Shadow of a Doubt review

 Number 323 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's psychological thriller 'Shadow of a Doubt.'

Charlotte "Charlie" Newton (Teresa Wright) is a young woman who lives with her family in Santa Rosa, California. Bored with her life, she is overjoyed when her uncle Charles "Charlie" Oakley (Joseph Cotten) visits. Little does she realise is that Uncle Charlie is a serial killer on the run from the police. 

I've watched at least ten Hitchcock films in my time and I would count this as one of my least favourites. This is in stark contrast to Hitchcock who thought this was one of his best films. Sorry, Mr Hitchcock, but we shall have to agree to disagree.

I found Shadow of a Doubt to be overly-theatrical. It was stagey with an excess of dialogue. Some of this dialogue was attributed to side characters like a waitress in a diner. I was confused as to why she was speaking so much considering that she wasn't a major character.

Charlotte had two younger siblings, who were, quite possibly, two of the most annoying characters ever seen on screen. Christ, they were insufferable. They very much embodied the pompous, stuck-up little brats that you see too often on film.

And the sound-mixing was strange too. Maybe I was watching a bad bootleg, but I struggled in hearing some of the dialogue. It didn't help that the characters spoke over one another. At times, Charlotte's speech had a distinct echo.

Finally, the ending wasn't convincing at all. *Spoilers*

Upon hearing that Charlotte has discovered his secret, Uncle Charlie tries pushing her out of a moving train, only for her to get the upper hand and push him from the train instead. I just didn't find that believable at all.

Overall, this was not a film I cared for. 

Strangers on a Train review

 Number 210 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 psychological thriller 'Strangers on a Train.'

Guy Haines (Farley Granger) is an amateur tennis star who wishes to divorce his wife Miriam to instead marry Anne Morton (Ruth Roman,) the daughter of a US senator. On a train, he meets Bruno Antony (Robert Walker,) a psychopath who hates his father. Bruno suggests that the two swap murders - Bruno will kill Guy's wife if Guy kills Bruno's father. 

Hitchcock was dubbed the 'Master of Suspense' for a reason. This was another great outing. Possibly one of his scariest films since The Birds. A lot of this was down to Robert Walker's portrayal of the antagonistic Bruno Antony. Not only is he a psychopath, but he is a silver-tongued psychopath, charismatic enough to integrate himself into any social situation without raising an alarm. And he is clever enough to manipulate all situations to his advantage. He tricks his way into fancy dinners that Haines is attending and even into his tennis club. And like many psychopaths, he is delusional; he kills Haines' wife believing that Haines has accepted his offer, but this was never the case. 

Walker is definitely no hulking giant of a man, but he still created a true aura of menace. In some ways, he was what I would imagine Ted Bundy being like. Although I did read online that Hitchcock deliberately queer-coded Bruno. By today's standards that could be considered problematic, although I didn't really notice much of that. Perhaps because Walker was so charismatic.

But it wasn't just Walker's performance that kept me on the edge of my seat; it was the lighting, shadows and the cinematography. Guy is a famous tennis star who wears his shiny tennis whites while Bruno is a nobody languishing in his dark, dingy mansion. All his wealth has failed to save his soul. Of course, there is also the famous shot of Bruno strangling Miriam reflected in her glasses that had tumbled to the floor. In fact, the whole sequence was tense, as Bruno silently pursues her through the tunnel of love in a fairground.

Speaking of the fairground, I was sceptical about the final confrontation between Bruno and Haines taking place on a carousel that is spinning wildly out of control. I understand that it is going very quickly, but it's not that high off the ground. There's no real danger there. Unfortunately, this did push my suspension of disbelief a little too far.

Anyway, this was still an enjoyable film. It was tense, gripping and had a great performance by Robert Walker.

The Birds review

 Number 510 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's 1963 horror-thriller 'The Birds.'

Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hendren) is a socialite who meets lawyer Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor) in a San Francisco bird shop. later, she drives to his home in Bodega Bay where she, him, and the towns people start being attacked by the local bird population.

What struck me most about this film was one of Hitchcock's most intentional decisions. He chose to direct the film without a conventional film score. And with next-to-none incidental music. And this worked brilliantly. It made a scary film even scarier. And this was a scary film. The lack of music made the tension go through the roof. The seeming lack of motive behind the birds' attacks made them even more terrifying.

