The Skin Game (1931 film)
| The Skin Game | |
|---|---|
Region 4 DVD cover
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| Directed by | Alfred Hitchcock |
| Produced by | John Maxwell |
| Written by |
John Galsworthy (play) Alfred Hitchcock (adaptation) Alma Reville (scenario) |
| Starring |
Edmund Gwenn Helen Haye C. V. France Jill Esmond John Longden Phyllis Konstam |
| Cinematography | Jack E. Cox |
| Edited by | A.R. Gobbett Rene Marrison |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | Wardour Films Ltd. |
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Release date
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26 February 1931 (UK) |
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Running time
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88 mins |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Skin Game (1931) is a British feature film by Alfred Hitchcock, based on a play by John Galsworthy and produced by British International Pictures. The story revolves around two rival families, the Hillcrists and the Hornblowers, and the disastrous results of the feud between them.
After being thought to be in the public domain for decades, the film's rights were obtained by French media company Canal+ in 2005. A restored and remastered print of the film was released on DVD by Lionsgate Home Entertainment in 2007.
Edmund Gwenn and Helen Haye reprised their respective roles as Mr. Hornblower and Mrs. Hillcrist from the 1921 silent version.
The plot tells the story of a feud between two affluent families, the long-established (upper class) Hillcrists, played by C.V. France, Helen Haye, and Jill Esmond, and the nouveau riche (formerly working class) Hornblowers, played by Edmund Gwenn, John Longden, and Frank Lawton. Two underlying themes in the story are class warfare and the urbanization of the countryside.
The Hillcrists are upset by the actions of Mr. Hornblower, whom they consider to be ostentatious and crass, in buying up land, evicting tenant farmers, and surrounding the area with factories. The Hillcrists make every effort they can to preserve the last large piece of open land that adjoins their beautiful rural estate.
After being tricked out of the land in an auction, the Hillcrists learn a dark secret about Mr. Hornblower's beautiful daughter-in-law Chloe (played by Phyllis Konstam). It turns out that she had previously earned a living by playing the professional "other woman" in pre-arranged divorce cases.
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Wikipedia