5. Downhill (1927)

Hitchcock's next project at Gainsborough, following The Lodger, teams him up again with it's star Ivor Novello based on the play Down Hill Novello wrote with Constance Collier (under the pseudonym David L'Estrange).

Downhill (released in the USA as When Boys Leave Home) tells the story of Roddy Berwick (Novello) a student at an English boarding school where he's the captain of the rugby team as well as school captain. One night, his roommate Tim Wakely (Robin Irvine) takes him to a bakery shop where Tim has a date with the clerk Mabel (Annette Benson). Some time later Mabel goes to the school headmaster to say she's pregnant and Roddy is the father. In reality, Tim is the guilty party but Roddy accepts the blame since it would cost Tim his scholarship if found out. Roddy is expelled and goes back home where his father kicks him out because of the scandal. Roddy then goes on a downward spiral across London and Paris before trying to get back home.

Being Hitchcock's fourth film we can continue to see the progress he makes as a director. In the accusation scene there are two great point of view shots from both Mabel & Roddy's perspectives as the blame is about to be placed. Later in the film as Roddy is banished from his home, watching his slow descent in to the London Underground (subway) via an escalator emphasizes the foreshadowing of Roddy's future. Eventually as Roddy returns home via ship, the seasickness combines with the nightmares/visions of his accusers which can even give the audience an uneasy feeling.

Despite all of this, Downhill does disappoint when compared with The Lodger. The movie does seem to drag along while at the same time depressing the audience as we see Roddy's deterioration continue. Hitchcock manages to show each part of Roddy's breakdown but they don't seem to be seamlessly intertwined which also makes the audience wonder the time span the movie covers. Hitchcock told Francois Truffaut that Downhill was based on a poor play while just seeming to be a series of sketches. Humor is also missing from the movie with only a couple of fleeting moments of a smirk early in the film.

Novello is good here but as is always done, we have to suspend some disbelief that a 34 year actor is playing a kid in boarding school as well as not look like a stereotypical derelict by the end of the movie. The supporting cast does well in their roles with the one standout being Isabel Jeans as the stage actress who becomes Roddy's wife and then takes him to the cleaners.

Once again, there is some originality here but as the saying goes, you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Critics at the time felt the same. A Bioscope reviewer praised Hitchcock's interest despite the poor script. The Guardian critic was more harsh said it seemed just like The Lodger without being a good film.

Downhill appears as an extra on the DVD and Blu-Ray of the Criterion editions of The Lodger which can be purchased here.