Piccadilly (1929) User Reviews

Seductive Anna May Wong in stylish nightclub melodrama

[rfkeser · 7/10 · 16 August 2000]

Tracking through a bustling nightclub kitchen, back into the scullery, amidst steaming washtubs, the camera finds a woman in torn stockings dancing a slow shimmy on a tabletop: a slow upward pan reveals the alluring Anna May Wong in a Pabstian moment of erotic revelation. In the course of this drama, director E.A. DuPont devises several more such clock-stopping moments as the star poses behind an etched glass screen or stretches her body in a geometrically beaded gown.

When Wong makes her debut before the nightclub audience-- sporting an ersatz Thai get-up and fluttering her fingers this way and that---it is clear that she really can't dance at all, ironically making DuPont's contribution seem even more impressive . When this performance causes an unlikely sensation, rival dancer Gilda Gray gets so jealous that she faints in a heap of feathers. [Famed as the actual creator of the shimmy, Gray demonstrates it here with lots of vigorous jiggling.]

Paralleling her rise to dance stardom, Wong's wardrobe gets increasingly elegant, while the conflicts mount: quarreling over nightclub impresario Jameson Thomas [a nicely subtle performance], Gray argues "He's too old for you!" and Wong ripostes "You're too old for him." Both have a point. Eventually, with the help of some Limehouse ruffians, a gun, and a dagger, it all ends in a courtoom.

Apart from a brief appearance by Charles Laughton as a fastidious diner, DuPont pays no attention to the café society patrons of the Piccadilly Club. His interest lies with the performers---including skinny Cyril Ritchard as a hoofer---and in his own adventurous style: the camera seldom stops moving, once even circling 360 degrees, yet the end impression is not of indulgent artiness. DuPont points the camera down through the whirring blades of overhead fans, or into distorted mirrors---virtuoso effects but somehow serving vitality, a sense of events happening in the moment.

The distributor, World Wide Pictures, uses the end titles to trumpet its memorable motto: "Photoplays made where the story's laid".

Film's shortcomings more than redeemed by Anna May Wong

[modern_maiden · 6/10 · 27 July 2004]

An enjoyable film with some great characters and an interesting story. The version I saw has an inappropriate and often irritating score that sounds about forty years too modern, and drastically takes away from the flapper-age energy and dance scenes. The beginning of the film is tedious, choosing to dwell a bit long on setting the scene, but once the main characters are introduced and the story begins to unfold, it captures and holds your attention.

Anna May Wong contributes the film's best performance. She has that rare, powerful aura that illuminates the screen, like Greta Garbo or Louise Brooks. When her character, Sho-Sho, is in a scene, you can only focus on her, and she carries you away with intensity conveyed by only the merest subtle expression.

The other actors were "okay" but nothing special. The characters of Victor and Mabel, presumably popular and adored dancers, failed to convince me that they had any charisma whatsoever. Sho-Sho's scenes with Valentine, the club owner who wants to make her a star (and his lover) are mesmerising, showing passion and titillating innuendo. But the really interesting relationship is that of Sho-Sho with "Jim", a Chinese fellow who seems to live with her -- is he a brother? a lover? it is unclear, but he is totally submissive to her and proud and jealous at the same time. She treats him like a dog, but they obviously have a close bond and need each other.

As a film in general, "Picadilly" is lacking on a few levels, but it is completely redeemed by Anna May Wong's presence. I can't give it a high rating overall, but I highly recommend it to Anna May Wong fans.

It could only have been better had it not been silent

[AlsExGal · 8/10 · 16 January 2010]

This is the kind of film that would have made a great early sound movie. If you get the DVD release, you may be somewhat put off by the score - I know I was. There are two major musical numbers in the film, and it would have really accentuated them to have the music of the times in the film rather than the modern score that just doesn't seem to fit. Unfortunately, British films didn't convert to sound until 1930, so this film remains as a "silent musical".

It's a very good film that is basically about how life goes on, and today's celebrities and scandals are quickly forgotten tomorrow. It also shows the flimsy basis in many cases for being considered talented. The female headliner of the night club is basically there because she is the owner's girlfriend and is being carried to a large degree by her dance partner. When he decides to leave England and try to make it on Broadway, the owner knows the score and seeks a novelty to fill in what he has lost. He sees Anna May Wong's character dancing in the night club scullery and fires her for it, but later he realizes that maybe an exotic act is what he needs to draw an audience. He rehires her as a dancer. He is captivated by both the girl and her act, and at this point the film takes a sharp turn and becomes a bit of a crime drama and mystery.

Anna May Wong is probably the only performer most American audiences will recognize with one fleeting exception. At the beginning of the film there is a heavyset customer of the nightclub who is complaining about a dirty dish. That complaining customer is Charles Laughton in a very small and very early role.

