In the opening scenes of Number Seventeen, a man enters an abandoned old home adorned by boarded-up windows and a forlorn "For Sale" sign blowing in the lonely night storm, spies a light on the landing above him, and creeps up the stairs to find a dead body on the floor. It all plays out like a silent movie, punctuated by the scream of a train whistle as the corpse is revealed.
The dialogue begins when the still-unidentified man (John Stuart) spies a hobo (Leon M. Lion) seeking shelter in the house and hears the scramble of someone on the roof, the first of many people to converge on this dark, derelict manor over the course of the night. Based on a play, this mystery of suspicious characters, mysterious motivations, and a priceless stolen necklace doesn't make a lot of sense. That was partly by intent.
Director Alfred Hitchcock, who scripted with his creative partner and wife Alma Reville, intended to send up old dark house mysteries and plays much of the film for wry humor, an effort that doesn't always come off. Co-star Lion provides more aggressive music hall-style comic relief, which works against Hitchcock's more subtle style, and the cavalier play with false identities tends to make things more confusing.
As an exercise in style, however, Number Seventeen is quite entertaining, with its action played out on three stories of staircases lit by pools of candlelight and shadows manipulated for both dramatic and comic effect. The mystery drama is a unique selection for film collections that want to include early Hitchock alongside well-known titles such as Psycho or The Birds.
A secret passage leading to a railway yard improbably located below the house and the climax takes flight with a marvelous chase involving a runaway train and a car racing to catch it, a scene created largely through detailed miniatures. It's more of an experiment than a film thriller but it has its charms, and it shows Hitchcock playing with storytelling ideas and constructing dynamic set pieces that would help establish him as the Master of Suspense.
Number Seventeen has long been available in shoddy home video presentations. Kino Lorber's new DVD and Blu-ray edition are mastered from the 4K BFI restoration, which features a crisp image and digitally remastered sound. It's the best this film has ever looked on home video and is likely to stand as the definitive disc edition.
Kino's release also features a new commentary track by film historian and critic Peter Tonguette, who offers a critical appraisal of the film's weaknesses as well as its strengths, plus the hour-long French documentary "Hitchcock: The Early Years" (in French with English subtitles), an audio clip from Francois Truffaut's interview with Hitchcock, and a short introduction by Noël Simsolo (in French with English subtitles).