Alfred Hitchcock's The pleasure garden is a very good silent movie two young dancers' love lives are intertwined, but the film mostly focuses on Patsy and her loveless marriage. Even early in his career, we can see Alfred Hitchcock tropes taking form. Love affairs, suspicious husbands and even insanity/murder. Even a suspenseful climax, in which Patsy's husband goes crazy and tries to kill her. However, these elements aren't fully formed here. For instance, the sense of suspense only bursts out at the end, when Patsy's husband tries to kill her. And it isn't rooted in what the audience knows but the character doesn't, like Hitch's later works. She knows her husband is crazy. And, in that same scene, she is suddenly saved by the man she really loves. Later in his career, Hitchcock hated having sudden saviors come in to save the character. And while it is somewhat of a cheap move, such things have happened in great movies like Star Wars, and it works here.
In conclusion, Hitchcock'a earliest fully surviving film is a solid one, and a worth while watch for fans of his work and silent cinema.
In conclusion, Hitchcock'a earliest fully surviving film is a solid one, and a worth while watch for fans of his work and silent cinema.