Downhill [ When boys Leave Home ] (1927) | Alfred Hitchcock's Collection | A Series of Reviews

Public schoolboy Roddy Berwick is expelled from school when he takes the blame for a friend's charge and his life falls apart in a series of misadventures.

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Stars:

Ivor Novello, Ben Webster, Norman McKinnel

Stamping his jaw dropping mastery on the silver screen in his self proclaimed first true Hitchcock movie, The Lodger, Sir Alfred Hitchcock set the bar extremely high for the upcoming 1928 adventure thriller Downhill also known as When boys leave home.

The movie follows the misadventures of a bright school boy who sacrifices his career in order to save his friend's. The story is a simple tale of friendship and love and the uncertainty that life holds for us.

Although, Sir Hitchcock delivered the same remarkable technical flawlessness and directorial perfection that made The Lodger a success, it was the patchy and jerky story that made Downhill one of his weakest movies ever. In my humble opinion the fact that The lodgers was based on a novel and Downhill was written by the main lead Ivor Novello might be the main difference in the entire experience. Ivor, though a very captivating actor and a heartthrob of his times clearly did not have the story that could match Hitchcock's brilliance. Some may argue that Ivor's body of work is more in the writing department than in acting, but upon closer examination he was more a sounds guy than either and actor or a writer. His looks and expression are impressive in both The Lodger and Downhill, something that can't really be said about his writing in Downhill.

All in all, a silent movie that manages to keep you interested at least half the way and that does show you the brilliance of Sir Alfred Hitchcock in many parts, but eventually fails to deliver due to some very ordinary script. I would recommend everyone to watch it just to understand the importance of a story, or the lack of it.  

NEXT:  The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)

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