The Lady Vanishes (1938)

When I think of Alfred Hitchcock, I think of riveting masterpieces that portray suspense, murder, mystery, and drama. Comedy is not the first thing that would come to my head. The brilliant thing about ‘The Lady Vanishes’ is that it contains all of those mentioned elements, but most of all, it’s one of the funniest films I’ve seen in my life. The dialogue between the characters is so immaculately written, and the little character qualities are hilarious. There were so many times where I was sucked into the story, trying to piece together what happened to Miss Froy, and at the same time, straight up laughing. The little quips by the characters, specifically Gilbert, Charters, and Caldicott, made this film what it was. Just brilliant writing. The story itself was very intriguing and had me completely absorbed from beginning to end. There’s constantly new adjustments to the story, and just as you think it’s about to wrap up, another twist pops up and keeps it chugging forward. And it never felt long. Not that it is long, it just stays fresh and new. The opening shot alone was enough to convince me this would be amazing. The use of a miniature set to show the small town was genius and effective. It perfectly sets the mood for the type of film you’re in for. Lastly, the performances, as stated, were all humorous and went with the flow. Major kudos to Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne for making one of the funniest on screen duos I’ve seen in my entire life. Michael Redgrave was also fantastic, portraying a very lovable, silly, and rugged protagonist. Overall, this is among Hitchcock’s best that I’ve seen, and I’m very happy I got it through the Criterion Collection. I’ll certainly be returning to it again, and I’d recommend it to all comedy/thriller fans. This film is officially Berry Approved, so go watch it now!