Interesting Blend of Elements, & A Dazzling Performance By Anna May Wong

[Snow Leopard · 7 March 2005]

With a very interesting blend of elements including a convincing Jazz Age setting, effective expressionist-style photography, and a tight story filled with human passion, "Piccadilly" would make for interesting viewing in itself. But it is Anna May Wong's dazzling performance that stands out, even above everything else in the movie.

Set in the "Piccadilly" night club, the story ostensibly stars Jameson Thomas as the club owner, and Gilda Gray as one of the club's star dancers. But it's Wong's character who drives most of the story, and indeed, as soon as Wong comes on screen, it quickly becomes hard to pay much attention to the other characters, except insofar as they interact with her and her plans. The rest of the cast is solid, and there's nothing to criticize about their performances, but they cannot compete with Wong.

What makes Wong's performance so stunning is not only her obvious allure, but also the way in which she plays the role. She communicates a great deal about her character's thoughts and feelings by the most economical and well-chosen of gestures and movements, and by so doing she makes her dominance over the other characters quite convincing. Her little smirks can be devastating, and her subtle encouragements can be nearly overwhelming.

The story is told with good style, making very effective use of lighting and settings to complement the fluid cinematography. The opening sequence is well-conceived, both in pulling the viewer into the world of the characters, and in setting up the story. This part also includes a brief appearance by Charles Laughton in an amusing role.

From there, things build up steadily to a melodramatic, twist-filled final 10 minutes or so. The climactic series of events is made more effective by the careful build-up, and by the way that Wong has made Shosho such a vivid and believable character, one who is more than capable of creating strong feelings in the other characters. It all makes "Piccadilly" well worth seeing.

Oriental Pearl of Picadilly

[Bucs1960 · 7/10 · 7 May 2006]

Anna May Wong may have been one of the most beautiful women in film history. She should have been a huge star but obviously racial prejudices of the time prevented it and Hollywood certainly badly misused her. In this film,made in England by the great E.A.DuPont, she proves that she could act as well as look good. Notice her controlled facial expressions and body movements....they are very low key in a time when acting was often over the top and bordering on "hammy".

The story concerns the rise of Ms. Wong (Shosho) as a dancer and inamorata of nightclub owner, Valentin (Jameson Thomas)....much to the distress of Mabel (Gilda Gray) as the featured act at the Picadilly and also a lover of the owner. Ms. Gray looks fat and frumpy and the line "You're too old for him" spoken to her by Shosho rings true. Things go from bad to worse and lead to the scene in Shosho's apartment which is the highlight of the film. Ms. Wong is absolutely terrific. Murder happens and the mysterious Jimmy gets involved. The resolution of that murder is unsatisfying and the ensuing trial mirrors the racial stereotypes of the times.

But all that aside, if you want to see a gloriously stunning woman and a wonderful performance, see this film. And by the way.....if you can figure out exactly what the relationship between Shosho and Jimmy is, let me know!

Unbelievable Cinematography!!!

[thao · 10/10 · 22 December 2006]

Piccadilly is one of the most underrated films I have seen and one of the best kept secret of the silent era. Many praise Anna May Wong for her performance, and justifiably so. She steels the scenes from the main actors (Jameson Thomas and Gilda Gray) and turns the film about a story about her character.

But, and this is a big BUT. I think the main star of the film is the Cinematography (by Werner Brandes). It's simply breathtaking and unbelievable "modern". There is a lot of influence from German expressionism (and understandably so since Werner Brandes is German) but it's much more than that. The shots are quite long, for a silent film and the movement of the camera resembles what one would see in films a decade later (It even reminded me in many ways of Tarkovsky). The same goes for the subject but the stile of the film resembles Film Noir.

See this if you like beautiful cinematography. It left me speechless! What a pearl!!!

Piccadilly, quite a dilly..

[FilmFlaneur · 7/10 · 8 June 2006]

PICCADILLY (1929), a fun-to-watch account of a sexual triangle which unfolds, to fatal effect, in a London nightclub - all pencil thin moustaches, louche owners and jazz dancing. As directed by Dupont it is a film which showcases its lurid (if ultimately unconvincing) storyline very well and entertainingly enough, even if one can imagine a Von Sternberg version using the same elements, which included orientalism in the form of Anna May Wong as an exotic temptress, much more effectively. Dupont's career went off the boil at the end of the silent era, previously however he had notable successes with this sort of thriller-esquire showbiz material as VARIETE. PICCADILLY also features a notable cameo from Charles Laughton as a drunk man with a dirty plate.

