High Treason (1929 film)

High Treason is a 1929 film based on a play by Noel Pemberton Billing. It was directed by Maurice Elvey, and stars James Carew, Humberstone Wright, Benita Hume, Henry Vibart, Hayford Hobbs, Irene Rooke and Jameson Thomas. Raymond Massey makes his first screen appearance in a small role. The original silent film was released to a trade show August 9, 1929, then went into general release September 9, 1929. A version with sound added was released March 13, 1930. The last known surviving complete copy of this film that contains the original sound track is a lavender fine grain held in the collection of Alaska Moving Image Preservation Association (AMIPA).

The film is a science fiction drama set in a futuristic 1950. The plot and aesthetics of the film are heavily influenced by Fritz Lang's Metropolis.

Plot

1950: pacifist ideals are threatened when the "United States of Europe" comes into conflict with the "Empire of the Atlantic States". The former comprises both Europe and the territories of the European empires of the time. The latter is a combination of the United States and South America.

In the film the prohibition era in America extends to 1950 and the tension is initially caused by bootleggers crossing the borders between territories. One such incident leads to a shoot-out between border guards in which both sides...
Read More