The Lady Vanishes
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Catherine Lacey, Emile Boreo, Margaret Lockwood, Mary Clare, Philip LeaverBrand: WESTLAKE ENTERTAINMENT INC
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 97 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-02-10
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Westlake Entertainment
Movie Reviews of The Lady Vanishes
Movie Review: I know she was here
Summary: 4 Stars
Alfred Hitchcock wasn't too good at straight-out comedy, which he only did once. But he was absolutely brilliant at clever, witty thrillers, one of the earliest of which is "The Lady Vanishes." While it has some major plot holes, Hitchcock makes up for those with witty dialogue and solid acting.
Iris (Margaret Lockwood) is having a last girl's-night-out with her best friends, at a small Alpine hotel. As she's leaving on the train, she befriends a kindly little old governess (Dame May Whitty) -- who vanishes while Iris is napping. Even worse, everyone denies that the old lady existed, making Iris wonder if she imagined the whole thing.
She enlists the help of eccentric musician Gilbert (Michael Redgrave) to help her find the old lady, once they are both convinced that the lady existed. Now the pair must go through the train in search of the old lady -- but they never expected to uncover an international conspiracy, which could leave them all dead.
"The Lady Vanishes" was a pretty early movie of Hitchcock's, and at the end we're left wondering about several oddities in the plot (how is an eighty-year-old lady so athletic? How inept can those foreign agents BE?). As a spy thriller it's flawed but passable... but it's very good as a comedic mystery.
Hitchcock takes his time introducing us to these characters, by having them all bunk at one overcrowded hotel. One particularly funny scene has Gilbert invading Iris's suite, after she has him ejected from his room, and strewing his things all over as she orders him to leave. But Hitchcock also captures the claustrophobic feeling of being menaced on a train.
As well as the feisty socialite and weird musician, the movie is sprinkled with cricket-obsessed Brits, ebullient hoteliers, and bickering adulterous lovers. They all do fairly solid jobs, with Redgrave as a charming, slightly odd standout. And they all get some entertaining dialogue, no matter how stodgy they are. ("My father always taught me, never desert a lady in trouble. He even carried that as far as marrying Mother.")
"The Lady Vanishes" is a comedic mystery that doesn't quite work as a spy thriller. But it's still an entertaining, taut little movie. Definitely a keeper.
Summary of The Lady Vanishes
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