Good silent drama

[preppy-3 · 8/10 · 14 April 2006]

Valentine Wilmot (Jameson Thomas) owns Club Piccadilly in England. He's in love with its leading dancer Mabel (Gilda Gray). However she's not pulling in the crowds and he hires unknown Shosho (Anna May Wong) to perform. She's a huge success and romances Valentine. Mabel gets jealous and leaves Piccadilly...but still wants Wilmot but he's falling for Shosho...

This movie is a showcase for Anna May Wong. Virtually unknown today she was the first Chinese-American star (and for a long time the only one). She's just great in this--beautiful, talented and can really dance. Thomas and Gray are also good in their roles. I'm really surprised they got this out--its made quite clear that Wilmot and Shosho have sex--interracial couplings like that must have been shocking at the time. This is beautifully directed by Arnold Bennett--there are many stunning sequences and most of the story is told by images--there are very few title cards. The only complaint I have is that it moves a little slow by today's standards. Still it's well worth seeing. I give it an 8.

The Roaring Twenties In London Without Prohibition

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 16 November 2009]

One of the last British silent films casts Gilda Gray and Anna May Wong as rivals for Jameson Thomas owner of the fabled Piccadilly nightclub located, where else but on Piccadilly Circus in London. Piccadilly is set in the heart of Jazz Age London which had everything the American Roaring Twenties had without the inconvenience of Prohibition.

They were a little more daring across the pond in depicting an interracial romance. Thomas as owner of the nightclub fires half of his club attraction of the dancing team of Mabel and Vic. Vic is played by Cyril Ritchard and he's got a roving eye which distresses Mabel who is Gilda Gray. It distresses Thomas even more who likes Gilda, sort of.

But when Gray as a solo act doesn't bring in the customers, Thomas looks for a replacement and finds it in the slinky, sexy, sultry Anna May Wong. Wong had previously worked in the scullery at the club and got fired when she did a little impromptu dance entertainment for the staff and a customer complained about a dirty plate. But Thomas and his hormones remembered Wong and they begin an association professional and later personal.

This interracial triangle ends real bad with one of them dead and the other on trial for murder.

Two prominent people who had great careers in film had small parts. You have to look quick to spot Ray Milland as one of the tuxedoed bits during the nightclub scene. But it's impossible to forget Charles Laughton in his screen debut. He's the diner who complains about the dirty plate he was given, spoiling Ritchard and Gray's dance and leading to Thomas's discovery of Wong. Even without Laughton's magnificent speaking voice to aid him, watch how he milks that simple scene for all its worth. No doubt this man was going to have a great career.

There is one other prominent role of significance, that of King Hou Chang as Wong's original boy friend who carries a torch bigger than the one Jameson Thomas has. His performance is quite poignant, I'd love to know what happened to him as Piccadilly is only one of two film credits he has.

There are some nice shots of London in the Stanley Baldwin-Ramsay MacDonald era incorporated into the film. Piccadilly holds up reasonably well with a plot quite a bit more mature than the era normally would countenance.

Wow

[The_Triad · 9/10 · 6 June 2006]

Piccadilly is just amazing. Right from the start I was instantly impressed with the costumes and settings, obviously being a silent film set in the period it was made, it felt like I was watching a piece of history, like being put in a time machine for a few hours. The look and feel of the film are worth a ten on their own, to be honest, but in reviewing it, I felt I could only give it a good review if it's other elements, plot, acting etc. were up to scratch, and they were too. In the few silent films I've seen, the acting has been very "stage acting" over the top and dramatic, so I was expecting to see more hams than I'd see in a butcher, but I got some really great performances, I was really impressed, especially by King Ho Chang who played Jim. Right, plot summary then, the film is about the Piccadilly Club losing it's main attraction, a dancer named Victor, and discovering his successor in the club's own scullery. What then follows is a typical love triangle plot, between the new dancer, Shosho, the club owner, Valentine and Victor's old dance partner, Mabel. As simple as the plot sounds, despite being made 77 years ago it manages to not come off clichéd, which is a remarkable achievement. The fact that it is a silent film I think helped it in my eyes. To be honest, if this were made as a "talkie" I think I would have found it harder to like, as the great constant score gave these images a beautiful dreamlike quality and to strip it away for just a few seconds to hear actors speaking dialogue would have certainly destroyed it. Maybe it was just that Piccadilly was the first really decent silent film I've sat down and paid attention to, maybe it's that I was in the mood for it, or maybe it is just a great film.

