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The 39 Steps
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The 39 Steps (1935) More at IMDbPro »

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The 39 Steps (1935) -- Spies and the police chase a handcuffed couple who cannot stand each other.
The 39 Steps (1935) -- A man in London tries to help a counterespionage agent. But when the agent is killed and he stands accused, he must go on the run to both save himself and also stop a spy ring trying to steal top secret information.

Overview

User Rating:
8.0/10   18,438 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 11% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Alfred Hitchcock
Writers:
John Buchan (novel)
Charles Bennett (adaptation)
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Contact:
View company contact information for The 39 Steps on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
1 August 1935 (USA) more
Genre:
Mystery | Thriller more
Tagline:
His First Picture Since "Monte Cristo" ROBERT DONAT more
Plot:
A man in London tries to help a counterespionage agent. But when the agent is killed and he stands accused, he must go on the run to both save himself and also stop a spy ring trying to steal top secret information. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
Superb more

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Robert Donat ... Richard Hannay
Madeleine Carroll ... Pamela
Lucie Mannheim ... Annabella aka Miss Smith
Godfrey Tearle ... Professor Jordan
Peggy Ashcroft ... Margaret - Crofter's Wife
John Laurie ... John - Crofter
Helen Haye ... Mrs. Jordan
Frank Cellier ... Sheriff Watson
Wylie Watson ... Mr. Memory
Gus McNaughton ... Commercial Traveller with Pipe (as Gus Mac Naughton)
Jerry Verno ... Commercial Traveller
Peggy Simpson ... Maid
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The Thirty-Nine Steps (UK) (alternative spelling)
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Runtime:
86 min
Country:
UK
Language:
English
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (British Acoustic Film Full Range Recording System)
Certification:
UK:A (original rating) | France:U | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:12 (2002) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:G (DVD rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:U | USA:Unrated | Norway:16

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Director Cameo: [Alfred Hitchcock]about seven minutes in, tossing some litter as Richard and Annabella run from the music hall. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: The serial number of the autogyro has been reversed, showing that the stock shot has been reversed for effect. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Music hall announcer: Ladies and Gentleman, with your kind attention, and permission, I have the honor of presenting to you one of the most remarkable men in the world.
Heckler in Audience: How remarkable? He's sweating!
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in 'Topaz': An Appreciation by Film Critic/Historian Leonard Maltin (2001) (V) more
Soundtrack:
Tinkle, Tinkle, Tinkle more

FAQ

How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
What is the secret formula being smuggled out of England?
Is this film really in the public domain?
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11 out of 11 people found the following comment useful:-
Superb, 2 September 2006
10/10
Author: flicker1966 from United Kingdom

This is proof - if ever it were really needed - that age doesn't really affect a film's quality. If anyone needs to see some of Hitchcock's finest moments, this should be among them.

Playing fast and loose somewhat with John Buchan's (1916) novel, Hitchcock nevertheless directs a fast-moving, riveting story of political intrigue and paranoia with some truly hair-raising scenes (the Forth rail bridge scene springs to mind).

Hitchcock makes his usual cameo appearances. Apart from the one noted here, he's also in one of the early scenes after Arabella Smith fires the pistol. The music hall audience panics and make for the egress, 'Hitch' being one of the crowd. He's also one of the detectives seeking Hannay after he leaves the train on the Forth bridge.

There are some really sparkling lines of dialogue: cold, hungry and tired after tramping across the moors in (what I suppose is Fife), Hannay encounters a crofter (played by John Laurie, later famous as Fraser in Dad's Army): Crofter (to Hannay who has asked him for a bed for the night): Can you sleep in a box bed?" Hannay: "I can try" Crofter: "Can you eat the herring?" Hannay: "I could eat half a dozen right now".

Once inside, the crofter's (much younger) wife asks Hannay the following, after hearing that he lives in London: "Is it true that the women in London are beautiful?" Hannay: "Some of them are but they wouldn't be if they stood next to you." My word, what a charmer!

In case you were wondering, the thirty-nine steps in the original book referred to the steps down to the sea at a secluded bay, the spy involved arranging to be extracted by a submarine when the tide had covered up to the thirty-ninth step from the top. This is not alluded to in the 1935 film version, other than to give a name to the network of spies involved. Hannay was a mining engineer and Arabella Smith in the book is a man! It's a short-ish film too, coming in at about an hour and a quarter. It's occasionally on British terrestrial telly and never fails to please. Why they tried to remake this (in 1953 and 1978) is anyone's guess as you can't improve on perfection.

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Why no music for most of the movie? suel41452
Not in the Top 250 Movies palufish
Great film, BUT ... Andy_Kaufman-1
lit ref of Hitchcock movie to Salinger's 'Catcher in the Rye' ahall-3
Question about the knife spammy-5
Who spotted the Dad's Army connection? danastarbuck
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