''The Hole in the Wall'' is a 1929

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

mystery drama film directed by

Robert Florey Robert Florey (14 September 1900 – 16 May 1979) was a French-American director, screenwriter, film journalist and actor. Born as Robert Fuchs in Paris, he became an orphan at an early age and was then raised in Switzerland. In 1920 he worked a ...

, and starring

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert ( ; born Émilie Claudette Chauchoin; September 13, 1903July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the late 1920s and progressed to films with the advent of talking pictures ...

and Edward G. Robinson. This early talking picture was the first appearance of Edward G. Robinson in the role of a gangster, and "can be viewed as a dry run for his eventual success (in 1931 in ''Little Caesar'')". It was also one of Colbert's first film appearances. The AFI Catalog of Feature Films 1893-1993:''The Hole in the Wall''
/ref> It was shot at the

Astoria Studios The Kaufman Astoria Studios is a film studio located in the Astoria section of the New York City borough of Queens. The studio was constructed for Famous Players-Lasky in 1920, since it was close to Manhattan's Broadway theater district. The p ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. The film is a remake of an earlier 1921 silent '' The Hole in the Wall''.

Plot

A con man called The Fox teams up with a fake fortune teller named Madame Mystera to bilk naive people out of their money. When Madame Mystera dies in a car accident, The Fox hires a woman named Jean Oliver to replace her. But as time goes on, he comes to believe that Jean actually does have real supernatural powers.

Cast

as Jean Oliver * Edward G. Robinson as The Fox *

David Newell David Alexander Newell (born November 24, 1938) is an American television actor known primarily for his portrayal of Mr. McFeely, the delivery man on ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''. He also worked in the public relations department of Fred R ...

as Gordon Grant * Nellie Savage as Madame Mystera *

Donald Meek Thomas Donald Meek (14 July 1878 – 18 November 1946) was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903. Meek is perhaps best known for his roles in the films '' You Can't T ...

as Goofy *

Alan Brooks Alan may refer to: People * Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname * Alan (given name), an English given name **List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' * ...

as Jim *

Louise Closser Hale Louise Closser Hale (October 13, 1872 – July 26, 1933) was an American actress, playwright, and novelist. Early life Louise Closser was born in Chicago, Illinois, on October 13, 1872. Her father was Joseph Closser, a grain dealer, and her ...

as Mrs. Ramsay *

Katherine Emmet Katherine Emmet (March 13, 1878 – June 6, 1960) was an American actress on stage, in film, and in television, and a director of radio plays. Early life Emmet was born in San Francisco, California. Her mother Harriet H. Hubbell was a physician i ...

as Mrs. Carlake * Marcia Kagno as Marcia *

Barry Macollum Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 1950 ...

as Dogface *

George MacQuarrie George MacQuarrie (born as George Donald MacQuarrie; June 2, 1873 – April 1951), was an American actor of the silent era. Biography MacQuarrie was born in San Francisco, California in 1873 as George Donald MacQuarrie. He appeared in more ...

as Inspector *

Helen Crane Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, ...

as Mrs. Lyons

Criticism

According to critic Troy Howarth, the film "is an interesting amalgam of gangster melodrama and horror, one in which Edward G. Robinson steals the show." Colbert's "character becomes more complex as the picture unfolds, and the actress keeps up just fine." He commented that Florey's bizarre set designs for the medium's den looked as if they were inspired by the German film '' The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari''.

References

External links

* * * 1929 films 1920s English-language films American black-and-white films Films directed by Robert Florey American gangster films 1929 directorial debut films American mystery drama films 1920s mystery drama films Paramount Pictures films Films shot at Astoria Studios 1929 drama films 1920s American films {{1920s-drama-film-stub