What a waste of my time!!!

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Based on the real life "Red Barn Murder" of 1827, which was something of a sensation at the time that led to a well-publicized trial / execution, popular stage plays and even merchandising of murder scene memorabilia (!), this also introduced film-goers to British (over)actor Tod Slaughter, who'd first made a name for himself playing villains on stage before transitioning over to quota quickies, starting with this low- budget effort. In the small village of Polstead, naive farmer's daughter Maria Marten (Sophie Stewart) is torn between two men; Carlos (Eric Portman) and Squire William Corder (Slaughter). Though Carlos is a gentleman truly in love with Maria, he's also a poor gypsy with low social standing in the community. The Squire, on the other hand, is a respectable magistrate. Maria unwisely chooses the latter option, little realizing the type of guy she's really getting involved with. When she finds herself pregnant, Corder - who has racked up some major gambling debt - rejects her and instead plans to marry a socialite because he'll be getting a large dowry in the process. Maria's father (D.J. Williams) finds out about the pregnancy and kicks her out of the house, forcing her to turn to Corder for help. Instead, he lures her into a barn, shoots her and then buries her. Corder attempts to use Carlos as a scapegoat, but unfortunately he dropped the murder weapon into the grave with the body...I read up on the real case before watching and this actually does seem to stick with the basic facts, though the motive and certain other details have been altered. The performances are pretty good (Slaughter only hams it up in a couple of isolated scenes) and it's well made; albeit entirely predictable. Instead of the usual medium static shots and long takes typical of most low budget films from this time, this surprisingly has a good number of close-ups shots, which are smoothly edited with the master shots. It's also noteworthy for being a bit seedier than what one would see in most Hollywood productions from the era. The heroine isn't some virginal innocent (though apparently she's depicted here as being much more wholesome than the real Maria), but this also has some dialogue ("You think I'd soil my hands with a common village slut?") that'll have you raising your eyebrows.

Prior to renting the video of this movie, I had no idea who Tod Slaughter was, why he has a cult following, or exactly what people meant when they said he was "hamming it up". I couldn't have told you the difference between a Victorian melodrama and a Greek tragedy.Well, after viewing it, I still couldn't tell you what the big deal with Mr. Slaughter is or how this was any more melodramatic than, say, the movies Hitchcock was making at around the same time, but I will say that this movie was well made and thoroughly entertaining, with never a dull moment. You need not be a Tod Slaughter devotee or know a thing about the history of English theatre to enjoy it.The Murder in the Red Barn reaffirms my belief that movies from the early sound period managed to pack a lot more into their short running times than today's, which have doubled in length. The action in this movie was non-stop.Other reviewers have stated that this film feels more like a stage play, but I find that many of the films from this period have that feel. There obviously wasn't as wide a gap between the cinema and theatre back then as there is today.

George King directs a very enjoyable melodrama starring English horror actor Tod Slaughter. The beautiful Maria(Sophia Stewart)is a farmer's daughter with high expectations of leaving the country and traveling to London. The gypsy Carlos(Eric Portman)is madly in love with the lass, who is also coveted by Squire Corder(Slaughter), who has promised her marriage and a new life of luxury. Maria refuses the advances of the older man and he has no interest in her that she is carrying a child. He takes her to the old red barn used by the community for dances. There he kills her and buries her. The blame of the girl's disappearance is put on the gypsy Carlos. Circumstances and a bit of bad luck is bestowed on the Squire. Other players include: D.J. Williams, Clare Greet and Gerald Tyrell. This movie has been pretty well preserved and an excellent choice for those moments needing a old moody murder mystery.

Melodrama is often associated with noir. One leading example is A. W. Fitzgerald's old Victorian barnstormer, appropriately titled Maria Marten or the Murder in the Red Barn, first filmed with Fitzgerald himself in the lead, way back back in 1902, and re-made by Maurice Elvey in 1913. Tod Slaughter had himself such a grand time in this one on the stage in the 1920s and 1930s, it was a natural for his 1935 film debut in which he was joined by an all-star cast led by the lovely Sophie Stewart in the short-lived title role and Eric Portman as a Romany darkly handsome hero of sorts before he acquired the condescending speech and mannerisms he affected in later roles. Slaughter's acting is so over the top that a Prologue was added to let the audience know that what they were about to see was a stage play. But as it obviously made no difference to Slaughter's popularity, the device was dropped in his subsequent movies.