"Showgirls," 1929

[marcslope · 6/10 · 10 April 2006]

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD Entertaining claptrap about the almost completely soulless denizens of a West End nitery, from the overdressed star attraction (Gilda Gray) to the calculating Oriental scullery maid (Anna May Wong) who replaces her onstage and backstage, winning the affections of the duplicitous owner-manager (Jameson Thomas) and living (and dying) to regret it. None of these characters is particularly deep or sympathetic, but there's some compelling "All About Eve"-style bitchery, minus, of course, the dialog, and with some invaluable exteriors of Piccadilly Circus--the opening shot of the marquee for "This Year of Grace" alone (a hit Noel Coward revue) justifies the ensuing melodramatics. Some lovely late-silent photography, too: Note the frequent shadowplay and the beautiful nightclub interiors, and the evocative tinting. Cyril Ritchard turns up, in his callow-London-dancing-lad days, tall and lean and elegant, as does Charles Laughton, as a drunken boor; both, alas, are gone by the second reel. Wong plies her mysteries-of-the-Orient femininity expertly, not only in dramatic terms but pictorially; nobody worked a camera better. The casual late-Jazz Age racism, too, is fascinating--not just the Limehouse-Chinese-shouldn't-mix-with-whites implications, but an extended sequence of a black Londoner dancing with a white girl. The movie seems on the fence about whether to excoriate him for it or not, but the barroom crowd sure isn't.

Anna May Wong shines

[sws-3 · 9/10 · 18 February 2000]

Multiple sexual entanglements and jealousies keep things tense at the Piccadilly club. Anna May Wong shines as a dishwasher who becomes the club's star attraction. This film shows what Wong was capable of, and the talent Hollywood wasted by not giving her starring roles. Nice cameo by Charles Laughton as a drunken boor. The compelling sexual and ethnic politics are exploited to full effect by director E.A. Dupont.

A Remarkable Film

[JoeytheBrit · 7/10 · 12 April 2010]

Devilishly debonair Valentine Wilmott (Jameson Thomas), a Ronald Colman type with pencil moustache and oil-slick hair, is the owner of Piccadilly, London's top nightspot, at which the glamorously-monickered dance team of Clive and Mabel (Cyrill Ritchard and the real-life queen of the shimmy, Gilda Gray) are the resident dance team. While Clive and Mabel might look the part, they're no Fred and Ginger, part of the reason perhaps being that Clive has a major case of the hots for Mabel, who only has eyes for suave Valentine. Things turn sour for Mabel, however, after Clive dissolves the partnership in a huff after she rebuffs his advances once too often, and then Valentine starts getting cosy with his new female dancer, the sultry Sho-Sho (Anna May Wong). Of course, it's only a matter of time before emotions come to the boil.

Piccadilly is a movie about sex. It's about the interaction of adults, and the consequences of actions taken through selfish motives. While there are no real villains in this piece (even though there is a murder), nobody comes out of it untarnished by the events that unfold, although one character emerges surprisingly unchanged. For all its melodramatic tendencies (which are forgivable given the era in which it was made), Piccadilly is quite a remarkable film. Presaging film noir by more than a decade, German director E. A. Dupont's mobile camera makes wonderful use of light and shadow to illustrate the archetypal noir ambiance created by Arnold Bennett's account of the dark passions at play in the superficial environment of the swish Piccadilly nightclub. The camera sweeps across a limehouse saloon filled with rummies and whores with as much relish as it roams the nightclub crammed with bejewelled ladies in gowns and men in dinner suits. It is this rich canvas of sumptuously captured images that overcomes the shortfalls in acting and storyline to deliver a film that is really better than it ought to be. While there are some nice touches in the script – Wilmott, for instance, after watching Clive and Mabel's unconvincing dance performance, travels from club to kitchen to scullery, where he spies Sho-Sho performing a sultry shimmy on a worktop for the entertainment of her workmates, thus linking most of the protganists and depictng their relative social status in one economical and effective sequence – once Bennett has to concentrate on driving the storyline forward, he seems too willing to fall back on increasingly melodramatic plot points that must have been clichéd even back in '29.

Although third-billed, Anna May Wong is far and away the star of this movie. Looking remarkably contemporary with her bobbed 'Louise Brooks' hair and her clever facial gestures, she steals every single scene in which she appears, and manages, with the help of one of the screenplay's other strong points, to present ShoSho as a femme fatale without making her out to be a ruthless schemer on the make. Gilda Gray, the star of the piece – although Thomas gets more screen-time than both of the ladies – gives a melodramatic performance by comparison. She looks a little like Garbo, but that's the only resemblance between them.

The BFI DVD comes with an optional five-minute sound prologue that leaves the viewer thankful they are watching the silent version. The static camera shows Thomas and his co-actor speak their lines like Cholmondeley-Warner and pal in all those Harry Enfield sketches – evidence indeed that the cinema took a brief but major step backward with the advent of sound.

Dissenting opinion

[kcfl-1 · 5/10 · 22 November 2009]

Don't believe the hype.

