Piccadilly (1929)

  • Rated Not Rated
  • 1hr 32m

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Movie Info & Cast

Director:

Ewald André Dupont

Writer:

Arnold Bennett

Release Date:

Jan 1, 1929

Runtime:

1hr 32m

Synopsis

A young Chinese woman working in the kitchen at a London dance club is given the chance to become the club's main act, which leads to a plot of betrayal, forbidden love, and murder.

Cast

  • Gilda Gray
  • Anna May Wong
  • Jameson Thomas
  • Cyril Ritchard
  • King Hou Chang
  • Gordon Begg
  • Harry Terry
  • Debroy Somers and His Band
  • Vi Kaley

Letterboxd User Reviews

3.6
4.8K
3.7K
1.2K
RATINGS 12 FANS
3.6
  • Sep 1, 2022

    “We belonged to each other.” Preface: There’s very real anecdotal evidence to suggest that part of the reason why Hollywood stopped doing things like blackface and having characters recite corny lines like “I’m free, white and 21” wasn’t because they realized the racist…

    148 Likes
    Gentry Austin
    Gentry Austin
    May 18, 2020

    mabel kissing her career goodbye and full on fainting after watching shosho’s performance? sorry you weren’t born with the talentry boo boo

    111 Likes
    eely 👻
    eely 👻
    Oct 23, 2023

    Jameson Thomas, Gilda Grey and Anna May Wong star in this romantic drama about the conflict between a nightclub owner, his star dancer and the Chinese dishwasher who replaces her.  Anna May Wong is the standout of this 20s set melodrama by miles, but everything else here…

    78 Likes
    Josh Gillam
    Josh Gillam
  •
    Aug 16, 2020

    Silent Summer Piccadilly is a true gem and like many films from the latter end of the silent era, it remains a fantastic showcase of how cinema can best function without sound. Everything here is smoothly told, and the complex character relationships are all well…

    80 Likes
    Darren Carver-Balsiger
    Darren Carver-Balsiger
    Jan 15, 2014

    This remarkable film stops just short of totally advocating interracial couples. I would have marked it as a film for all the ages if it had gone just a bit further. As it is, it is a remarkable work all the same. A club owner hires a Chinese scullery maid to dance for him,…

    70 Likes
    Sally Jane Black
    Sally Jane Black
    May 28, 2023

    "We belonged to each other" Valentine Wilmot's (Jameson Thomas ) club is struggling. He's lost half of his star duo and his now solo lead dancer (and lover) Mabel (Gilda Gray) is struggling to attract new patrons or even keep the regulars around. So when he heads down to…

    66 Likes
    Jesse Snoddon
    Jesse Snoddon
  •
    Feb 7, 2021

    wow. im not sure entirely what ea dupont/arnold bennett's intentions were - the racism inherent in the final act is very clear cut as is the orientalism throughout, yet shosho is given a surprising amount of agency and faces little discrimination diegetically - but in the…

    67 Likes
    Chris 🍉
    Chris 🍉
    May 6, 2024

    “Dirty plate!” All roads lead to the scullery, where you’ll find Anna May Wong, dancing on the table. Such beautiful camerawork, so many interesting movements of the lens, but my god is that modern score annoying. More thoughts back here.

    52 Likes
    Gentry Austin
    Gentry Austin
    Dec 13, 2019

    For a moment there I was so engrossed in the story I forgot this movie was made in a time where an interracial couple couldn’t kiss on screen.  When a Chinese woman is given the spotlight as a dancer at a club, she is entangled in a romance with deadly consequences. I was…

    52 Likes
    Margarita M
    Margarita M

Atom Users Reviews

No one has posted a user review yet.

Metacritic

89
metacritic
Based on 7 Critics
tbd

USER SCORE (2)

No score yet based on 2 Reviews
90

Wong is sensationally expressive and projects a modern, coolly appraising sexuality. Visually eloquent and often dazzling, the movie is no less terrific. Piccadilly is both evidence of silent cinema at its rudely aborted peak and Wong's frustrated potential to have been among its greatest stars.

Metacritic review by J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
Village Voice
100

Wong has acquired a loyal cult following over the years, and Dupont's exquisitely filmed episodes show why.

Metacritic review by David Sterritt
David Sterritt
Christian Science Monitor
75

I found it a surprisingly elegant entertainment: fast-paced, cogently written (by noted English author Arnold Bennett), well-cast (including a bit by a young Charles Laughton) and stylishly photographed on a gallery of stunning deco sets.

Metacritic review by William Arnold
William Arnold
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is Piccadilly (1929) (1929)?
The movie is 1hr 32min long.
What's Piccadilly (1929) (1929) about?
A young Chinese woman working in the kitchen at a London dance club is given the chance to become the club's main act, which leads to a plot of betrayal, forbidden love, and murder.
Who's the cast of Piccadilly (1929) (1929)?
  • Gilda Gray as Mabel Greenfield
  • Anna May Wong as Shosho
  • Jameson Thomas as Valentine Wilmot
  • Cyril Ritchard as Victor Smiles
  • King Hou Chang as Jim
  • Gordon Begg as Coroner
  • Harry Terry as Publican
  • Debroy Somers and His Band as Band at the Piccadilly Club
  • Vi Kaley as Woman in Bar
Who's the director behind Piccadilly (1929) (1929)?
Ewald André Dupont directed Piccadilly (1929) (1929).