InformationRap
This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
Ogosmith
Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Blake Rivera
If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.
Matt Greene
Dull and forgettable are not normally words associated with Hitchcock, but here we are. The corrupt-elite storyline is much too blatant, and even the visuals are surprisingly unappealing. O'Hara and Laughton are engaging, but the web of complex characters they are woven into provide little lasting impact on the audience or Hitchcock's incredible career.
zkonedog
As a huge fan of the film-making of Alfred Hitchcock, I began watching this long-ago film in hopes of capturing some of the old Hitch magic. Sadly, I only made it ten minutes into the endeavor.The problem? The quality of the production (or reproduction, I guess) of the film. Perhaps I am just spoiled by newer technology such as 1080p & Blu-Ray, but the visual disturbances were so explicit as to be distracting. It was as if someone took a handful of dust and sprinkled it across the picture at all times.The sound was even worse. There was a constant background hum, and the voices were not at all clear (and since this is a British film, the accents need clarity to be enjoyed/understood).Thus, I could not bring myself to watch a film that was in such bad shape, as I felt I would miss too much of Hitchcock's style, wit, and directorial genius. If a "digitally remastered" cut of "Jamaica Inn" ever comes out, count me in. Otherwise, it's in too bad of shape to warrant a serious viewing as-is.
Kirpianuscus
for Charles Laughton must see this film. for his seductive performance. for his great science to transform a character in an entire story. for the art to give special aura to a film who has not the status of masterpiece. "Jamaica Inn" is a Hitchcock. a version of the book of Daphne de Maurier. a story from XIX century with bandits and the innocent, brave fragile victim. and everything becomes spectacular for the force of an actor to change each scene in a gem. "Jamaica Inn " gives a state more than a credible story. and this is a precious virtue. because it reminds and transforms and imposes pieces of literature in a seductive fragment of old ages.
rooee
Alfred Hitchcock's last film of the 1930s, and his last film made in Britain before setting sail across the Atlantic, is this blustery Daphne Du Maurier adaptation about a very dangerous corner of Cornwall in the 19th century. Somewhere in Bodmin Moor is Jamaica Inn, a rural pub which houses a gang of vagabonds, who regularly head down to the coast to raid ships that wreck on the rocks. Crew killed, the spoils are stolen. The gang is fed information from above – namely, a very corrupt Justice of the Peace named Sir Humphrey Pengallon (Charles Laughton). One stormy day (they're all stormy around here), Mary Yellen (a very youthful Maureen O'Hara) arrives in search of her aunt, Patience (Marie Ney). Patience is married to Joss (Leslie Banks), who happens to be the leader of the Jamaica Inn gang. Mary, in the right place at the wrong time, ends up saving the life of a gangster named Traherne (Robert Newton).So, Mary and Traherne are on the run, while they try to uncover the identity of the big boss running the wrecker operation. In classic Hitchcock style, they are oblivious to Pengallon's secret, while we the audience are aware – and here Laughton excels, charming and disarming with his avuncular cheerfulness. Can they pull back the curtain before Pengallon and his crew are able to draw another ship to the rocks?The central problem with the plot is that it hinges upon the ignorance of possibly the dumbest and most naive law officer in the entire Cornish peninsula. How he cannot see the guilt of Pengallon, despite him being the only man with the connections and opportunity to pull off such an enterprise, is the film's greatest mystery. And that's before he's stumbling into a room full of fearless pirates, who've already tried to kill him once, armed only with a single-shot pistol.But still, these facepalm moments come later. What's apparent from the start is the beauty of the production design. Whether it's the intricate modelwork or the bold, crooked sets, the sense of location (without actual location shooting) is atmospheric and immersive; and the very unreal nature of those elements is typically Hitchcockian, creating a claustrophobic sense of dreamlike theatre.The performances are quite variable. O'Hara is fine, essentially an entity whose sole function is to propel the plot – although she does get one moment of bona fide bravery later on. The gang members are fun as an ensemble. I couldn't help thinking of Mad Max in their self-pantomiming posturing and the alpha disputes constantly threatening to tear their chaotic brotherhood apart. Of course, the real deal is Pengallon. He's the mythic crazy capitalist: the top dog who takes none of the risks but all of the spoils, driven by a scary belief in the hierarchy of men. Laughton's consummate skill means Pengallon's gentlemanly malevolence is revealed gradually, until we realise once and for all that he'll never find humanity because the world is all objects to him, not people. Even in his demise he gets the last hurrah.Jamaica Inn isn't top drawer Hitchcock, but even middling Hitchcock is better than most filmmaking. It's fun and fast-moving – an action movie, at bottom – and features a massive performance at its heart from one of cinema's great actors. Brace for its sillier elements and it is ideal for a wet and windy Sunday afternoon.