"Picadilly" is visually splendid. The problem is that the pacing is so incredibly slow, it can give silents a bad name. Within a year, "The Last Command" and "Wind" were released. Those looking for a great film would be advised to see those, not this.

I do admire Dupont's use of quick pans, tints, point-of-view shots and other directoral touches. But the script is lame. One example: the boss hires a fired dishwasher to be a star attraction without an audition, because he remembers seeing her dance briefly on a table. It seems to take forever to get to the few points it is trying to make. Example: Before the boss confronts the dishwasher, we see him accosting the waiter, the chef, and other bits of business before a story takes shape.

******** Anna May

[GManfred · 31 March 2018]

The nominal star of "Piccadilly" is Gilda Gray, but the real star of the film is Anna May Wong. She has the major part and shows her superior acting ability. In most of her film appearances she is cast as a villainess, a sinister two-dimensional oriental woman, but here she is given full rein and shows that she can carry a picture. She was given only one starring role with her name above the title, in "Daughter Of The Dragon" two years later. She, of course, played a two-dimensional oriental villainess.

She is beautiful as a British cabaret dancer who captivates the club's owner (Jameson Thomas). In one scene she lets her shoulder-length hair down, and she is gorgeous. He throws off his Caucasian girlfriend, which doesn't sit well with her. Strife and bitterness take hold as the story descends into melodrama. This is your best chance to see Anna May Wong at her best, and imagine what her career might have been.

Anna May Wong, a fine actress who wound up playing Su Lin, Lin Ying, Lan Ying, Kim Ling, A-hsing, Lois Ling...

[Terrell-4 · 7/10 · 17 July 2009]

There are three reasons to watch Piccadilly, a 1929 British silent backstage melodrama. The performance of Anna May Wong is primary. She's a knockout as Shosho, a Chinese dishwasher in a posh London nightclub who gets a chance to show how she can dance, and then becomes a star. Wong is so charismatic, so fine a performer and so confident an actress, that you might wonder whatever happened to her. But there's more to Piccadilly than Wong. Perhaps not too much, but enough to enjoy the passing parade of dated movie choreography and the moody atmosphere of transplanted German expressionism. The downside is the story...one of those behind-the-scenes melodramas of entertainers and impresarios, stilted and dated, filled with tremulous glances, suspicious glares, clutched hankies and faces turned away.

Valentine Wilmot (Jameson Thomas) owns the Piccadilly Club, the poshest of the posh, where the sophisticates of London crème de la crème, dressed to the nines, come to dance and dine, and to watch Mabel & Vic, "London's Greatest Dance Attraction." Wilmot is a tough, smooth, perfectionist. He made the Piccadilly what it is. He discovered Mabel Greenfield (Gilda Gray) and made stars out of her and her dance partner, Vic Smiles (Cyril Ritchard). While he appreciates Mabel's talents, his nightclub comes first. Mabel really loves the guy and Vic really loves Mabel. ("My dear, I'm simply mad about you!") One night a diner is given a dirty plate. He makes a scene; Wilmot is furious and storms into the kitchen and scullery. There he sees Shosho, dancing on a table for the other workers when she should have been washing dishes. He fires her. Then he has second thoughts. Shosho has something that the impresario in Wilmot tells him might make a star attraction...exotic, sensuous, unusual. It's not long before Shosho is a smash. By this time Vic has left, Shosho finds it no trouble at all to delightfully snare Wilmot (in probably the best scene in the movie) and Mabel is jealous. Into this hot stew of fervid emotions, a shot rings out, scandal ensues, a trial is held...justice, both criminal and moral, is served up. And in that great tradition of melodramatic showbiz...life goes on with a million more stories undoubtedly waiting to be told. The storyline is a slog.

Still, the big dance number with Mabel & Vic at the start of the movie is a delight of dated style. Mabel and Vic each come prancing down the two grand staircases that bracket the Piccadilly's elegant dance floor, he in tails, she in a swirling gown, and off they go. It's one of those tricky, ricky-ticky fast numbers where elbows and feet fly about, complete with winking glances of mischievous fun. It goes on and on, with Vic and Mabel each having a chance to shine. Mabel flirts and shows her legs. Vic with slicked back hair seductively grins with the silent nasal charm of Jack Buchanan or Noël Coward. It's the kind of well-meaning, "classy" dance that Fred Astaire drove a stake through four years later in Flying Down to Rio. However, watch this number with affection. It does no harm and at one time held the paying movie customers in thrall.

The look of the film is all moody atmosphere. This isn't enough to salvage the movie by itself, but it gives Piccadilly a lot of visual class.

