Doctor Syn (1937)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Roy William Neill

Writers:

Roger Burford (writer)
Michael Hogan (writer)

Release Date:

14 November 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Adventure

Tagline:

The Most Feared Pirate Gangster of His Time!

Plot:

When customs and excise men arrive at the village of Dymchurch in Kent, they uncover an intricate smuggling...

Plot Keywords:

Remade | Based On Novel | Character Name In Title

Cast

George Arliss	...	Dr. Syn
Margaret Lockwood	...	Imogene Clegg
John Loder	...	Denis Cobtree
Roy Emerton	...	Capt. Howard Collyer, R.N.
Graham Moffatt	...	Jerry Jerk
Frederick Burtwell	...	Rash the Schoolmaster
George Merritt	...	Mipps the Coffin Maker
Athole Stewart	...	Squire Anthony Cobtree
Wilson Coleman	...	Dr. Pepper, MD
Wally Patch	...	Collyer's Bo'sun
Meinhart Maur	...	Mulatto
Muriel George	...	Mrs. Waggetts, Pub Owner

Also Known As:

Dr. Syn (USA) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved

Company:

Gaumont British Picture Corporation

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

Honest, decent crime.

There are some black and white films which as they grow older become more and more evergreen. (The obvious example is Casablanca). This is one such, although it may not appeal to the young and non-british. Some of its fascination lies in the attitudes, acting styles and techniques which are so neatly frozen in time. If the plot seems a little contrived here and there, or the dialogue rather stilted especially in the romantic scenes, it all adds to the feel of the period in which the film was made (rather than that in which it was set).

The plot centres on the coastal hamlet of Dymchurch, where a detachment of the Royal Navy is about to make a search for smuggled goods. The inhabitants of the village are outwardly honest and simple folk, but many of them have nefarious secrets to conceal.

The original novel "Dr. Syn", derived from Kentish local legend, was very much darker and bloodier than this film. Likewise, George Arliss's performance as the mild and unctuous parson bears little outward resemblance to the eponymous reprobate of the novel. However, Arliss's character becomes much more believable and deserving of the viewer's wholehearted sympathy towards the end of the film.

There are some other acting highlights, notably Wilson Coleman's tipsy country doctor and Graham Moffat's Dickensian fat boy. This was one of Margaret Lockwood's early starring appearances and she smiles, bursts into tears and pouts beautifully throughout.

The action sequences all start suddenly without any preceding build-up of tension, and end even more quickly. The comic aspects of the film are given greater emphasis than the action and this adds to the general lightness of atmosphere. The only menacing undertones are provided by the constant references to dark goings-on on the surrounding marshes, and Meinhard Maur's performance as the mutilated mulatto seaman, intent on revenge.

All in all, the film is delightful nonsense which deserves more attention than it has received.