Young and Innocent

"Young and Innocent" is one of the best of Alfred Hitchcock's pre-Hollywood movies. It contains all of the features that characterized the finest of his British movies, and is (as many others have commented) a film often undeservedly overlooked amongst Hitchcock's large collection of classics.

The actors would all be unfamiliar to most contemporary American viewers, but it is a fine cast that does full justice to a good story, and that responds well to Hitchcock's expert direction. Derrick de Marney is engaging as the unjustly accused hero Robert Tisdall, and his character is balanced nicely by good performances from the rest of the cast (several of whom appeared in more than one of Hitchcock's British movies).

As is often the case with Hitchcock's British pictures, the title is capable of multiple interpretations. At the least, it could refer either to the hero, to the heroine, or to the overall atmosphere and themes of the movie. Young Tisdall is being chased by the law, but we know from the beginning that he is innocent, and his knowledge of that innocence enables him to remain upbeat and even playful despite the dangers and complications he faces. Erica (Nova Pilbeam), his reluctant friend and helper, is innocent in a different sense. In the story she finds her youthful naivete, especially the assumptions she has acquired in growing up as a chief police constable's daughter, challenged by the real world - perhaps for the first time in her life. Pilbeam is not a glamorous heroine (and this may be one of the reasons why "Young and Innocent" is unjustly neglected), but she was a good choice to portray the youthful earnestness and resulting moral dilemmas of her character.

Despite the film's short length, it is filled with classic Hitchcock touches of detail, artistry, and humor, many of which are more low-key than those in his more familiar Hollywood films. It is worth watching several times in order to catch and appreciate all of the details. Three sequences are especially worth noting: (i) the renowned tracking shot at the climax of the film, which is not only a fine technical achievement but also an ideal way to set up the suspenseful conclusion; (ii) the birthday party in the middle, which encapsulates in very subtle ways most of the themes and contrasts of the movie, and (iii) the sequence towards the beginning involving the hero's conference with his lawyer, his court appearance, and his escape, a sequence which is filled with comic details too numerous to catch all at once (including one of the director's most humorous cameos).

Any Hitchcock fan should thoroughly enjoy "Young and Innocent". Beyond that, any fan of thrillers who can look past an unfamiliar cast, and who is willing to look for the subtle touches that characterized the great director's British work, will also find the film a satisfying experience.

Another wrongfully-accused-man-on-the-run tale from Hitchcock, this time starring Derrick De Marney as a singer accused of murder. He escapes custody with hopes of clearing his name, and gets some unexpected help from Erica (Nova Pilbeam), the daughter of a police inspector. With Percy Marmont, John Longden, Edward Rigby, Mary Clare, Basil Radford, George Curzon, George Merritt, Bill Shine, and Torin Thatcher.

This was becoming well-trod territory for Hitchcock even back in '37, and De Marney & Pilbeam don't quite have the screen charisma of Donat & Carroll, but this is still enjoyable if one keeps their expectations in check. There's some miniature work featuring some trains and cars, and suspenseful mine collapse. The finale, with a band in blackface, may keep this one on the lesser-shown list. Pilbeam was 17 when this was filmed, while her romantic onscreen partner De Marney was 31.

Hitchcock is in a class by himself. I'll give any of his films multiple viewings. The story and structure of "Young and Innocent" resemble "The 39 Steps," with a young woman helping a young man on the run thwart the police and prove his innocence. This film is a standout, though, not because of the story or acting (both charming), but because of a virtuoso bit of directing by the Master, in which the location of the killer is revealed. As I watched the scene unfold for the first time, I remember thinking, "This is what makes Hitchcock Hitchcock." I wish I had never seen any Hitchcock films so I could watch them all again for the first time. His is a brilliant body of work, and this is an often overlooked example of his mastery of the film art.

Sort of a blueprint for any number of later, more bloated Hitchcocks: The man falsely accused of murder; the sympathetic miss who helps him, the set pieces in creepy places. This one has a lighter, more picaresque feel than most of the Master's movies, with irrelevant but diverting supporting characters, Maguffins, an unstarry cast, and an unusual dollop of humor. It's also blessed by a screenplay that leaps nimbly from improbability to improbability, as much as its more famous contemporaries, like "The 39 Steps" or "The Lady Vanishes."

The light tone throughout tips us off that everything's going to turn out all right, so there's less suspense than we associate with Hitchcock. Still, it's beautifully photographed (with one really stunning crane shot), beautifully paced, and enjoyably acted. The unstoried Nova Pilbeam is a standout: She's the ideal Hitchcock heroine, blonde, slender, and spirited.

Young and Innocent (1937)

The title is appropriate to the point of being redundant, because in nearly every Alfred Hitchcock film the key theme is an innocent man accused. In this case, accused of murder, and the young man is a charming English actor, Derrick De Marney. As the police begin their hunt, he runs into the police chief's daughter, played by Nova Pilbeam, a tomboyish answer to Katherine Hepburn, and the real star of the movie.

This is a late British Hitchcock film, and it feels slightly raw around the edges, but it's so fast and likable and well constructed, you have to love it. In fact, the suspense of getting caught is balanced by some downright slapstick scenes that are brief and hilarious. And a reminder that this is a romp, the whole thing a beautiful, spritely entertainment. Never mind a killer is on the loose, because if one man is innocent of murder, another, out there somewhere, it not.

This is 1937, and by 1939 Hitchcock has moved to the U.S. to do Hollywood movies (including the amazing Rebecca in 1940), and so Young and Innocent and The Lady Vanishes (which has a similar quaint feel) wrap up his long British period. It says a lot for a movie to say I could watch it again, not because it's technically astonishing, but because it's just a joy, and very sweet. Never mind a little corniness or an inevitable ending, it's good!