However, I think the bird attacks being so random- they indiscriminately attack anybody regardless of time or location - proved to be the film's biggest shortcoming. as there is no discernible reason for why they could be attacking although a drunk bargoer speculates it is the end of the world, there is also no strategy for how to defeat them. When the townspeople do meet to discuss the issue, a birdwatcher is sceptical of the attacks, and even more sceptical of any preventative measures. But this lack of plan leads to a sagging of the narrative that culminates in an anti-climatic conclusion. *Spoilers* Melanie, Mitch and his family, drive away into an uncertain future. As nothing is resolved, it's all very unsatisfactory.

The character of Melanie was also unsatisfactory. She was just so useless. the Birds was released in 1963. but Melanie had none of the agency I might expect from the female characters of the time. When she foolishly goes off on her own to investigate strange noises, she discovers a whole room of birds. They attack her, and she doesn't even call for help. How Mitch ever knew she was in there to rescue her was the film's biggest mystery. But I also knew that Hitchcock and Hendren had a less than harmonious relationship behind the scenes, so maybe that was a contributing factor to Melanie's poor writing.

This notwithstanding 'The Birds' is still a very scary horror film. And Hitchcock is damn good at horror films.

The 39 Steps review

 Number 419 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's mystery thriller 'The 39 Steps.'

Richard Hannay (Robert Donnay) is in London when he befriends a mysterious woman. This woman tells him about a secret organisation called the 39 Steps. She later turns up dead and her assassins chase Hannay into Scotland where he becomes tangled up with a lady called Pamela (Madeline Carroll) as he tried to solve the mystery of the 39 Steps.

There is no denying that Alfred Hitchcock has had a momentous career. From the Lady Vanishes to Notorious to Dial M for Murder and Vertigo, he has been thrilling audiences for decades. And you can argue it all started with the 39 Steps. Released in 1935, this was one of his earliest sound films.

Hitchcock is a very good storyteller. His films usually stretch the realms of believability, but they work because the story is good. The Lady Vanishes is pure hokum and North by Northwest has the incredible scene of Cary Grant being chased by a cropduster, but both are still great films. The 39 Steps is equally unbelievable, but equally watchable. Hannay is shot at point-blank range, but he survives because a hymn book in his pocket blocks the bullet. I'm doubtful that even the bible could stop a speeding bullet at point blank range.

Yet Hannay is a likable protagonist. Like Cary Grant in North by Northwest, he is a victim of circumstance. Mistakenly identified as a murderer, he has to work hard to clear his name. It is this character arc that was interesting and engaging to watch.

Yes Hitchcock's films aren't always the most believable or realistic, but they are damned entertaining.

The Lady Vanishes review

 Number 311 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's 1938 mystery thriller 'The Lady Vanishes.'

Iris Henderson (Margaret Lockwood) is an English tourist returning home from travelling in Europe. She befriends an elderly woman called Miss Froy (May Witty) on the train before drifting off to sleep. When she awakes, Miss Froy has vanished. The fellow passengers don't know where or even who she might be. Iris is convinced something bigger is happening and along with the pompous Gilbert (Michael Redgrave) she begins to investigate.

To say that this film employs the suspension of disbelief would be the understatement of the century. It stretches disbelief to ridiculous lengths. The plot creaks as much as the hokey special effects and cardboard sets. I know that this was the 1930's, but the final shootout was made less thrilling by the melodramatic deaths and tinny explosions/sound effects. And it emerges that Miss Froy was secretly a British spy who had to report vital information in the form of a tune. The only thing more unbelievable was how she escaped from the firefight unharmed.

Having said all this, I did enjoy this film. Yes, the beginning drags on for too long - too much time was spent introducing the characters. But when things did get going, the tension became very high. Just like Iris, I wanted to know where Miss Froy had gone and what was her true identity. Also it was a very funny film with Gilbert's standoffish attitude providing a lot of the comedy. Redgrave played the laughs well.

There were plot holes and loose ends - what happened to the henchman who holds our heroes at gunpoint just when it looks like the day has been saved? Nothing apparently, as they're all fine in the next shot.

Despite this, I did enjoy this film which was one of Hitchcock's earliest efforts. But he started as he meant to go on and it was a great start. 

Charade review

 Number 280 on the top 1000 films of all time is Stanley Donen's romantic comedy mystery 'Charade.'

