hat are after her. The romance has no time to grow since she is killed in the middle of the night, but not before she tells him of the 39 steps. Hannay feels it is his mission to complete what Annabella asked of him and also to prove he did not kill her. From then on he is involved in chases, confrontations, and romantic interludes. The are just a few changes in the story line that Hitchcock knew would work better on screen. In the novel the houseguest was not a woman but a man, and he did not stay half a night but a couple of days. There was no Mr. Memory in the novel, but instead a spy with a photographic memory. The Professor in the novel is distinctive because of his hooded eyes instead of a missing finger. The first two mentioned alterations were made for the interests of the audience. The last was because Hitchcock thought a missing finger would be more dramatic to film than someone with half shut eyes that they would have to close in on to emphasize. The technical aspects of the film are beautifully done. The editing was very smooth with quick transitions from one scene to the next which was very different than the film "Blackmail". The latter film was not as tight in editing which can take away from the film. Also the sound in "Blackmail" was not as clear as the sound in this film. You can truly tell the difference that six years can make in the improvement of quality. Not to say that the sound in "Blackmail" was bad, for it was not. It was impressive for being the first "talkie" of England. Specifically, the sound when the door would open and you could hear all the sounds of the city not just what was going on in the shop. This is similar to the scenes in the theater of "The 39 Steps" when you can hear the crowd as well as the man on stage and the band's music. The lighting in "The 39 Steps" is also a technique I'd like to touch upon. One of the first scenes is at the theater where a fight breaks out. The s...
