by quite a few dull ones, although Laughton, while not quite fitting the part, is always entertaining to watch. Quite a shock seeing Robert Newton as a leading man but he does quite well in the role, as does Maureen O' Hara as the ingenue. All in all, it was pleasant viewing, but not one I'd watch often. BTW, this WAS O' Hara's film debut - Hunchback of Notre Dame was her AMERICAN film debut.
★★ · One of Hitchcocks's worse... · adalbert_f · 2008-06-05
I'm a big Hitchcock fan, but this is - and critics say the same - one of his worst works. It's a bit dull, hasn't much suspense, and your expectations from the first minute - a journey into the abyss of darkness - are dispappointed in the end. Laughton is an amusing guy, but doesn't into his role; his character is boring, also. The finale of Jamaica Inn is disappointing, too. If you're a real Hitchcock fan, you will have to watch this once; but just to know it and surely not again. Everybody else, take The 39 Steps or The Lady Vanishes in Archive.org; even Stage Fright, also very unknown, can…
