talk about bad hitchcock film be kind of fun give sir alfred do not make many of them and just enough to show himself human . and a bad hitchcock movie go and jamaica inn be moderately more entertaining than others like number 17 and the paradine case and and topaz and though for the same reason it be so awful represent charles laughton . laughton play sir humphrey pengallan and lord of a coastal cornish fiefdom that include jamaica inn and a den of cutthroat to which journey young mary ( maureen ohara ) and niece of the innkeeper wife . after rescue one of the gang from hang and mary find herself seek sir humphrey mercy . but just how merciful be his lordship . not very and if all the scenery we see him chew in his opening vignette be any indication and mutter airily about the lack of true beauty in the world and have a the guest of honor at a fancy dinner party his prize horse . the caligula touch be apropos of sir humphrey a we get to know him and and of laughton and too and a he take every line in the script a a license for excess . laughton hold the overall rein of this project a his pet producer be in place over hitchcock and and you can see how he be grant free roam whether hitch care or no . most actor play character with dual identity be content with one revelation scene while laughton must have three . every other line of his be deliver in extreme close up and twitch an outrageously fake pair of eyebrow and step on line by the other actor like they be ant at a picnic . next thing you will be tell me youre as good a i be and he sniff and beetle brow pop at a hapless extra and upper lip puffed a if full of skoal . youre not as good a me . nature be against you from the start while everything else have be against you since . hitchcock do not make many period piece in his career and so the fact that this one be set in regency england circa 1819 be a source of some positive anticipation and a be ohara make her screen debut . original author daphne du maurier give hitchcock the source material for two of his most well regarded film and rebecca and the bird . laughton and hitchcock possess the same mordant wit and an eye for take the mickey out of a highly charge scene . yet none of it come off here . ohara be shrill and wimpy and cry aunt patience and aunt patience every five minute and tax our patience continually . the rest of the cast and lead by robert newton a mary hamster cheek companion and be uniformly bad and especially leslie bank a the overbear innkeeper and marie ney a patience his wife and always look right at the camera a she do her tammy wynette thing in explain to mary the merit of her springer worthy marriage . instead of a coherent storyline and one stare at a screen dark a an oil slick from which various dime novel trope occasionally squeak out . some like web reviewer self styled siren see this a intentional comedy while with all respect to her bloggeress i must disagree . there be no sign of irony here and just a lot of clinker . the only redeeming virtue in jamaica inn be the same thing that make it bad than other hitch flop like topaz represent laughton overripe performance . he so over the top and without restraint that he often hilarious . i do not flatter myself to think i can look down on laughton while at his best he be quite a brilliant actor . but here be a case of a talent in lose battle against his own formidable ego and playing every scene with a flip hauteur that seem to mock anyone else attempt to be engage . that unfortunately include hitchcock himself and a can be see from the way scene trail off or start suddenly and completely lack the master usual polish . he have other world to conquer by this time and prepare to embark on his most fruitful patch of work by sail to the united state . too bad he leave england on such a bum note .