The 39 Steps (1935)
(Alfred Hitchcock, UK 1935, 86 min., 35mm print)
Alfred Hitchcock’s picaresque thriller travels from London to the Scottish Highlands and back again. Canadian businessman Richard Hannay (Robert Donat) is thrown into the fire when a mysterious woman, claiming to hold the key to dangerous foreign information, is killed in his apartment. Hannay goes on the run, armed with only a map of Scotland, a warning about a man missing the top of his pinky finger, and a reference to “the thirty-nine steps.” He must avoid both foreign operatives and the police, running headlong into danger and convince the beautiful Pamela (Madeleine Carroll) of his innocence in enlisting her help. As comedic and British as it is thrilling, Hitchcock’s adaptation of the John Buchan novel is one of his best British productions.