Downhill

Downhill, 1927

UK, DCP, Black & White, 105’, English

Cast: Ivor Novello, Isabel Jeans, Ian Hunter, Robin Irvine

Downhill is an early example of Hitchcock’s interest in guilt and his unstable attitude towards family life. Roddy is the school captain and a star rugby player. He and his best friend Tim, start seeing a waitress called Mabel. Out of temper, Mabel tells the headmaster that she is pregnant and that Roddy is the father. He is falsely accused and because of this misjudgment he is expelled from school and disgraced by everybody including his father. After the unbearable accusations, he goes into self-imposed exile, renting himself out as a companion to lonely wealthy women. Hitchcock tries to tell the story with a minimum of title cards to allow the film’s visual narrative tell the story.