Jamaica Inn (1939)
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44% of critics liked it
(16 reviews) -
37% of users liked it
(3,892 ratings)
Alfred Hitchcock directed this disappointing misfire, memorable solely for the fact is that it is the final film from Hitchcock's early British period before he left for the Hollywood studio system and David O. Selznick. In the England of the 1800s, a group of ruthless smugglers, led by Sir… More Alfred Hitchcock directed this disappointing misfire, memorable solely for the fact is that it is the final film from Hitchcock's early British period before he left for the Hollywood studio system and David O. Selznick. In the England of the 1800s, a group of ruthless smugglers, led by Sir Humphrey Pengallon (Charles Laughton), prey on ships by blacking out warning signals. When the ships crash on the rocks, the nefarious group loots the remains and kills the sailors. The plot kicks in when the beautiful orphan Mary Yelland (Maureen O'Hara) goes to visit her uncle Joss Merlyn (Leslie Banks) at a creepy hotel called the Jamaica Inn, the home of the gang of smugglers. Mary doesn't realize that Uncle Joss is one of them. Meanwhile, Lloyd's of London sends one of their ablest men, Jem Trahearne (Robert Newton), to investigate the recurring shipwrecks. Jem checks in to the Jamaica Inn, and when the coven of smugglers finds out who he is, they capture him and attempt to kill him. But Mary comes to his rescue and saves him. Through the inn, the smugglers try to recapture Jem -- along with Mary. Thrown together by dire circumstances, the two fall in love. Meanwhile, all the shenanigans occurring at the Jamaica Inn appear to be driving Pengallon insane. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Directed By
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Written By
- Sidney Gilliat, Joan Harrison, J.B. Priestley
- Genres
- Action & Adventure, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense, Classics
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Oct 13, 1939 Wide
Critic Reviews
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Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
By common consent, one of Alfred Hitchcock's poorest and least personal works, though it has some compensations.
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Variety Staff, Variety
Superb direction, excellent casting, expressive playing and fine production offset an uneven screenplay to make Jamaica Inn a gripping version of the Daphne du Maurier novel.
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Geoff Andrew, Time Out
The result is weird, but not wonderful.
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Frank S. Nugent, New York Times
Having set his own standards, Alfred Hitchcock must be judged by them; and, by them, his Jamaica Inn is merely journeyman melodrama.
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Franz Hoellering, The Nation
Jamaica Inn is a fraud perpetrated with great names.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Charles Laughton
as Sir Humphrey Pengallan
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Maureen O'Hara
as Mary Yelland
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Emlyn Williams
as Harry the Peddler
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Hay Petrie
as Groom
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Robert Newton
as Jem Trehearne
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Leslie Banks
as Joss Merlyn
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Basil Radford
as Pengallan's Guest
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Frederick Piper
as Broker
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Mervyn Johns
as Thomas
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Marie Ney
as Patience Merlyn
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Wylie Watson
as Salvation Watkins
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Stephen Haggard
as Boy
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William Devlin
as Pengallan's Tenant
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Jeanne De Casalis
as Pengallan's Guest
- Robert A'Dair
- Marie Ault
- O.B. Clarence
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George Curzon
as Pengallan's Guest
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Morland Graham
as Sea-Lawyer Sidney
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Edwin Greenwood
as Dandy
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Clare Greet
as Pengallan's Tenant
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Horace Hodges
as Chadwick the Butler
- Mary Jerrold
- Harry Lane
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Herbert Lomas
as Pengallan's Tenant
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John Longden
as Capt. Johnson
- Aubrey Mather
- Philip Ray
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Mabel Terry-Lewis
as Pengallan's Guest
- William Fazan
- Sam Lee
- Alan Lewis
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Harry Bromley Davenport
as Pengallan's Guest
- George Gurzon
- Archie Harradine
- George Smith
