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Downhill

Play trailer Poster for Downhill 1927 1h 20m Adventure Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 6 Reviews 32% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
A young man falls into the European underworld from boarding-school rugby stardom.

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Downhill

Critics Reviews

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Times (UK) Staff The Times (UK) 07/08/2020
By sheer technique, [Hitchcock] has managed to breathe some life into it. He has not made it credible -- that would be expecting too much -- but he has at least made it seem far less ridiculous than one could possibly have expected. Go to Full Review
Bob Baker Time Out 03/20/2012
It's directed by Hitchcock with imagination and, especially in the first half, much comedy. Go to Full Review
David Parkinson Radio Times 06/03/2015
3/5
It's unabashed melodrama, but nevertheless wholly cinematic. Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 11/12/2012
B-
Though not one of Hitchcock's best silents, Downhill, based on theatrical sketches, intriduces themes and images, such as the shared guilt and the prominence of staircases, that would recur in his future, better films. Go to Full Review
Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 07/31/2012
C
Blame Novello for this turkey, Hitchcock did all he could to make this creaky story work with some creative visuals. Go to Full Review
Fernando F. Croce CinePassion 07/22/2012
Astutely keyed to Murnau, Hitchcock finds visual invention everywhere Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Bob W 10/16/2023 The follow-up to "The Lodger" which I personally find more engaging. A very dated morality play but entertaining and with a clever sense of humor. It's arguably as much star-producer-original co-author Ivor Novello's work as Hitch's but it's got countless clever touches and ahead of its time techniques still used today. It's pure melodrama but with touches of humor and entertaining as that. The climactic sequence is an early example of what Hitch termed "pure cinema." At the same time, Hitch himself criticized some of the very literal imagery. (As Novello's character goes down hill, he is seen going down on escalators and elevators.) A must for Hitch-super fans and cinephiles in search of the early Hitchcock. See more Scotty D 01/05/2023 Fresh hint of things to come from Hitchcock See more 05/02/2021 Not a hugely polished film but Ivor Novello gives a much more enjoyable performance than he did in The Lodger where he over-acted a little too much at times for my liking. Some lovely scenes and shots showing Novello's character's dissent into misery and delirium. See more 12/17/2020 This plot could have been resolved in ten minutes with a trip to the Maury Povich show. I had just watched a Hitchcock film (Frenzy) from 1972, so figured I'd try one of his earliest silent films. The camera work is quite admirable for 1927 and although easy to follow, the plot is pretty flimsy and far from intriguing over 90 years later. More of interest from a historical standpoint as this is Hitchcock with no suspense, thrills, or mystery. See more michael d 12/02/2020 Some really cool innovative early trickery afoot. See more 05/27/2020 I would've thought Hitchcock's twist on the prodigal son parable, featuring a young man's slow descent into madness, wouldn't have been nearly this boring or forgettable. With as much nuance as an after-school special, the only real insight is into Hitchcock's own messed up relationship with women and women's sexuality. See more Read all reviews
Downhill

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Movie Info

Synopsis A young man falls into the European underworld from boarding-school rugby stardom.
Director
Alfred Hitchcock
Screenwriter
Constance Collier, Ivor Novello
Production Co
Gainsborough Pictures
Genre
Adventure, Drama
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2017
Runtime
1h 20m
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