I am a HUGE Hitchcock fan and have every DVD currently available. The version I have of Easy Virtue is very poor. It is an exceptionally poor picture with a zoomed in shot which chops off parts of the picture! The silent Hitchcocks which have been restored/well mastered onto DVD are hugely more enjoyable so I sincerely hope someone gives Easy Virtue a restored DVD release soon. The poor DVD quality detracts from my enjoyment of the film and may cause my appreciation to be less than fair but so far I would say Easy Virtue is my least favourite of his films I have seen.
The film has some great shots and some fine moments but overall it has too many parts which lack interest or drama. That is mainly due to it being a silent film of a Noel Coward play. Imagine seeing a Coward play on the stage where the actors do not speak! The highlight of Coward's work is the dialogue so apart from lines like "Shoot! There's nothing left to kill!" (which may be from the play and is a good line) the sharp, witty dialogue is a real loss to the story's presentation. Even the young, great Hitchcock cannot quite keep a comedy drama of social morals interesting enough when the vital dialogue is removed. It is far from a disaster, I would rate it a very good 7/10, but for Hitchcock it is below his extremely high standards.
The film has some great shots and some fine moments but overall it has too many parts which lack interest or drama. That is mainly due to it being a silent film of a Noel Coward play. Imagine seeing a Coward play on the stage where the actors do not speak! The highlight of Coward's work is the dialogue so apart from lines like "Shoot! There's nothing left to kill!" (which may be from the play and is a good line) the sharp, witty dialogue is a real loss to the story's presentation. Even the young, great Hitchcock cannot quite keep a comedy drama of social morals interesting enough when the vital dialogue is removed. It is far from a disaster, I would rate it a very good 7/10, but for Hitchcock it is below his extremely high standards.