Product Details

• Actors: Alfred Hitchcock
• Directors: Alfred Hitchcock
• Format: Box set, Black & White, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 6
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Westlake Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: December 4, 2007
• Run Time: 1083 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000Y11B9O
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #81,101 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This set of five titles from the British phase of Alfred Hitchcock's early career serves as an outstanding reflection on the great director's evolving preoccupations and pet themes in the 1930s. The earliest inclusion is the 1930 Murder, starring Herbert Marshall as a famous stage actor who takes it upon himself to investigate a murder for which a young actress has been wrongly convicted. Clever and witty, the film finds Hitch exploring the blurry dualisms of reality and illusion, guilt and innocence, and watching and doing. The 1932 Number 17 is Hitchcock in a particularly playful vein. A bit bored by the "old dark house" Gothic tone of the story, he uses the film as an opportunity to push the limits of camera mobility, the emotional underpinnings of shots, and the sheer fun of using model trains and other vehicles to create climactic chases. In the 1934 version of The Man Who Knew Too Much, the director matches a sophisticated tone with a gut-wrenching tale of a child kidnapped by spies. A fascinating study in contrast with Hitch's 1956 edition of the story (the one starring James Stewart and Doris Day), this film highlights both his interest in the burden of secrecy as well as his youthful efforts at visual experimentation. The 1936 Sabotage is a stunning story of a naive woman's revenge-killing of her husband, a German spy, and the subsequent cover-up of her deed both by fate and by a police detective who chooses to keep quiet about her guilt. Finally, the 1936 Secret Agent, starring John Gielgud, Robert Young, Madeleine Carroll, and Peter Lorre in an espionage story of concealed identities and assassination, is dense with ideas about lies and the brutality of the hidden. A few features later, Alfred Hitchcock belonged to Hollywood, and the American cinema took a giant leap forward. But in this boxed set can be seen the blueprint of his genius. The prints of the films used in this set are serviceable and probably comparable to average 16mm classroom or museum presentations. The DVDs also include Hitchcock filmographies, trivia questions, a director biography, and scene access. --Tom Keogh

Product Description

Alfred Hitchcock Collection contains 13 classic films of Mystery and Suspense...Sir Alfred Hitchcock became the most widely known and influential directors in the history of world cinema with a significant gody of work produced over 50 years. This attractive collectors set features 13 full-length films compiled onto 6 DVD's. This outstanding collection is encased in a beautiful box set. Collection contains: Blackmail (1929), Easy Virtue (1928), The Farmers Wife (1928), Jamaica Inn (1939), The Lady Vanishes (1938), The Man who Knew too Much (1934), Murder (1930), Number 17 (1932), Sabotage (1936) The Skin Game (1931), The 39 Steps (1935), Secret Agent (1936), and Young and Innocent (1937)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars More Madacy Entertainment trash..., December 7, 1999

By	Joseph Cossette (Fort Lauderdale, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Alfred Hitchcock Collection (Murder, Number 17, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Sabotage, Secret Agent) (DVD)

Madacy appears to have quite a history of producing low quality transfers from film to DVD. All one needs to do is look at other Amazon reviews (look at some of the Charlie Chaplin DVD reviews). I was extemely disappointed with this DVD set and wished I could get back my money. It was a complete waste of money. We're lucky that Amazon has the ability to review these so others don't waste their hard-earned money also. Also fortunate that Amazon has technical info so we can see who has produced the DVD's.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars DON'T ORDER THIS TERRIBLE PACKAGE OF GREAT MOVIES!, November 5, 1999

By	B. Beker (Boulder, CO USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Alfred Hitchcock Collection (Murder, Number 17, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Sabotage, Secret Agent) (DVD)

Having seen all these superb Hitchcock films before, I was expecting to enjoy the wonder of DVD viewing to enhance the next times around. No go -- owing to poor encoding problems and horrible packaging from the producers (resulting in ALL of the discs coming off their spindles and perhaps being the culprit behing tiny surface scratches), only one of the pictures was even viewable. A gigantic waste of money. Go ahead and order if you must, but be prepared for the hassle of sending it right back to Amazon.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Madacy - worst DVD producer ever, February 18, 2000

By	R. Kohary "Karma Photography" (Bothell, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Alfred Hitchcock Collection (Murder, Number 17, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Sabotage, Secret Agent) (DVD)

The editorial review from Amazon.com states, "The prints of the films used in this box set are serviceable and probably comparable to average 16mm classroom or museum presentations." All I can think is that Mr. Keogh is lying or didn't actually watch the discs. The transfers are among the worst ever on DVD, which is typical of all Madacy titles. The films on the discs are unfortunately great - too bad they're unwatchable. Avoid this collection like the plague, and wait for re-releases from reputable distributors.