''High Treason'' is a 1929 film based on a play by

Noel Pemberton Billing Noel Pemberton Billing (31 January 1881 – 11 November 1948), sometimes known as Noel Pemberton-Billing, was a British aviator, inventor, publisher and Member of Parliament for Hertford. He founded the firm that became Supermarine and promoted ...

. It was directed by Maurice Elvey, and stars

James Carew James Usselman (February 5, 1876 – April 4, 1938), known professionally as James Carew, was an American actor who appeared in many films, mainly in Britain. He was born in Goshen, Indiana in 1876 and began work as a clerk in a publishing fir ...

Humberstone Wright Humbertson Wright (1876 in London, England, UK – 1953), sometimes credited as Humberstone Wright or Humberston H. Wright, was a British film actor. Filmography * '' Trapped by the London Sharks'' (1916) * ''Thelma'' (1918) * '' The Secret ...

, Benita Hume, Henry Vibart,

Hayford Hobbs Hayford Hobbs (25 August 1890 - 10 January 1957) was a leading British film actor of the silent era and later became a film director. He was born in London, England, in 1891. He made his first screen appearance in the 1915 film ''The Third Gener ...

Irene Rooke Irene Rooke (born Irene Bessie Ingaretha Rooke; 30 May 1874 – 14 June 1958) was an English theatre and film actress from Bridport, Dorset, England. Stage career She was the daughter of a prominent London journalist. Rooke left boarding scho ...

, and Jameson Thomas.

Raymond Massey Raymond Hart Massey (August 30, 1896 – July 29, 1983) was a Canadian actor, known for his commanding, stage-trained voice. For his lead role in '' Abe Lincoln in Illinois'' (1940), Massey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Amo ...

makes his first screen appearance in a small role. The film was initially produced as a silent but mid-way during production, Elvey was pushed by the studio to add sound to the film in order to cash in on the talkies. Although a third of the film was filmed in sound, Elvey maintained much of the silent footage and dubbed over the dialogue for shots that were originally silent, with Elvey himself voicing some of the minor characters, which he admitted when interviewed by the Mantioba Free Press shortly after the film was released in the US Likewise, BIP's ''Blackmail'', directed by

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

was also turned into a sound picture mid-way during production (concurrently when ''High Treason'' was also in production) and many of the silent scenes used dubbed dialogue and sound effects in a similar fashion to ''High Treason''. The sound version of the film was presented in a London trade show on 9 August 1929, then went into UK general release in silent and sound versions on 9 September 1929. The sound version was released in the US by

Tiffany Productions Tiffany Pictures, which also became Tiffany-Stahl Productions for a time, was a Hollywood motion picture studio in operation from 1921 until 1932. It is considered a Poverty Row studio, whose films had lower budgets, lesser-known stars, and overal ...

in a heavily cut version (running just over 60 minutes) on 13 March 1930. The silent version and a trailer for the sound version are preserved and held by the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

; the only known surviving original copy of the sound version is a lavender fine grain of the American release version held in the collection of Alaska Moving Image Preservation Association (AMIPA), which has been recently restored by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

. The film is a science fiction drama set in a futuristic 1940 (though this was originally set in 1950 for the silent version). The plot and aesthetics of the film are heavily influenced by

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 6 ...

's ''

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

''.

Plot

In 1940/50, world peace is threatened when the "United States of Europe" comes into conflict with the "Empire of the Atlantic States". The former comprises Europe, India, the Middle East, Canada, Africa, and Australasia. The latter is a combination of the United States and South America. In the film the prohibition era in America extends to 1940 and the tension is initially caused by

bootleggers Bootleg or bootlegging most often refers to: * Bootleg recording, an audio or video recording released unofficially * Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages, hence: ** Moonshine, or illicitly made ...

crossing the borders between territories. One such incident leads to a shoot-out between border guards in which both sides suffer casualties. War looks likely, but the pacifist Peace League intervenes. Meanwhile, we learn that the tension is in fact carefully orchestrated by a sinister terrorist group financed by arms manufacturers. They blow up a rail tunnel under the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. The President of Europe orders a mass enlistment and mobilisation, fearing that the Atlantic States are preparing a sneak attack. Dr. Seymour, leader of the Peace League, desperately attempts to avert war. His daughter Evelyn seeks to convince her boyfriend Michael, commander of the European air force, not to fight, but he insists he must do his duty. Evelyn says she will leave him. The European council are divided, but the president decides on war, saying that he will announce the outbreak of hostilities on television. The terrorists try to kill Dr. Seymour by bombing the Peace League, but Seymour survives. He tells Evelyn to make another effort to stop Michael ordering the airforce to attack, while he appeals directly to the President. Pacifists led by Evelyn demonstrate ''en masse'' at the airfield. Michael is uncertain what to do, but Evelyn convinces him to delay the attack. Seymour confronts the President, but is forced, despite his pacifism, to shoot him to stop him making the broadcast.

Cast

* Jameson Thomas as Michael Deane * Benita Hume as Evelyn Seymour *

Basil Gill Basil Gill (10 March 1877 – 23 April 1955) was a British stage actor and film actor. His stage career included many roles in plays of Shakespeare. Life He was a son of the Rev. John Gill, of Cambridge.Obituary, ''The Glasgow Herald'', page 9, ...

as President Stephen Deane *

Humberston Wright Humbertson Wright (1876 in London, England, UK – 1953), sometimes credited as Humberstone Wright or Humberston H. Wright, was a British film actor. Filmography * '' Trapped by the London Sharks'' (1916) * ''Thelma'' (1918) * '' The Secret ...

as Dr. Seymour * Henry Vibart as Lord Sycamore *

as Lord Rawleigh *

as Charles Falloway *

Milton Rosmer Milton Rosmer (4 November 1881 – 7 December 1971) was a British actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern ...

as Ernest Stratton *

Judd Green Judd Green (also credited as R. Judd Green; 1866–1932) was a British film actor of the silent era. He was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire in 1866 and made his first screen appearance in 1914. Selected filmography * '' The Third String'' (1914) * ...

as James Groves * Alf Goddard as Tele-radiographer *

as Senator * Clifford Heatherley as Delegate *

Wally Patch Walter Sydney Vinnicombe (26 September 1888 – 27 October 1970) was an English actor and comedian. He worked in film, television and theatre. Biography Vinnicombe was born in Willesden, Middlesex and began working on the music hall stages in ...

as Commissionaire *

as cabinet-maker

Critical reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote, "this story is really such a farrago of nonsense that one is sorry Maurice Elvey could not find better material to his expert hand" ; and more recently, the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' wrote, "there is a sticky-backed plastic feel to the world of 1940 created by director Maurice Elvey on Gaumont's

Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush is a district of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Although primarily residential in character, i ...

soundstage, while the plot demonstrates a singular ignorance of political reality" ; whereas Horrornews.net wrote, "''High Treason'' is one of the best examples of early science fiction cinema."

Updated version

In 1998, a new sound version was produced by the combined efforts of the French drum & bass DJ duo ''Les Electrons Libres'' and local film archive ''La Cinémathèque de Toulouse''. That version was a live electronic music mix to a 71 minutes copy from the Cinémathèque vault. Les Electrons Libres version of ''High Treason'' was screened in various French cities from 1998 to 1999 (Paris, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Rennes) and in Barcelona, Spain for the 1999 Sonar Festival.

References

External links