Plunder (1930): A Delightfully Dated British Farce for the Patient Viewer

Okay, so Plunder from 1930. If you're into dusty old British farces, the kind that feel like a play barely squeezed onto celluloid, then yeah, give it a shot. It’s a real time capsule. But if you're expecting anything fast-paced or visually stunning, you're gonna have a bad time. Seriously, walk away now. 🚶‍♀️

This film is one of those Aldwych farces, meaning it’s pretty much a direct lift from a super popular stage play. So, you get all the grand gestures and loud talking you'd expect. The story itself is a tangled web of two chaps, Freddie (Ralph Lynn) and D'Arcy (Tom Walls), getting themselves into a right pickle trying to help a friend who's swiped some jewels. It's all very *proper* until it's not. 💎

Ralph Lynn, with his famous stammer, is on full display here. It’s part of his charm, I guess, but after a while, you kinda wish he’d just *get it out*. He’s good, though, at looking utterly bewildered, which is half the job in these things.

Tom Walls, as the more exasperated, slightly more sensible (but still completely in over his head) D'Arcy, is a solid anchor. You can practically see the veins popping in his forehead from all the stress of trying to manage Freddie’s antics. Their dynamic is the engine, really. Without those two, it would fall apart fast. 🤦‍♂️

Then there's Robertson Hare. Oh, Hare. His nervous twitching and wide-eyed panic are just wonderful. He plays the easily flustered type better than anyone. There's a bit where he's trying to explain something, and he just gets more and more muddled, tying himself into knots. It's very funny, even if it does go on a *smidge* too long.

The sets are… well, they’re drawing rooms. Lots of them. And the camera just sits there, watching the action unfold, like it's observing a play from the cheap seats. There's almost no movement, which makes the energy entirely dependent on the actors. For a lot of the runtime, it feels like watching a very well-preserved recording of a stage production, rather than a movie film.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Plunder (1930) through its definitive frames.

The pacing is definitely of its era. It builds slowly, then explodes into rapid-fire dialogue and frantic running around. Then it slows down again for more exposition. It's not a smooth ride. You gotta settle in for it.

One particular scene where they're trying to hide the stolen jewels while someone is *right there* is a masterclass in physical comedy. They're stuffing things into cushions, under rugs, into pockets. It’s pure slapstick, and it lands pretty well. You can almost feel the movie trying to convince you this moment matters, and it does! For a bit. 😂

However, some of the jokes… they just don't travel well through time. What was probably hilarious to 1930s audiences sometimes just elicits a polite chuckle now. Or, honestly, sometimes nothing. It's not a fault of the film, just the way humor evolves.

The sound quality, too, can be a bit rough. Sometimes the dialogue is a little muddy, and you really have to strain to catch everything. Especially with the rapid-fire lines, you might miss a punchline or two. It adds to the film's antique charm, I suppose, but also its difficulty.

Mary Brough is great as the formidable, no-nonsense housekeeper type. Her stern expressions are a highlight. She doesn't have a ton of screen time, but when she's there, she **commands** it. A little bolt of lightning in the drawing room.

Look, it’s not going to blow your mind. But if you appreciate the history of British comedy, or just want to see some truly classic stage performers doing their thing, Plunder offers a glimpse. It's **delightfully dated** and imperfect, but sometimes that's exactly what you're looking for. Just don't expect *cinema* in the modern sense.

Didja Notice?

• The sheer number of times someone almost trips over something.
• How everyone seems to know everyone else's business, even in a big house.
• The way characters just stand around waiting for their turn to speak sometimes. Very theatrical.
• One of the police officers has this amazing deadpan stare that lasts for ages. It's strangely captivating.
• The curtains in the drawing room are very fancy. So much fabric.
• The sheer **audacity** of the plot, just keeps twisting without much care for realism.