The Hole in the Wall (1929 film)


The Hole in the Wall is a 1929 mystery drama film directed by Robert Florey, and starring Claudette Colbert and Edward G. Robinson. This early talking picture marks the first appearance of Edward G. Robinson as a gangster, and "can be viewed as a dry run for his eventual success ". It was also one of Claudette Colbert's first appearances in motion pictures.
It was shot at the Astoria Studios in New York. 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

According to critic Troy Howarth, " is an interesting amalgam of gangster melodrama and horror, one in which Edward G. Robinson steals the show..... 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 classic 1919 film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.