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The Thirty Nine Steps

(Not Yet Reviewed)

While it's true that this 1959 screen adaptation of The 39 Steps pales in comparison to Alfred Hitchcock's seminal 1935 version, it's still a thoroughly enjoyable romp that compensates for a lack of any tension whatsoever with a generous dose of genial good humour. Affable Kenneth More's Richard Hannay more closely resembles the kind of roles Cary Grant was playing for Hitch in the late 1950s; Finnish blonde Taina Elg, in the somewhat unlikely role of a prim Scottish schoolmistress, is his love interest. Although handcuffed together, More and Elg fail to radiate any sexual chemistry, even when scandalously forced to share a room and a bed. Much better are the delightful cameos: Sid James as a roguish lorry driver; Brenda De Banzie as voluptuous psychic Nellie; and Joan Hickson as a simpering teacher. As a thriller it's hardly in the same league as North by Northwest, but as a window on life in England and Scotland in the 1950s, this 39 Steps has much to recommend it. --Mark Walker

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