kidboots ....in a very typical role. There were a few fresh talents to emerge in Britain after the War and one of these was Betty Balfour. She made her name in a series of popular comedies centred around "Squibs", a Piccadilly flower seller. Soon she was the most popular screen star in Britain, popular enough to be given the lead in "Champagne" directed by up and coming director Alfred Hitchcock. He attempted this as a change of pace from his more recent, somber films ("The Lodger" (1927) and "The Ring" (1927)) but Hitchcock didn't like it. Obviously with Miss Balfour as the star, the film was tailored to her light hearted talent and Hitchcock was out of his element and refused to mold a film around a particular personality ever again. He wasn't the only one who wasn't impressed, the movie wasn't well received by "Variety" who called the story "of the weakest".I did like Betty Balfour. I had only seen her in "Evergreen" where she was distinctly matronly - it was so nice to see her at her best as a fun loving flapper even if the movie dragged. Millionaire Wall Street businessman (Gordon Harker) is so exasperated at his daughter's frivolous ways he is determined to teach her a lesson. He tells her he has lost all his money and forces her to face up to life's realities. Her fiancé, who has long wished that she would ditch some of her fair weather friends, is the only person who stands by her. There is also a certain man about town waiting in the wings.Music is so important to me while watching silent movies and this was of the deadliest. It is like someone saw the name of Alfred Hitchcock in the credits and inserted the most dramatic symphonies they could find. It was for the most part a light hearted comedy and really needed some popular songs of the day. I also think more could have been done with Betty's job hunting - she answered an advertisement to demonstrate toothpaste but found herself in a cabaret selling boutonneires (she couldn't escape from "Squibs"!!). Suddenly "man about town" turns up when she is at her lowest and falls in with her suggestion to whisk her off to New York but even in this early stage of his career Hitchcock had a surprise or two up his sleeve and the "man about town" is revealed as a good friend of her father's who has promised to keep an eye on her. But do those "bedroom eyes" that look at her over the glass of sparkling champagne mean business or pleasure. All will be revealed - but not in this movie!!!

Michael Rhodes This film is a real mixed bag of sorts. The film follows a woman named Betty who is in love with her rich boyfriend. However, Betty also has a substantial amount of money and Betty's father believes that her boyfriend is a gold-digger. Betty takes her father's plane and goes after her boyfriend anyway who is on a ship heading to France. Betty attempts to get married to her boyfriend but they get in an argument and separate after they reach France. After getting back together Betty's father tells her that they have lost all of their money in the stock market which causes Betty's boyfriend to leave again. Will her boyfriend return or is he really a gold-digger? The story isn't very interesting when it comes down to it although I did enjoy the twist at the end of the film.As for the acting, it's actually pretty good. Betty Balfour plays Betty and does a stupendous job at it. She seems to fit into the role very naturally and does a good job at not exaggerating emotions like in most silent films. Gordon Harker plays Betty's father Mark and seems to do a good job at seeming unpleased with his daughter's decision. And finally Jean Bradin plays Betty's boyfriend and he also does a good job in the role. While the acting is good, it doesn't save the film.The special effects in the film are flawed and some of them seem obvious which isn't very good at all. However, the music is stupendous here and does a great job at creating emotions which you don't normally get from films of this time period. The camera angles and shots being used are truly ahead of their time which helps the film.Even though I praised many aspects of the film the plot just feels so basic and uninteresting plus the poor quality of the special effects really hurt the atmosphere and immersion of the film. So while it has many positives it also has many negatives which causes it to equal out to a very mediocre film. Score: 4/10

Daniel Richardson Let me start off by saying that Hitchcock is a master of suspense and was a great director. I always loved his better known movies such as "The Birds", "Psycho", and "Rear Window". About a couple of years ago I came across a one dollar DVD entitled simply "Alfred Hitchcock". It contained four films I haven't seen: "Jamacia Inn", "Sabotage", "The 39 Steps" (Which is very good.), and "Easy Virtue". They were, for the most part, good. Shortly after I found another Hitchcock dollar DVD entitled "Alfred Hitchcock Classics: Volume 1" which included "Champagne" and "Murder!". So there's the intro. Now on to the review. Like I said Hitchcock was a great director and in this movie we see his greatness shine through. However, the story is the problem I have with the movie. It's just boring. It has nothing to do with the fact that it's silent, it is just a bad movie. I personally don't like movies about some spoiled rich girl who whines for most of the show. Which is why I never cared for "Gone With the Wind". This movie is no exception. For an eighty-five minute movie it just dragged by. This story could have been told in twenty minutes. That's how simple the plot is. The reason I gave it a 2 and not a 1 is because of the direction. The direction is definitely there. My favorite shots are the shots through the champagne glass. However for the most part the rest of the movie sucked. Now I know this isn't Alfred's fault. When a director starts out he doesn't always get to pick and choose his movies, but as a viewer that's not my problem. Hitchcock once said this is his worst movie. And that's coming from a master of suspense. So if that doesn't tell you something. So in conclusion I recommend this only to hardcore Hitchcock fans, but the rest should steer clear.

suchenwi Silent. Black & white. Hitch said it was his worst movie. But still...I watched "Champagne" three times in four days now, and can't get tired of it. Of course it's almost 80 years old, and far away from the world of 2007. But it made me curious. Betty Balfour is just such a cutie in her very various acts. (Reminds me somehow of German chancelloress Angela Merkel, but never mind.) Although it's mostly a comedic romance, there are indications of Hitch things to come - in the cabaret, staircase scenes, and a 360 degree shot that I before thought was pioneered in Frankenheimer's "Manchurian Candidate" (1962).Betty was extremely charming and versatile here (I'd love to see some Squibs, her most famous movies...), but after the introduction of talkies she was more Rain than Singing. Anyway, this snapshot conserves special moments (the dress-changing, the rolling of the dough, the chair dance, ...) Highly recommended if you go for museum pieces (and "read lips" instead of waiting for inter-titles). Not everybody's taste, but surely mine :^)