Seen for the first time in January 2013.
"Notorious" is definitely among Hitchcock's very best. It is a flawless movie. It's maybe Hitchcock's best shot movie, and Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, and Claude Rains are all amazing in it. It's heartbreaking to watch Grant and Bergman's characters, obviously in love with each other, treat each other shittily throughout the film. I constantly thought to myself that life is too short to be spending time treating people you love in a shitty way. It shares quite a bit with Casablanca, though it's somehow a colder more sterile film. I think the subtlety of the emotions Grant has to play are tough to pull off and he does it ably. But the real strength of the movie is the building of tension and suspense and the final dramatic pay-off. Grade A.
Showing posts with label Hitchcock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hitchcock. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Strangers on a Train - Alfred Hitchcock
Seen for the first time in December 2012.
"Strangers on a Train" is Hitchcock at his best. Tightly plotted and efficient delivery of suspense. Hitchcock working with source material from Patricia Highsmith is an exciting combination, and this totally delivers. Bruno is a great villain, some kind of homosexual socialite with an Oedipal complex, played very well by a creepy Kevin Spacey looking fellow.
The guy who plays Guy, on the other hand, is the worst actor in this. He is at times too staged and theatrical, ultimately delivering a stiff performance of a seemingly constipated character, though ultimately sympathetic and so no real harm done.
There are some nice laughs in here as well. Hitchcock doesn't always leaven things, but when he does he generally succeeds. The only boring part is the tennis game, which was supposed to be suspenseful, but could have been executed better. The scene on the merry-go-round on the other hand is one of the very best scenes in the history of cinema.
Ultimately, this is a perfect Hitchcock. Not as jaw-dropping as the first time you watch the end of "Vertigo," but certainly with more replay value and just as good as "Psycho" or "Rear Window." A tightly plotted thriller with no meandering or waste of any kind, plenty of tension, and a wonderfully creepy antagonist. Also this is historically probably the first film about a famous person and an unhinged fan. Grade A.
"Strangers on a Train" is Hitchcock at his best. Tightly plotted and efficient delivery of suspense. Hitchcock working with source material from Patricia Highsmith is an exciting combination, and this totally delivers. Bruno is a great villain, some kind of homosexual socialite with an Oedipal complex, played very well by a creepy Kevin Spacey looking fellow.
The guy who plays Guy, on the other hand, is the worst actor in this. He is at times too staged and theatrical, ultimately delivering a stiff performance of a seemingly constipated character, though ultimately sympathetic and so no real harm done.
There are some nice laughs in here as well. Hitchcock doesn't always leaven things, but when he does he generally succeeds. The only boring part is the tennis game, which was supposed to be suspenseful, but could have been executed better. The scene on the merry-go-round on the other hand is one of the very best scenes in the history of cinema.
Ultimately, this is a perfect Hitchcock. Not as jaw-dropping as the first time you watch the end of "Vertigo," but certainly with more replay value and just as good as "Psycho" or "Rear Window." A tightly plotted thriller with no meandering or waste of any kind, plenty of tension, and a wonderfully creepy antagonist. Also this is historically probably the first film about a famous person and an unhinged fan. Grade A.
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