Tedfoldol everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

TheLittleSongbird I won't say that this 39 Steps is completely irredeemable, the Scottish scenery is gorgeous and it is sumptuously and atmospherically shot. However, I wasn't at all convinced by the story. Others have said about the minimal resemblance to the book and its inferiority to the 1935 Hitchcock film, and while I am going to judge this version solely on its own terms, I can see people's disappointment. The story here is leaden in pace, is lacking in suspense, the romance is pure overly-sentimental schmaltz and is just not as exciting or as plausible. They even add a scene that looks like it was paying homage or something to the classic crop duster sequence from North By Northwest, but with little of why that scene was so classic in the first place. The rest of the action seemed unexciting and even generic. The script is rather stilted and leaves a lot of characters underwritten. Hannay is not as charming or resourceful as he had potential to be, sometimes he comes across as a buffoon, and the female lead feels like a clichéd femme-fatale sort of character. The acting was also lacking, Rupert Penry-Jones I have always found a conscientious actor who works wonderfully in well written roles and dramas like Spooks or Silk, but here despite his handsome persona, he is wooden in alternative to brooding or charming and does nothing with his lines(no wonder). All in all, a real disappointment, in comparison and on its own merits(the latter I find more of a problem in all honesty). 3/10 Bethany Cox

bob-carr-2 I thought I might be driven to writing my first ever film critique in response to a feeling of elation at having just watched a truly inspiring film.In fact, it's quite the contrary. So appalling was this film that I immediately felt a strong moral obligation to warn others against watching it. Trust me, I know about these things - under no circumstances should anyone be tempted by the film's title nor the superficial charm of its lead character played by Rupert Penry-Jones to believe that this is anything other then complete, utter tosh.The plot bears the thinnest of resemblances to Buchan's book, the characters are furnished with a 'Terry and June' comic gravity and the running time is 85 minutes too long. Anyone giving this film a rating of more than 1 needs to get out more :)

Jay Harris The 39 Steps has a long film history.It was first done by Hitchcock in 1935 ( more to follow). Then it was a TV film in the late 1950's (I never saw it), It was remade in the 1970's. (you had to hunt for the theatres it played in).It was released as a double bill with another weak remake of NIGHT MUST FALL.Now we come to the current version made for BBC television. Lizzie Mickery wrote a decent adaptation of John Buchan's pre-World War 1 novel.I remember seeing the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock in a re-release with another Hitchcock film JAMAICA INN.I was about 13 years old at the time,I remember liking it very much. It did star Robert Donat (Oscar winner Goodybye Mr Chips) & the beautiful actress Madeline Carrol ( her beauty made up for acting ability).Rupert Perry-Jones is our hero this time out & he is very good, Lydia Leonard is the heroine this time out & she is quite talented. Both of them do come over is somewhat standard roles.Like the Hitchcok version, there is quite a bit of humour (British humour, that is.)The 39 Steps is nowhere near a classic thrilling story. However it is what we go to the films for----to be entertained.I was, I think you all will be as well.Ratings: *** (out of 4) 88 points (out of 100) IMDb 8 (out of 10)

gradyharp THE 39 STEPS is one classy movie! There are few who can pull off this mixture of humor, suspense, intrigue, and subterfuge the way the best of the British films can. Lizzie Mickery's screenplay adaptation of John Buchan's novel tosses in a few unexpected ingredients and makes this early 1900s story blossom with suspense, hilarity, derring-do, and wonderful one-liners. Director James Hawes paces the film so that there is never a dull moment in this chase toward staving off Germany's entry into England in 1914. The acting is first rate and the cinematography (abetted by the beauty of Scotland) is sumptuous. The story is both simple and complex - simple in that it is a case of British gentleman Richard Hannay (Rupert Penry-Jones) falling upon an intruder (a spy who is murdered after passing a secret booklet containing codes regarding German information about meetings and proposed invasions in Richard's hands) who begins his moments of chase and intrigue as he attempts to save Britain from war. Complex as along the way he encounters a suffragette Victoria Sinclair (Lydia Leonard) and her brother Hellory (Patrick Kennedy) and uncle Sir George (David Haig) all of whom play an integral part in the caper of the story. The entire cast of German spies and British counterparts is excellent and the story moves along with sufficient twists and turns (and a touch of romance) until a rather surprise ending. Part of the joy of these British whodunnits is the elegance of the language and the manner in which the story unfolds - with just enough escapes and frightful incidents balanced by smart dialogue. Rupert Penry-Jones is a first class actor whose reputation should be assured with this film. Highly Recommended for those rainy nights at home...Grady Harp