Product Details

• Actors: Leon M. Lion, Anne Grey, John Stuart, Donald Calthrop, Barry Jones
• Directors: Alfred Hitchcock
• Writers: Alfred Hitchcock, Joseph Jefferson Farjeon, Alma Reville, Rodney Ackland, Louis Tracy
• Format: Black & White, Dolby, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 1.0)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Alpha Video Distributors
• DVD Release Date: January 20, 1998
• Run Time: 87 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304870256
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #248,456 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Number 17" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The technical challenges of this 1932 "old dark house" mystery are largely what appealed to Alfred Hitchcock, who uses a staircase quite inventively to create a series of emotional and dramatic thresholds from which to tell a story (adapted from a play) about a policeman, a hobo, and a gang of jewel thieves. Besides the technical temptations of filming in the house, Hitch turns (as he often did in the early days) to models to create an exciting chase-climax between a train and a bus. A very minor work, indeed, but revealing of the director's early interest in transcending dull material with exercises in what he termed "pure cinema." The print of the film used in the DVD release is serviceable and probably comparable to an average 16mm classroom or museum presentation. The DVD also includes a Hitchcock filmography, trivia questions, a director biography, and scene access. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lucky Number, August 24, 2010

By 

Tom Without Pity (A Major Midwestern Metropolis) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Number 17 (DVD)

This is a review for the film NUMBER SEVENTEEN (1932) directed by Alfred Hitchcock. NUMBER SEVENTEEN is an early talking picture released by British International Pictures. This is the second time I have watched NUMBER SEVENTEEN this year and this time around I was very impressed with what before I thought was a run of the mill actioner.

Also, this time I used the DVD of NUMBER SEVENTEEN from the Mill Creek Hitchcock set, which has much better sound, particularly in the first segment of the film. NUMBER SEVENTEEN starts out as almost an old dark house style mystery, only the dwelling, address number 17, turns out to be a house that is for sale and most of the visitors are concerned not with real estate but a stolen necklace. Some of the cinematography in the old dark house
part is extraordinary, IMO, but the story occasionally drags, I think in part because this is after all a filmed play.

Finally, the action moves onto a rather lengthy and exciting railroad chase where Hitchock tells the story almost entirely visually. And as outstanding as I thought the first half of the film was cinematically, the second half is quite an exciting mixture of real life action mixed with very well done miniatures and if by this time you are not caught up in NUMBER SEVENTEEN you probably never will be.

I think that NUMBER SEVENTEEN is a remarkably succesful early attempt at visual storytelling in a talking picture by one of the true masters of the form. With Leon M. Lion, Anne Grey, John calthrop, John Stuart, Barry Jones.

I have kept revising my opinion and rating on this film because of the extraordinary
visual compositions and work done by Hitchcock and his crew. NUMBER SEVENTEEN may not be
as highly regarded as some others of his early films but all things considered I
think this film is a five star effort.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun Early Hitchcock for a Dark and Rainy Night, December 8, 2008

By 

Bobby Underwood "starlighthotel" (Manly NSW, Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Number 17 [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Hitchcock co-wrote this British comic thriller early in his career and it is very entertaining. Based on a Jefferson Farjeon play about a hobo stumbling across a body at Number 17 on a windy night, Hitchcock compensated for the smaller budget often afforded him during this period in Britain with droll humor and the lighting of photographers John J. Cox and Bryan Langley. The results are fun to watch.

Leon M. Lion is excellent and quite amusing as the bum who has the misfortune of entering Number 17 and discovering the body. John Stuart is also fine as Gilbert Fordyce, a mystery man who comes across the body only moments after Ben (Lion) does. Before they can collect their thoughts a young girl (Ann Casson) quite literally drops through the ceiling into Fordyce's arms. Her father has gone missing and only a telegram regarding a Suffolk necklace traced to Number 17 and a man named Shelldrake offer any clues to the mystery.

Soon there is a flurry of people at Number 17, including a lovely girl reportedly both deaf and mute. Anne Grey is very beautiful in the role and has some fine moments as Hitchcock balances the humor and mystery perfectly, with just a dash of romance on the horizon. Part of the fun is figuring out who are the good guys and who the bad.

Fordyce gives a bus full of tourists a wilder ride than bargained for in an exciting race with a train which leads to an enjoyably romantic finale. The special effects during the chase often cited as cheesy really aren't that bad for this time period in British cinema and hardly scrutinized by viewers caught up in the fun.

It takes a bit to get going but once it does this is very good Hitchcock and compares well to his more heralded films before moving across the pond. Don't waste your money on a dvd, as no prints of this film are spectacular, and you are just as well off to get it less expensively on vhs. Great fun for a rainy night!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars it's a fairly good film--so I'll give it a definite maybe, April 5, 2009

By 

Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Number 17 (DVD)

Number Seventeen wasn't Alfred Hitchcock's choice to make; and I can understand why. The script provides a mediocre plot that can be confusing as people change their identities without any notice; and the short time span of the movie doesn't allow for much character development. On the other hand, there are very good points about this motion picture. After a slow beginning the plot moves along at a good pace. The ending is rather fast paced; it's guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat! Another thing we get here is that trademark Hitchcock "creepiness" factor; much of the movie takes place in an old abandoned house late at night without any electricity. The few people there have just a candle or two to light their paths and the "things that go bump in the night" enhance the thriller factor of Number Seventeen. In addition, the cinematography is quite good.

When the action begins, we see a solitary man walking along the street late at night; and after chasing his hat along the sidewalk he enters an abandoned house. He quickly meets Ben ((Leon M. Lion), a homeless man already inside who calls him "guv'nor." Other people also come to the house two or three at a time not too long after the first man did; but they remain mostly anonymous--at first. We then learn that they are a group of jewel thieves who stole the Suffolk necklace with its many diamonds. The crooks are led by Sheldrake (Garry Marsh) and there's also the somewhat shady Henry Doyle (Barry Jones); and they are meeting at the old house to run away with the necklace to Germany.

However, most of these people are in for a little surprise. One of the men is actually Detective Barton (John Stuart), who is hot on the trail for these jewel thieves.

You would think Detective Barton would have backup and just clamp down on the jewel thieves while they're all assembled there; but he does not do this. Goodness knows why! (Again, this isn't the best film I've ever seen.) This sets up a massive chase scene in which the crooks run away after typing up Barton and a young girl from next door who is innocent.

But who precisely has the Suffolk necklace after all? The answer may surprise you! What about Barton--can he catch up with the crooks before they leave England for Germany? How does Henry Doyle figure into all this? Watch and find out!

Overall, I agree with reviewers who write that the ending chase scene is a major highlight of this movie; it's brilliantly done. The "houseful of horrors" factor adds a lot to the film, too. This isn't Hitchcock at his best; but for people who want to see what he was doing earlier on in his career this is a good place to start.