(Next time, Iris, either drive or take a plane….)
CAST: Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave, Dame May Whitty, Paul Lukas, Cecil Parker, Linden Traver, Naugnton Wayne, Basil Radford, Mary Clare.
DIRECTOR: Alfred Hitchcock
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and unexpectedly complicated friendships - straight ahead…
It’s no secret that Alfred Hitchcock was a game-changing revolutionary for the cinematic genre of suspense. His films were so ground-breaking, and so influential, that to this day certain films are still being described as “Hitchcockian” or “something that even the Master of Suspense would be proud of.” Recent releases like BURIED and THE AMERICAN are just two examples. In essence, “Hitchcockian” describes a film that employs some of the tropes and themes that the Master introduced and perfected, to include but not limited to: (1) an ordinary protagonist, (2) a Machiavellian conspiracy, (3) ineffective authority figures, (4) elaborate suspense setpieces, and (5) a mysterious thing - or “MacGuffin” - that is a the center of the mystery.
These themes are explored in Hitchcock’s 1938 classic THE LADY VANISHES. With this film, Hitchcock pretty much single-handedly created a new suspense sub-genre: The "Missing-Person-Who-May-or-May-Not-Really-Be-Missing" Film. This premise has been recycled through the years with movies like AND SOON THE DARKNESS, THE VANISHING, BREAKDOWN, FRANTIC, and most recently, FLIGHT PLAN. Most of these films were effective thrillers due to the inherent visceral power of that premise - an innocent protagonist searching desperately for a missing friend or loved one, while his/her own life is gradually imperiled. Make no mistake, though: Hitch did it first - and set the standards by which later films in this sub-genre would play by.
THE LADY VANISHES starts in a remote village in the Italian Alps. There, a train bound for London is stopping long enough to pick up passengers - then continue north the very next morning. We meet our varied cast of characters as they try to secure a spot on the crowded train - or a room at the local inn to pass the night until their departure.
They are: (1) Caldicott (Naunton Wayne) and (2) Charters (Basil Radford), two gentlemen traveling companions who, um, seem a lot more than just friends - if you catch my drift; (3) Mr. Todhunter, and (4) Mrs. Todhunter, a couple who seems a lot, well, friskier than your average traveling married couple - if you catch my drift; (5) Dr. Hartz (Paul Lukas), a physician who seems to be the kind of doctor that you pray you will never encounter in your clinic - if you catch my drift; (6) Gilbert (Michael Redgrave), cute but cheeky bastard musician who is the kind of guy you wouldn’t want to kick out of bed for eating crackers, but you wish you could, anyway - if you catch my drift; (7) Miss Foy (Dame May Whitty), elderly spinster (like there’s any other kind) given to singing at the drop of hat and who is forever sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong - if you catch my drift; and (8) Iris (Margaret Lockwood), our heroine who is given to getting cute but cheeky bastard musicians kicked out of their hotel rooms for being too rowdy - if you catch my drift.
So, as you can see, before the train even pulls out of town, there’s already a lot of intrigue to go around. The best example of this is when Gilbert reacts badly to Iris reporting his ruckus to the front desk - which gets him kicked out of his room. What does he do? What every gentleman would do in his case: he marches right into Iris’s room and camps out on her floor. He figures she owes him for snitching and getting him booted out. Needless to say, this is not one of the better “meet-cutes” in cinema history.
Anyhow, the train finally pulls out. It doesn’t take long for Iris to befriend Ms. Foy. Soon, the two are chatting it up like old buds running into each other again after a separation of, well, ten minutes. Meanwhile, Iris studiously avoids that asshole Gilbert who is also on the train and just won’t let her forget the fact that she got him kicked out of his room. Dude, say it with me now: Get. Over. It. Already.
Fortunately, Iris doesn’t have much time to ponder whether she should try to get Gilbert kicked off the train, as well. See, quite without warning, Miss Foy suddenly disappears. In her seat is another woman who, while also old and nosy and wearing the same clothes, is definitely not Miss Foy. When Iris asks the other passengers where the old crone went, they all look at her like she’s been hitting Ye Ole Crack Pipe too vigorously.
Long story short, everyone on the train denies ever seeing Miss Foy. Slowly, Iris begins to suspect that something is up (you think?) and begins to investigate. To her chagrin, she discovers that the only person who believes her is (goddamnit, why?) Gilbert. Yes, her ol’ bud from the inn - the one she got the hotel manager to toss out on his perky butt. Of course, it’s distinctly possible that Gilbert is just playing along to torture her. Hard to say. The guy alternates between being an utter sweetheart and a total sleazeball.
So… what the hell happened to Miss Foy? Was she ever on the train? Or is Iris full of shit? Why is everyone else denying to have ever seen the old lady? Or are they all part of a large conspiracy? Who can be trusted? And why is Gilbert being so nice to Iris? Does he have an agenda of his own? Is their something sinister afoot on the train? And what is up with Caldicott and Charters? Are they making like Heath Ledger and Jake Gylenhaal in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN behind closed doors?
That all remains to be seen. But as far as I’m concerned, if Iris would have just kept her ass in the bar car, she wouldn’t have had to worry about a goddamned thing.
BUT, SERIOUSLY: As with REAR WINDOW, I can see a lot of modern audiences watching THE LADY VANISHES, and thinking: “What’s the big deal? This is just like FLIGHT PLAN.” My rebuttal is the same: Hitchcock did it first. He was ahead of the game to such a degree, it’s not even funny. But it is entertaining.
While not as smoothly executed as REAR WINDOW or VERTIGO, THE LADY VANISHES is still an undisputed classic. A genuine sense of menace and mystery grows as we watch Iris slowly realize that something has gone very, very wrong - and no one will believe her. One of Hitchcock’s trademarks was to put us directly in his protagonists’ shoes - and our involvement in Iris’s plight is no exception.
The cast is uniformly good, with Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave the standouts as the bickering central couple who must set aside their differences and work together to solve the mystery. This type of relationship between heroine and hero is commonplace in films today - but Hitchcock perfected it first. Also, Dame May Whitty and Lockwood have a nice, easy rapport that is instrumental in us believing Iris and Miss Foy have struck up a solid friendship in such a short time - which means that Iris’s concern is warranted and understandable.
Hitchcock uses the first act to establish the various character relationships, then tightens the screws in the second act when Miss Foy disappears and the tension mounts. In the third act, when all is revealed, Hitchcock pulls out all the stops and gives us a tense and exciting climax that involves not only Iris, Gilbert, and Miss Foy - but everyone else on the train.
All in all, THE LADY VANISHES is a classic forerunner to such modern “person-goes-missing” as FLIGHT PLAN, BREAKDOWN, and THE VANISHING. Make no mistake, though: THE LADY VANISHES is streets ahead of these upstarts - mostly due to Alfred Hitchcock’s sheer artistic skill.
