The 39 Steps Film Review

Yet another version of the 39 Steps and I expect my last one till another comes along. This is a BBC production and I thought it might be more faithful to the Buchan novel and it was for a while. A short while. As in the novel, Hannay is in London and bored until his upstairs neighbor Scudder pushes his way into his apartment and tells him German spies are after him and that he knows of a plot to kill an important personage that will lead to war (the Archduke). Hannay doesn't really believe him until Scudder is killed after giving Hannay his coded book. With the police and Germans after him he escapes to Scotland where he hopes to find answers. So far so good.

Then the film veers wildly from the book and begins to incorporate elements from Hitchcock. In other words a female. Not just a female but a Suffragette. Who can pick locks. Then it gets back to the book for a while but with the woman along. And then has a twist that seems to make little sense but is quite in step with modern times. And then one more twist. This is actually a light but enjoyable mix of the book and Hitchcock and packs a lot into its 85 minutes. It adds a few great bits like the ventriloquist and dummy on the train and a scene right out of North By Northwest. Rupert Penry-Jones is quite charming as Hannay and Lydia Leonard is fine as Victoria the woman. Production values are excellent and every time I see location shooting in the Highlands I want to go back. Such beautiful country. I hitchhiked it fifty years ago and I bet it hasn't changed much.