And then there's Anna May Wong, an actress of talent, style and screen presence. She's featured in the billing but she dominates the movie. She comes straight through the camera to us, sexy and innocent, calculating and surprised, whose dancing captures us and whose acting tells us here is a woman to pay attention to. As an actress of Chinese descent, she hadn't a chance in Hollywood except as a stereotype. In the Twenties she finally left for Europe and had a few star roles in Germany and England, but then returned to Hollywood with a contract that seemed to assure her of star Hollywood roles. The contract didn't say major star roles with star male leads. She lost the leads in The Good Earth and Dragon Seed because producers said she looked too Chinese. She had to watch as Luise Rainer and Katherine Hepburn starred, both gussied up in some of the oddest "Chinese" eyelids and makeup Hollywood ever devised. Anna May Wong wound up playing characters with names like Su Lin, Lin Ying, Lan Ying and, in an explosion of Hollywood creativity, Lan Ying Lin. (I'm not kidding: Impact, Bombs Over Burma, Dangerous to Know and Daughter of Shanghai.) Then there was Ling Moy, Kim Ling, A-hsing, Lois Ling and, of course, Chinese Woman. (Daughter of the Dragon, Island of Lost Men, The Barbara Stanwyck Show, Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery and Producers' Showcase)

So put Piccadilly in the DVD player, probably with your finger on the fast-forward button, to watch Mabel & Vic in their big number and, most of all, to watch a woman who could have been a great star if it hadn't been for Hollywood.

The DVD restoration looks much better than one might expect. However, you'll probably best enjoy the screen music, written for the restoration, if you also enjoy the incessant chatter of those golf announcers who can't keep their mouths shut. The music never stops. This is one DVD where it pays to watch the extras before you watch the movie. The audio is not good on "Dangerous to Know: The Life and Legacy of Anna May Wong," but the feature is informative.

The stuff that dreams are made of!

[m_n_tomlinson · 10/10 · 6 December 2012]

Piccadilly is one of the finest silent films ever made, and easily the best British one! The fact that it's not even listed in Silent Era's website top 100 films is a travesty, when instead it is filled with so much outmoded junk! It's far superior and sophisticated than say Hitchcock's 'The Lodger', which is ranked as Britain's top silent film. The Lodger is in fact a pretty juvenile fare, much like a Lon Chaney film, complete with cartoon characters, and an overused clichéd lynch mob chase! It would be some time before Hitchcock would mature into the master he would eventually become. In the meantime It's very hard for me to explain why Piccadilly is such pure film. First off, the The acting is first class and very modern, with perhaps Gilda Gray being the weakest link. Cyril Ritchard (who would eventually play Peter Pan's Captain Hook on stage and TV), Jameson Thomas, and King Hou Chang as Jim are all superbly cool! As for Anna May Wong, this is probably her finest hour! Her portrayal as a devilishly, devious minx again is first class, but she's so compelling and visually stunning in this film that's she's iconic! It's also a very cosmopolitan film, but more importantly it's a film about London. Here we get a dual glimpse of a modern jazz age night club, and an alter ego antediluvian world of Limehouse. I could witter on for hours about the merits and greatness of this film, but suffice to say I'll just stop here and say that vision, modernity and transcendence are the key to the success of this film, and leave you with the words of Sam Spade from the Maltese Falcon, that this film is indeed 'the stuff that dreams are made of'.

Bennett's film

[allenrogerj · 7/10 · 11 February 2008]

This film is Anna May Wong's triumph, but it's worth looking at for the qualities and themes that interested Arnold Bennett. There are quite a few: Bennett's interest in- and relish for- ambition, success, work, rising through the class structure, material pleasure comes over strongly. Indeed, in many ways these are more strongly emphasised than the racial elements. Shosho is just as firmly placed as working-class as Chinese. When she succeeds she becomes "Miss Shosho", not "Shosho"- in fact it is only through success that she can "become" Chinese. When we first see her she is drably and conventionally dressed, with laddered stockings and her body and hands are awkwardly carried; she lives in a squalid room; when she has succeeded she can decorate her flat with Chinoiserie. I would not be surprised if the character of Shosho was not Chinese in the original script but was adapted to suit Anna May Wong. There is only one scene where the racial elements are emphasised- where a black man and a white woman are thrown out of a pub for dancing together- and the scene's sympathy is with the couple, not "morality". Equally, Shosho's relationship with Jim makes it plain that he is important in her success as well as a strong personality in his own right. Valentine too is shown as someone who has worked for his success- the first half hour of the film places him in the club he has "made"; he first encounters Shosho after a complaint from Charles Laughton as the customer from hell which he deals with ruthlessly by firing Shosho from the scullery. Valentine's two sexual relationships are with women he has created. The dancing is disappointing- Vic and Mabel are skilled enough, but we don't believe they are the toast of London and Shosho's dance is no more convincing as an astonishing and fascinating contrast, but if we suspend disbelief here it's worth doing so. The direction is well-done with skilled and delicate touches of characterisation and placing and the camera-work is good with virtuoso flourishes on the dance floor and the film ends with another touch of Bennett- sandwich-men carrying placards for a show called "Life Goes On" past a newspaper with details of Shosho's and Jim's deaths.

