The Clairvoyant

'The Clairvoyant' is an obscure British thriller that fans of Claude Rains ('The Invisible Man') and Fay Wray ('King Kong') should try and hunt down. While slightly flawed it's still extremely entertaining, and Rains and the beautiful Wray make a great team. Watching it I sometimes wondered what Alfred Hitchcock could have done with the material (incidentally Charles Bennett who scripted Hitch's classic 'The 39 Steps' co-wrote it), but that's not to say it isn't interesting as it stands. Rains plays Maximus, a fake psychic who has a music hall act with his wife Rene(Wray). He unexpectedly finds himself getting genuine premonitions when he is near Christine Shawn (Jane Baxter). This leads to many complications, a strain on his marriage, and his eventual prosecution. The movie mixes light comedy, romance and darker moments into a nice blend that should be appreciated by anybody who enjoys Hitchcock's 1930s movies. I don't think 'The Clairvoyant' is anywhere near as good as Hitchcock's best from this period, but it's still above average, and Rains in particular is wonderful. This talented and charismatic actor is always a joy to watch.

The Clairvoyant (1935)

This is a British movie with the flavor, and look, of Hitchcock's British films, and it's as good in many ways.

And Claude Rains as the title character is sharp, funny, sophisticated, warm, all in that way Rains has of being a little removed, gently above it all without being above his peers. He is way younger (of course) than his famous persona from, say, "Casablanca" or "Notorious" but it's still the same Rains, and in a way if you appreciate him in his American films, you should see this to see where he came from.

The filming and editing feels so much like Hitchcock at times I wondered just what kind of connections there might be between him and the director here, Maurice Elvey, and couldn't find anything obvious (like a shared cinematographer). But Elvey was the most established and famous and therefore the most influential of British filmmakers, making a hundred films before Hitchcock made his first. So the influence is probably one way at first, with Hitch picking up on Elvey's methods.

But by 1932, when Elvey made a talkie remake, "The Phantom Fiend," of an earlier Hitchcock masterpiece, the 1927 "The Lodger," the influence is obviously going the other way. The whole train scene in the first half of this movie is a masterpiece of filming and editing. In all, the plot is so interesting, with some honest twists to accompany what seems at first to be a slightly mystical theme, it deserves an honest remake of its own.

I think it's further worth noting some serious content. The movie deals (at least obliquely) with labor relations in the mines, with the acceptance by the establishment that mediums and clairvoyants are charlatans (or entertainers, as the charlatan says), with greed (in the depression), and with marital fidelity.

The copy you can stream on Netflix is only fair--not especially sharp, and with muddled sound, probably thrown together for television broadcast decades ago. It's good enough to watch anyway, but let's all hope for a remastered version soon.

Claude Rains plays the psychic Maximus, a man with no discernable talent until his mind connects with a newspaperman's heiress daughter. This little film directed with some panache and skill by Maurice Elvey chronicles the abrupt rise and fall of a vaudevillian-like music hall act. Rains is, as always, very good. A good performance with some moments of genuine ham - just watch him do the things with his eyes. Fay Wray is also a nice asset as his wife. She seems to be very bubbly and brings some gentle humor and emotion to the film. The story has some nice twists and turns and has a surprise ending of sorts. The film is obviously somewhat old and has some creaky qualities to it as well. All in all, however; I found The Clairvoyant to be a nice way to spend a cold evening.

Seems very strange to see two famed Hollywood actors, Rains and Wray paired together in this early British low-budget film, but there they are...and a marvellous job they make of it. Rains plays Maximus, a charlatan "clairvoyant", and Wray plays his wife and act sidekick. The act is dying on it's feet when Rains pulls of an act of genuine clairvoyance, with a little help from Jane Baxter. All good fun from there...a nice little twist at the end. Well worth a look at.

Claude Rains gives one of his finest performances ever -- and that's saying a lot. The rest of the cast is also first-rate in this story of a fake fortune-teller who suddenly starts seeing visions of the future for real. I really liked the small touches that director Elvey put in to make you feel as if Claude and his family really were a family -- little things like the way wife Fay Wray will touch his shoulder, the way the family talks on top of one another -- it's all carefully and perfectly done. Congratulations also to Glen MacWilliams' photography -- his footage of the mine shaft rivals Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS. Good work all around.