The Man Who Knew Too Much
Gaumont British Distributors | Release Date: April 15, 1935 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
77
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
The Man Who Knew Too Much finds the director firmly back in his wheelhouse, extracting all the wit and suspense he can from a pulpy exercise in abduction and conspiracy. Read full review
90
TimeStaff (Not Credited)
Alfred Hitchcock's direction, in which the story is told in sharp, abbreviated sequences gathering speed steadily toward their explosive climax, makes The Man Who Knew Too Much one of the neatest melodramas of the year. Read full review
88
LarsenOnFilmJosh Larsen
Director Alfred Hitchcock, who would remake the movie in 1956 with James Stewart, invests each scene with a blithe sense of fun. Read full review
85
SlashfilmHoai-Tran Bui
The Man Who Knew Too Much remains an underrated gem from Hitchcock — one that may not stand alongside his most venerated classics, but one that shows the power of a really good villain, and a great opera setpiece. Read full review
80
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
An unusually fine dramatic story handled excellently from a production standpoint. Built along gangster lines, but from an international crook standpoint, with a lot of melodramatic suspense added. Read full review
80
EmpireDavid Parkinson
This is a suberbly structured thriller whose excellence is aided and abetted by a spirited cast. Read full review
80
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
Vintage Hitchcock, with sheer wit and verve masking an implausible plot. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Philip French
The classic thriller in which Hitchcock truly discovered his metier as the 'master of suspense' and never looked back. [08 Aug 1999, p.10]
75
Slant MagazineJoseph Jon Lanthier
Produced in England in 1934, The Man Who Knew Too Much was perhaps the first of Alfred Hitchcock’s films to openly attempt the autonomously cinematic, aggressively syntactic perfection with which he would later become synonymous. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
It is in this film that Hitchcock showed his development of a theme he would repeat in films to come--the innocent victim suddenly caught up in a terrifying situation with apparently no way out, coupled with breathless chases in popular public places. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The film is notable as the first English-language role of Peter Lorre, who is creepily appealing as the leader of the conspiracy. [03 Feb 2013, p.Q19]
75
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Two advantages of the British version: It's tauter and much faster. [26 Nov 1999, p.A]
70
Chicago ReaderDave Kehr
Although the film is fast and consistently clever, it is more deeply flawed than any other Hitchcock film of the period, failing to find a thematic connection between its imaginative set pieces. Read full review
70
The New York TimesAndre Sennwald
Although the photography and lighting are inferior according to Hollywood standards, the film is an interesting example of technical ingenuity as well as an absorbing melodrama. Read full review
70
The New YorkerPauline Kael
The best scenes--especially an assassination attempt at Royal Albert Hall--are stunning, but Hitchcock seems sloppily unconcerned about the unconvincing material in between the tricks and jokes.
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