When Love Comes Stealing

[wes-connors · 8/10 · 8 June 2008]

London "Piccadilly Club" proprietor Jameson Thomas (as Valentine Wilmot) is having an affair with the female half of his star dancing duo "Mabel and Vic", shimmying Gilda Gray (as Mabel "Mab" Greenfield). When Ms. Gray's dancing partner gets too amorous with his lady love, Mr. Thomas fires the man. Alas, the departing Cyril Ritchard (as Victor "Vic" Smiles) was the nightclub duo's main attraction, and business tanks. But, Thomas has discovered a new dancer in his kitchen, sexy scullery maid Anna May Wong (as Shosho). Ms. Wong becomes an immediate sensation. Older Gray feels put out, especially when Thomas slips easily into the younger Wong's arms. Eventually, passion leads to murder.

Director E.A. Dupont and photographer Werner Brandes are superb, in their final collaboration; they give "Piccadilly" a great, artful style. Wong's performance, the last of her "silent" career, is almost revelatory; and, it's at least "Supporting Actress" award-worthy. Higher-billed Gray handles her less flattering role well, too. And, Thomas meets Wong's subtlety in wonderful ways; catch him admiring Wong's torn stockings. Small bits of business, like Mr. Ritchard slitting a deeper crease into his hat, suggest additional eroticism.

Charles Laughton has a delicious cameo as a "Piccadilly Club" patron more interested in his food than the dancers.

The film is not without its sour notes, however; for example, some characterizations/relationships are poorly defined; and, the ending could have been better. However, any attempt to improve "Piccadilly" might have encouraged the producers to fix things that weren't broken. Even the fly crawling up Wong's left arm as she reclines, during a seduction scene, seems magically planned.

A Good Introduction To Anna May's Many Charms

[ferbs54 · 7/10 · 3 December 2007]

2004 was a very good year for fans of the actress Anna May Wong. It saw a Wong retrospective here in NYC's Museum of Modern Art, the first biography about Ms. Wong, by Graham Russell Gao Hodges, AND the rerelease of 1929's "Piccadilly," shown for the first time in decades. I so enjoyed this film when I saw it on the big screen that year that I decided to have another look at it on this fresh DVD, and my, how good it does look! A fascinating story of the rise of a young Chinese woman from scullery maid to feature dancer at a posh London nightclub, "Piccadilly" is a good introduction to Ms. Wong's many charms for those who have not had the pleasure before, or for those many who enjoyed her work in 1932's "Shanghai Express" and have found it hard to see her elsewhere. "Piccadilly," though a late silent, somehow feels strangely modern, and is beautifully shot and marvelously acted by all. The only disappointment for me regarding this DVD rental was with one of the many extras: a panel discussion about Anna May, hosted by B. Ruby Rich in 3/04 at San Francisco's Castro Theatre and including author Hodges AND another legendary Chinese actress, Nancy Kwan. The sound quality of this extra was so extremely echoed and garbled that it was impossible for me to decipher more than a few words of what I'm sure was a fascinating discussion. Doesn't anybody do a quality check on these DVDs before they're released? Whotta disappointment, indeed!

Worth the watch!

[caprior · 8/10 · 6 June 2008]

As a way of telling a story, Piccadilly is an eye-opener. E.A. Dupont's camera, lighting, and tracking shots seem brand new for their time. Every scene thoughtfully composed, using foreground furniture or beaded curtains or half-shadow light to discreetly dramatize the "naughtiness" of its theme. The film is silent (with a haunting, jazzy score) made in 1929, 2 years after the birth of sound, but the restoration of this film is beautifully and carefully rendered. The acting, by "silent" standards, is subtly displayed and truthfully acted. Anna Mae Wong is certainly sexy. There is a kissing scene which occurs underneath a newspaper that leaves much to the imagination.

For me it was a wonderful discovery (on TCM).

For a late silent film, it's pretty good

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 3 June 2007]

This isn't a great silent film, but for its time it certainly is one of the better ones. The film is all about a nightclub where a famous but fading lady works as a dancer. Despite the passage of time, she has a hard time admitting that she just doesn't have it like she used to despite the drastic drop-off in customers after her partner left for America. The nightclub owner, on a complete lark, recruits sultry Ann May Wong from the cleanup crew to be his new dancer. Her Asian-inspired dancing was, technically speaking, really awful and silly--but the movie extras sure loved it and she became a star--much to the chagrin of the other lady dancer and Anna's boyfriend. Both these people resented that now Anna and the nightclub owner were becoming very cozy. Ultimately, their feelings of betrayal resulted in tragedy, though you'll have to see for yourself what actually occurs.

