drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...
Arnold Bennett
Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...
and starring
Gilda Gray
Gilda Gray (born Marianna Michalska; October 24, 1901 – December 22, 1959) was a Polish-American dancer and actress who popularized a dance called the "shimmy" which became fashionable in 1920s films and theater productions.
Early life and 'th ...
,
Anna May Wong
Wong Liu Tsong (January 3, 1905 – February 3, 1961), known professionally as Anna May Wong, was an American actress, considered the first Chinese-American movie star in Hollywood, as well as the first Chinese-American actress to gain intern ...
, and
Jameson Thomas
Jameson Thomas (born Thomas Roland Jameson; 24 March 1888 – 10 January 1939) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1923 and 1939.
He was born in St George Hanover Square, London. On the stage from his earl ...
. The film was filmed on location in London, produced by
British International Pictures
Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI. ABPC also owned appr ...
.
This film initially was released as a silent in February 1929; however, with the advent of sound sweeping through the film industry at the time, the studio re-released the film later the same year in June for cinemas wired for sound. This version included a music score and sound effects by Harry Gordon, along with a five-minute sound prologue with
Jameson Thomas
Jameson Thomas (born Thomas Roland Jameson; 24 March 1888 – 10 January 1939) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1923 and 1939.
He was born in St George Hanover Square, London. On the stage from his earl ...
who plays Valentine Wilmot in the film and
John Longden
John Longden (11 November 1900 – 26 May 1971) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1926 and 1964, including five films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Biography
Longden was born in the West Indies, the son o ...
as the man from China, which was filmed after the main filming was completed. The part-sound version initially was shown in the U.S.
In 2004, the film was re-released by Milestone Films after an extensive restoration, with music scored by Neil Brand, replacing the original music-and-sound effects soundtrack. It appeared in 2004 at film festivals nationwide, and in 2005, it was released on DVD.
Plot
Valentine Wilmot's Piccadilly Circus, a nightclub and restaurant in London, is a great success due to his star attraction: dancing partners Mabel (Gilda Gray) and Vic (
Cyril Ritchard
Cyril Joseph Trimnell-Ritchard (1 December 1898 – 18 December 1977), known professionally as Cyril Ritchard, was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook in ...
). One night, a dissatisfied diner ( Charles Laughton) disrupts Mabel's solo with his loud complaints about a dirty plate. When Wilmot investigates, he finds Shosho (
Anna May Wong
Wong Liu Tsong (January 3, 1905 – February 3, 1961), known professionally as Anna May Wong, was an American actress, considered the first Chinese-American movie star in Hollywood, as well as the first Chinese-American actress to gain intern ...
) distracting the other dishwashers with her dancing. He fires her on the spot.
After the performance, Vic tries to persuade Mabel to become his partner personally as well as professionally and to go to Hollywood with him. She coldly rebuffs him because she is romantically involved with Wilmot. That night, Wilmot summons Vic to his office, and before Wilmot can fire him, Vic quits.
This decision turns out to be disastrous for the nightclub. The customers had come to see Vic, not Mabel. Business drops off dramatically. In desperation, Wilmot hires Shosho to perform a Chinese dance. She insists that her boyfriend Jim play the accompanying music. Shosho is an instant sensation, earning a standing ovation after her first performance.
Both Mabel and Jim become jealous of the evident attraction between Shosho and Wilmot. Mabel breaks off her relationship with Wilmot.
One night, Shosho invites Wilmot to be the first to see her new rooms. Mabel has followed the couple and waits outside. After Wilmot leaves, she persuades Jim to let her in. She pleads with her romantic rival to give Wilmot up, saying he is too old for her, but Shosho replies that it is Mabel who is too old and that she will keep him. When Mabel reaches into her purse for a handkerchief, Shosho sees a pistol inside and grabs a dagger used as a wall decoration. Frightened, Mabel picks up the gun, then faints.
The next day, the newspapers report that Shosho has been murdered. Wilmot is charged with the crime. During the ensuing trial, he admits that the pistol is his, but refuses to divulge what happened that night. Jim testifies that Wilmot was Shosho's only visitor. Mabel insists on telling her story. However, she can recall nothing after fainting until she found herself running in the streets. Realizing that either Mabel or Jim must be lying, the judge summons Jim. By then, however, Jim has shot himself at Shosho's mausoleum. As he lies dying, he confesses that he killed Shosho.
Cast
*
Gilda Gray
Gilda Gray (born Marianna Michalska; October 24, 1901 – December 22, 1959) was a Polish-American dancer and actress who popularized a dance called the "shimmy" which became fashionable in 1920s films and theater productions.
Early life and 'th ...
as Mabel Greenfield
*
Anna May Wong
Wong Liu Tsong (January 3, 1905 – February 3, 1961), known professionally as Anna May Wong, was an American actress, considered the first Chinese-American movie star in Hollywood, as well as the first Chinese-American actress to gain intern ...
as Shosho
*
Jameson Thomas
Jameson Thomas (born Thomas Roland Jameson; 24 March 1888 – 10 January 1939) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1923 and 1939.
He was born in St George Hanover Square, London. On the stage from his earl ...
Cyril Ritchard
Cyril Joseph Trimnell-Ritchard (1 December 1898 – 18 December 1977), known professionally as Cyril Ritchard, was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook in ...
as Victor Smiles (as Cyrill Ritchard)
* King Hou Chang as Jim (as King Ho Chang)
* Hannah Jones as Bessie, Shosho's friend and dishwashing supervisor
*
John Longden
John Longden (11 November 1900 – 26 May 1971) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1926 and 1964, including five films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Biography
Longden was born in the West Indies, the son o ...
as the man from China (uncredited, appears in the sound prologue)
Reception
In his 15 July 1929 review for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'',
Mordaunt Hall
Mordaunt Hall (1 November 1878 – 2 July 1973) was the first regularly assigned motion picture critic for ''The New York Times'', working from October 1924 to September 1934. Hall found that the additional sound and sound effects that "encumbered" the film in its U.S. showing were "distracting".
Rotten Tomatoes rates the film 79% fresh, based on 24 contemporary and modern reviews.
Writing for the
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...
, BFI Senior Curator Mark Duguid says: "A ''film noir'' before the term was in use, ''Piccadilly'' is one of the true greats of British silent films, on a par with the best work of
Anthony Asquith
Anthony William Landon Asquith (; 9 November 1902 – 20 February 1968) was an English film director. He collaborated successfully with playwright Terence Rattigan on ''The Winslow Boy'' (1948) and '' The Browning Version'' (1951), among oth ...
or Alfred Hitchcock in the period … notable for qualities not typically associated with British silent films: opulence, passion and a surprisingly direct approach to issues of race … For all its style and grace, the film's strongest suit is Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong … arguably never better used than here. To Wong's frustration, Shosho and Valentine's kiss was cut to appease the US censor ... Naturally, Piccadilly's publicity made much of Wong's exotic beauty: one contemporary poster—for the film's Austrian release—carries an illustration of the star dancing topless. It would have been unthinkable to portray a white actress in this way and, needless to say, no such image appears in the film."