Hitchcock again hits home (Young and Innocent (DVD))

Member Name: Ailran

Product:	Young and Innocent (DVD)
Date:	27/04/09 (158 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Thrills, chills and romance

Disadvantages: Limited in scope by its age

Made in 1937 Young and Innocent is yet another example of early Hitchcock work and uses his favourite theme, or at one that at least seems to be turn up an awful lot of times in his movies... that of an innocent man on the run from the authorities and trying to prove his innocence.

The innocent man in this movie is Robert Tisdall (Derrick De Mornay) who while out walking along a cliff spots a body washed up on a beach. After climbing down to check on the body he knows that he needs to go and get help, to get proper assistance for her and runs off to find someone. As he runs away two girls come round a bend on the beach and see him, seconds later they discover the body. Believing him to be the murderer they contact the Police and much to Tisdall's disbelief he finds himself being arrested for murder. With a lot of circumstantial evidence against him Tisdall only has one option, to escape and find the evidence to clear his name on his own.

Young and Innocent was described at the time of its release as a 'Romantic murder mystery drama' and that is pretty much spot on. The murder mystery is the main story strand but there is a romantic element to it that is close to aligned with screwball movies of the era, or a romantic comedy as it would probably be called now. This comes from Tisdall getting the daughter of a Scotland Yard inspector to aid him in his escape and in hiding out. Erica Burgoyne (played by Nova Pilbeam who was also the kidnapped daughter in The Man Who Knew Too Much) knows she shouldn't be helping him but there is something about the charming Tisdall that piques her interest. As much as she dislikes going against her dad, who is part of the manhunt for Tisdall, she is a free spirited young woman and decides to follow her instincts and help this young man prove his innocence. A lot of the charm of the film comes from this mix of romance and mystery.

Young and Innocent is very similar to The 39 Steps in many ways. The plot is almost identical, in an overall sense at least. Man is accused of a murder that he didn't commit, goes on the run to clear himself and teams up with a reticent young woman who does, but also doesn't want to help him.
This for me is the only downside to what is a very enjoyable murder mystery movie. Its similarity to The 39 Steps is so obvious that you may as well be watching that instead. 39 Steps is such a classic and is also a marginally better than Young and Innocent. So why bother watching that when you could watch 39 Steps? Given the choice I would always choose the sheer breadth and depth of the Steps every single time

If you ignore that though Young and Innocent is another classic early Hitchcock. Full of the flourishes that populated his English movies and made up for what was no doubt a minuscule budget. Touches of comedy, especially in scenes involving a police sergeant and regular officer trying to capture Tisdall and when Erica and Tisdall visit the home of her aunt, just at the time when there is a child's birthday party is taking place. The tense scene where the aunt is certain something is going on is interspersed with little comic touches and dialogue, especially involving the uncle (???, ??? from The Lady Vanishes)

The more of these early Hitchcock films I see the more I realise how good a director he was. A lot of his later stuff I can take or leave but very few are even close to being as good as his early stuff. His British stuff is inventive, clever and mixes humour and tension extremely well. His clever way of using a few outdoor locations leads you into thinking that there are a lot of less set based scenes then there actually is. There is a lot of driving around outside to offset the indoor locations that, in the main, are obviously sets.

The main charm of Young and Innocent is the interplay between the two leads. Tisdall comes across as the kind of man your mother would love you to bring home (murder charge not withstanding and if you are a woman of course!) and that you would love to have as a best mate (if you are a man). He is charming, witty and with a light easiness about him that comes from just being a 'jolly nice chap'. Erica is young (Pilbeam was around 18 or 19 at the time) and has a forthright 'I know what I am doing' aura around her that just seems to mesh with the man who has pulled her into helping him out. The two actors working together, and feeling like the two characters do actually have some form attraction to each other is very important to the film and the story because most of the screen time involves them being together.

Young and Innocent is a very good film that is verging on excellent. Without its similarities to The 39 Steps it would probably have reached that hallowed status but as it is it just falls short, which still means that you really should search it out if you love good classic thrillers.

Summary: Classic British Hitchcock thriller