The acting is pretty good, the sets are also lovely and the story is mildly engaging. Had the film been about singing and not dancing, it wouldn't have worked so well. But with a nice score by Robert Israel, the film is lovely. Too bad Anna had no idea how to dance and no one bothered to show her how!

By the way, a there are a few things to look for are in the film. Charles Laughton has a small role as an obnoxious customer and it's his first appearance in a feature film. Also, Anna's boyfriend, Jim, is quite cute when he wears Anna's outfit! And finally, on the inter-title cards, they refer to a pistol as a "revolver" even though it is actually a semi-automatic, not a revolver (a tiny mistake, but one that will make gun enthusiasts cringe).

Anna May Wong sizzles, and great direction from Dupont

[gbill-74877 · 9/10 · 29 December 2016]

This silent film from 1929 was quite a treat. To start with, it has a starring role for Anna May Wong and a supporting role for King Hou Chang that doesn't show them in horribly stereotypical ways, as many other films from this period do. That was the reason Wong had moved to Europe a year before, and she absolutely lights up every scene she's in. I loved how her character is not only a sex symbol, but also strong and intelligent. It's also impressive that at a time in movies and society when many were strongly against 'miscegenation', director Ewald André Dupont clearly indicates that she and a white man have sex, though he cuts away just before an interracial kiss. And in general, the film doesn't condone any racism. There is a scene in a blue collar pub where a white woman comes in off the street and begins dancing with a black man, and he's then kicked out, but here we feel compassion for him, and Dupont's hand in juxtaposing it with the racial dynamic of the main characters.

The film plods along at times and you have to be patient with it. It is a little uneven, but you'll notice Dupont using techniques that feel ahead of their time – fast cuts, dissolves, long shots, flashbacks, and some great camera angles. Several times he puts us 'behind the scenes' or in places with common people, which feel (and probably were) highly authentic. Wong's main dance number seems to be a strange mix of Thai and Hawaiian, but it's certainly interesting to watch, and is no more odd than a lot of the other dancing shown in this movie and others from the period. I also loved how Dupont how shot the scene, including a shot of her shadow. The trial at the end seems to drag things on unnecessarily, but includes a nice plot twist. Sure, it all could have been tightened up, but considering it for the time, and the fantastic role and performance Wong gives, it gets a high review score from me.

Stylish melodrama is full of sexual tension at the Piccadilly club...

[Doylenf · 7/10 · 14 May 2007]

ANNA MAY WONG, JAMESON THOMAS and GILDA GRAY are at the center of a love triangle in PICCADILLY, a silent film that is much more modern in style than most films of the period. The tempo is a bit faster paced than usual (although there are still spots that drag), and the character relationships are not explored fully, which makes the ending rather ambiguous when the murderer turns out to be a character never fully defined.

But somehow these murky elements don't effect the overall power of the storytelling here. It starts briskly with some quick views of the Piccadilly area of London at night (tinted blue) accompanied by a perky score that is sometimes a bit too busy throughout. After the credits it switches to sepia for much of the story involving a nightclub act by GILDA GRAY and CYRIL RITCHARD that is disbanded when manager JAMESON THOMAS discharges Ritchard who is becoming too attached to his dancing partner. Thomas then happens to spy ANNA MAY WONG giving an impromptu dance before her co-workers in the galley and decides to hire her as a dance specialty, much to the dismay of Gilda Gray.

Wong performs an erotic dance in gilded Chinese costume in an extraordinarily well photographed scene which is met with audience approval and this sets up the jealousy angle between Wong and Gray. In the meantime, we catch the furtive glances of a Chinese man who assists Anna's act and seems intent on throwing dagger-like glances at the manager whom he knows is entering into a romantic relationship with her.

The end result is a crime of passion that is handled with some subtlety by director Arnold Bennett. There's an almost Agatha Christie touch to the courtroom ending which has a plot twist for a final surprise.

As others have said, this is indeed a "hidden treasure" among the silent screen films and is really worth watching unless silent films are not your thing at all. The background score is a bit too busy at times but it does help to set the mood for many of the club scenes.

Anna May Wong overrated

[SusanJL · 3/10 · 17 March 2018]

Thought I'd see this because of the praise of Anna May Wong. Boy, was I disappointed!! Did not think she was attractive at all. Not wowed by her dancing, either. Her figure was like a boy's, but I guess that was the ideal female in the roaring 20's.