I love this movie so much

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Based on a 1907 Broadway hit by Augustus Thomas previously filmed in 1916 and 1921 and here unobtrusively set in the original period, 'The Witching Hour' is an interesting hybrid of pre-Code crime film and silent romantic fantasy by the director of 'Peter Ibbetson' and 'True Grit' combining courtroom drama with a smiling Victorian ghost straight out of 'Smilin' Thru'.John Halliday is as usual excellent as the owner of a gambling den always one step ahead of the law with the aid of involuntary telepathic ability; and there's an unusual flashback in which the narrator tells us what he remembered while what we are shown is what actually happened.

Although based on an old-fashioned stage play and, as a result, almost completely dialogue-bound, "The Witching Hour" (1934) turns out to be a much more involving movie than you would expect, thanks to its superior cast, led by Sir Guy Standing and John Halliday. True, director Henry Hathaway was not exactly at home in a court-room. Real locations - particularly locations that were hard to reach and had rarely, if ever, previously been invaded by a motion picture unit - were his number one choice. Nonetheless, Hathaway certainly gives this film a most welcome dose of vitality.Hathaway is ably assisted , of course, by all the players. None of them put a foot wrong. And it should be mentioned that their performances are all their own work. Hathaway does not direct dialogue. He expects his players not just to know their lines, but to know how they should be played!

From watching The Witching Hour, you find out one thing: William Frawley (Fred Mertz) looked the same at 37 as he did in his fifties and sixties.The story concerns a man, Jack Brookfield (John Halliday) whose daughter is engaged to Clay Thorne (Tom Brown). Brookfield has a strong sixth sense - he calls them hunches - and they rarely let him down, though he refuses to use them for gambling. One night he sees that Clay is terrified of a cat's eye ring and tries to convince him it's nothing. In the midst of their conversation, a man arrives, and he and Jack have a confrontation which ends in Jack threatening to kill him and ordering the butler to throw him out. As Clay leaves, his future father-in-law tells him to hold onto the ring and again reinforce that it's nothing to fear.The following day, the man who visited Jack is found dead after Clay goes to his place and kills him. Clay is arrested but has no defense. He doesn't remember anything about the murder.Very good movie, with an expected dose of melodrama, based on what I think is a false premise but probably was believed back then. I don't think hypnotism can make you do things you wouldn't ordinarily do. However, that's what makes the film fun.The other question is, is it hypnosis or the power of Jack's mind that brings on the event? Don't know.Sir Guy Standing is wonderful as the Judge, a friend of Clay's mother, who, though long retired, is persuaded to take the case.Besides the familiar Frawley as the jury foreman, Jack's daughter is played by Judith Allen who, like Alice White, had a more interesting life off-screen than on, often making the tabloids. Tom Brown enjoyed a 55-year career in show business, including playing Al Weeks on General Hospital.Fast moving and well-directed by Henry Hathaway, this is a lost gem well worth seeing.

This is a wonderful horror-thriller from the end of the PreCode Era directed by the legendary Henry Hathaway. It is a very RARE film title to find these days but it is well worth the search! This 1934 forgotten gem moves at a great pace and includes gambling, hypnotism, and murder. A young man commits murder after accidentally being placed under hypnosis, and must find someone to defend him at his trial. It is based on a play by Augustus Thomas and features an outstanding cast of characters headed by Guy Standing, John Halliday and Tom Brown. The interesting back-story involves an illegal gambling den, a cat's-eye ring, and both telepathy and ghostly apparitions that cause the movie to fall into the realm of the fantastic.