''Raffles'' is a 1939 American

crime comedy film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as drama or gangster film, but als ...

starring

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was an English actor, soldier, raconteur, memoirist and novelist. Niven was known as a handsome and debonair leading man in Classic Hollywood films. His accolades include an Academ ...

and

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British and American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her tim ...

, and is one of several film adaptations of an 1899 short story collection by E. W. Hornung, '' The Amateur Cracksman''.

Plot

A.J. Raffles, the celebrated

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er, is welcomed in the parlours and country estates of

high society High society, sometimes simply Society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth, power, fame and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open ...

. This circumstance he uses to his advantage in his secret career as "The Amateur Cracksman", a master

burglar Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving trespass to land, the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal ...

and

safecracker Safe-cracking is the process of opening a safe without either the combination or the key. Physical methods Safes have widely different designs, construction methods, and locking mechanisms. A safe cracker needs to know the specifics of whicheve ...

who remains always one step ahead of Scotland Yard. An old school friend, Bunny Manders, reintroduces Raffles to his sister, Gwen, with whom Raffles had been infatuated a decade ago. Raffles falls in love with her all over again, and she with him. When Bunny confides a crushing gambling debt over which he is considering suicide, Raffles assures him the money can be obtained. He plans to accept a weekend invitation to the country house of Lord and Lady Melrose; Lady Melrose's famous jewelry can easily solve Bunny's problem. However, another guest is Inspector MacKenzie ''incognito'', who strongly suspects Raffles of being the Cracksman. Raffles plots to frame a petty criminal with the theft, but keep the jewelry for himself.

Cast

as A.J. Raffles *

as Gwen Manders * Dame

May Whitty Dame Mary Louise Webster, (née Whitty; 19 June 1865 – 29 May 1948), known professionally as May Whitty and later, for her charity work, Dame May Whitty, was an English stage and film actress. She was one of the first two women entertainers t ...

as Kitty, Lady Melrose * Dudley Digges as Inspector Mackenzie * Douglas Walton as Bunny Manders * E. E. Clive as Barraclough, Raffles' butler *

Lionel Pape Edward Lionel Pape (17 April 1877 – 21 October 1944) was an English-born stage and screen actor. His acting career begun in his native UK with eventual migration to the US. He appeared on the Broadway stage in over 20 productions between 1 ...

as George, Lord Melrose * Peter Godfrey as Harry Crawshay *

Gilbert Emery Gilbert Emery Bensley Pottle (June 11, 1875 – October 28, 1945), known professionally as Gilbert Emery, was an American actor who appeared in over 80 movies from 1921 to his death in 1945. He was also a playwright, author of seven Broadway pla ...

as Bingham * Hilda Ploughright as Wilson, Lady Melrose's

lady's maid A lady's maid is a female personal attendant who waits on her female employer. The role of a lady's maid is similar to that of a gentleman's valet. Description Traditionally, the lady's maid was not as high-ranking as a lady's companion, who wa ...

Margaret Seddon Margaret Seddon (November 18, 1872 – April 17, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. Biography She appeared in more than 100 films between 1915 and 1951. Her most memorable role was perhaps as one of The Pixilated Sisters, a come ...

as Maud Holden *

Leyland Hodgson Leyland Hodgson (5 October 1892 – 16 March 1949), also known as Leland Hodgson, was an English-born American character actor of the 1930s and 1940s. Born in London on 5 October 1892, Hodgson entered the theatre in 1898. In his early 20s Hodgs ...

as Bobby *

Leonard Carey Leonard Carey (25 February 1887 – 11 September 1977) was an English character actor who very often played butlers in Hollywood films of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He was also active in television during the 1950s. He is perhaps best known f ...

as Bingham's Secretary (uncredited) * James Finlayson as Hansom Cab Driver (uncredited) *

Gibson Gowland Gibson Gowland (4 January 1877 – 9 September 1951) was an English film actor. Biography Gowland was born 4 January in either 1872 or 1877 in Spennymoor, County Durham. He started work as a sailor and later became the mate on a ship. For ...

as Villager (uncredited)

Source material

There are several differences from Hornung's short stories. The plot takes inspiration from the 1898 short story " Gentlemen and Players," in its inclusion of Inspector Mackenzie, a

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

setting, and the centrality of a necklace theft. Bunny Manders, described as an only child in the series, has a sister named Gwen, who is Raffles' love interest. The 1939 movie was based heavily on the 1930 film ''Raffles'' starring

Ronald Colman Ronald Charles Colman (9 February 1891 – 19 May 1958) was an English-born actor who started his career in theatre and silent film in his native country, then emigrated to the United States where he had a highly successful Cinema of the United ...

, which was reported at the time as part of a larger strategy to remake Colman films starring Niven.

Production history

Screenplay

Sidney Howard Sidney Coe Howard (June 26, 1891 – August 23, 1939) was an American playwright, dramatist and screenwriter. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1925 and a posthumous Academy Award in 1940 for the screenplay for '' Gone with the Wind'' ...

was given credit as co-author of the screenplay with

John Van Druten John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observations ...

, due to his having been the writer of the 1930 version. Howard had died four months prior to the release of this film. F. Scott Fitzgerald may also have worked on the script, as he is mentioned by Niven in his 2nd memoir, but Niven suggests Fitzgerald may actually have been working on his final novel, ''

The Last Tycoon ''The Last Tycoon'' is an unfinished novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In 1941, it was published posthumously under this title, as prepared by his friend Edmund Wilson, a critic and writer. According to ''Publishers Weekly'', the novel is "general ...

''.

Filming

Olivia de Havilland, under contract with Warner Brothers at the time, was "lent" to Goldwyn for the film in April 1939. As

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

began during filming, and Niven was a British citizen, it was rumored that the project would have to be suspended if Niven were called up for the army. Due to an accelerated schedule, by October 1939, filming had been completed and Niven left for England. It was rumored that there would be a sequel if Niven returned from England, but this film was not made.

References

External links

* * * {{Sam Wood 1939 films 1930s crime comedy films American adventure comedy films American black-and-white films American crime comedy films American romantic comedy films American heist films Works based on A. J. Raffles Films based on British novels Films directed by Sam Wood United Artists films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language crime comedy films