Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		2.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.0

The Skin Game Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 13, 2025

Note: This version of this film is available as part of the Hitchcock: The Beginning set from Studio Canal.

1934 seems to be some kind of invisible dividing line between Alfred Hitchcock's more recognized output and some of his arguably lesser remembered earlier films. The first version of The Man Who Knew Too Much was released that year, and was followed in relatively short order by at least a couple of Hitch's best remembered British productions like The 39 Steps and The Lady Vanishes, but aside from those titles and maybe one or two others (i.e., The Lodger), even diehard film fans may be relatively unacquainted with other early (or at least earlier) films of one of the most celebrated directors in the annals of cinema. Studio Canal is helping to rectify that lack of renown with an appealing collection that aggregates ten early Hitchcock films, including one that has often been cited (rightly or wrongly) as the first British feature length sound production.

The Skin Game is another perceived outlier in the filmography of Alfred Hitchcock, though it has a viscerally emotional element that provides a considerable amount of angst as the plot mechanics kick into place, even if that angst may not be directly comparable to the unease felt in some of Hitch's later, better remembered, opuses. This is basically a quasi-Hatfields & McCoys tale involving two feuding families, the patrician Hillcrists, paradigms of "old money", and the parvenu Hornblowers, who may not be adjusting to being wealthy with much grace. There's almost a Douglas Sirkian quality to the melodrama that unfolds, as the Hillcrists, themselves not exactly the models of perfect comportment, attempt to, well, Blackmail the Hornblowers in order to prevent an unwanted land development scheme.

If the plot trajectory is on the tawdry side, the film is elevated by some good performances, including kind of interestingly Edmund Gwenn and Helen Haye (not Hayes) reprising their same roles from an earlier 1921 silent version. It is notable perhaps that Hitchcock evidently felt shackled by this production for a number of reasons, including playwright John Galsworthy's insistence that nothing from the original play could be changed for the film version, something that may be indicated by how brief the audio snippet about this film from the celebrated interviews with Truffaut is (see below).

The Skin Game Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Skin Game is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Studio Canal with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.21:1. This is another presentation without a BFI masthead or information indicating Silver Salt's participation, though it is listed on some online sites as "remastered". One way or the other, this is the most problematic looking presentation in the Hitchcock set. Image instability is often quite pronounced, to the point that this can almost look like an old school VHS tape with "tracking problems" (see screenshot 9 and pay attention to the woman's face). While wobble on credits is at least somewhat expected and/or understandable, some of what ensues once the film actually starts suggests an element in very bad condition. There are other, perhaps less weird looking, issues on tap, including quite a bit of speckling, scratches and shrunken frames. Detail levels are middling, and contrast can waver. Grain at least looks relatively organic.

The Skin Game Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Skin Game features an LPCM 2.0 Mono track that may fare at least a bit better than the video, which may be damning with faint praise. There's prevalent hiss from the get go, and also some seeming dropouts or actual missing audio, as in circa 18:30, where Edmund Gwenn exits and forcefully closes a door, with no sound, and then a pop and the sound returns. Other sections, as in some outdoor location (?) footage certainly looks like Hitch employed an early use of post looping, or maybe more accurately, just adding audio elements, since Gwenn's smattering of spoken material doesn't seem to match his lip movements in any way. Most dialogue is delivered without any major problems, but the track is obviously old and weathered and sounds like it. Optional English and German subtitles are available.

The Skin Game Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Alma Reville: Jo Botting & Natalie Morris in Conversation (HD; 28:41) is a really interesting overview of the contributions Reville made to Hitchcock's life and films.


• Hitchcock / Truffaut: Archival Audio Interview (HD; 00:39) plays to stills.


• Introduction by Director / Film Historian Noël Simsolo (HD; 3:25) is subtitled in English.


• Stills Gallery (HD)

The Skin Game Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Skin Game may be the least "satisfying" Hitchcock film in this set for lovers of the auteur's later work, but it's further hampered by problematic technical merits. The main supplement about Reville may provide considerable interest for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.