Regina "Reggie" Lampert is a translator holidaying in the French alps when she receives the news that her husband Charles has been murdered while leaving Paris. He is also accused of stealing $250,000 during World War 2. Together with the handsome, morally duplicitous Brian Cruikshank (Cary Grant) she must solve the mystery. George Kennedy, James Coburn and Walter Matthau all co-star.

Charade has been described as the best Hitchcock film that Hitchcock never made and it certainly has all the hallmarks of a Hitchcock film: plenty of plot twists, a knife-edge atmosphere, ambiguous characters and, of course, Cary Grant. But Charade was a formidable effort from Stanley Donen. And it deserves to be reviewed on its own merits.

Thrillers, like any other genre, can tend to be formulaic. Attractive female lead is embroiled in a mystery which she can't possibly solve without the help of an attractive male lead. There's a deformed villain in the shape of the hook-handed Herman Scobie played by the gigantic George Kennedy, and throw in a Henry Mancini score for good measure. Yet Donen kept things refreshing by obscuring Cruikshank in shades of grey. He is not your generic, clear-cut hero, but something far more mysterious. The audience is trying to figure out his identity at the same time as Reggie. And considering his identity changes multiple times, there is a detective work to do. The title 'Charade' has never been more appropriate.

Cary Grant also turned his hand well to the comedy. The tense atmosphere threatens to be a bit stuffy, but he kept things light with his comedic timing and goofy facial expressions. Audrey Hepburn was also a very likeable protagonist. She is just an innocent woman who is inadvertently embroiled in a mystery and it's easy to want her to succeed.

Overall, I absolutely enjoyed this film. Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn were great as the leads. As for being the best Hitchcock film that Hitchcock never made, I would certainly agree with that.

Notorious review

 Number 198 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's spy film noir 'Notorious.'

Alicia Huberman (Ingrid Bergman) is the American daughter of a Nazi spy who has just been sent to prison. She is recruited by government agent T.R Devlin (Cary Grant) to investigate Nazi officials who have escaped to Brazil at the end of the second World War especially Alex Sebastian (Claude Rains.) She has orders to seduce him, but things become more complicated when Huberman and Devlin fall in love with each other.

Although this film has considerable star power from Cary Grant to Ingrid Berman to Claude Rains, but the standout star had to be Leopoldine Konstatin as Sebastian's mother 'Madame Anna Sebastian.' She was the true villain of the piece and unlike her son, she actually had a spine. Lady Macbeth characters are always great to watch and Anna was no exception. It wasn't a big or powerful role, but you can always feel her presence in the background.

As part of the plan to glean information, Huberman is ordered to accept Sebastian's proposal of marriage. Anna is naturally suspicious of Huberman, but the hapless Alex is blinded by love. That is, until he eventually discovers the truth. Not only is his beloved an American spy, but she is also in love with another man. But it isn't he who decides her fate, but his mother. She orders that he poison her.

At the film's end, Devlin rescues Huberman from Sebastian's mansion in full view of Sebastian's Nazi pals. He takes her to the hospital, but deliberately leaves the Nazi behind. Sebastian, who has become under suspicion from his supposed allies, is forced to face the music.

This was an enjoyable watch from the Golden Age of Cinema and another great contribution to the film noir genre. Cary Grant fit a little too well into the role of the debonair all-American hero, but Leopoldine Konstatin shone as Madame Anna Sebastian.

Dial M for Murder review

 Number 178 on the top 1000 films of all time is Alfred Hitchcock's murder mystery Dial M for Murder.

Tony Wendice (Ray Milland) suspects his wife Margot (Grace Kelly) is having an affair with American Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings.) When his suspicions prove true, he plots to have her killed so he can inherit her fortune.

Hitchcock was famously known as the 'Master of Suspense,' and his skills came to the fore in this delightful movie. This is a deceptively simple film with a limited cast and only one or two sets, yet the tension is always high. Mr Wendice is a devious character evidenced by how he blackmails Captain Lesgate (Anthony Dawson) into murdering his wife. And Ray Milland did well to make such a despicable character interesting and charismatic. Although one could argue that the film leant into an excess of exposition at times, the overly talky scenes still brimmed with tension.

However, I think the film's greatest strength was also its greatest weakness. Perhaps it was too simple. Maybe I've been spoiled by all of today's complicated crime dramas, but I was expecting more from the police investigation. Sure there was a great dramatic irony in us knowing that Wendice was plotting to kill his wife while the police were clueless, but maybe that's because the police didn't do the most thorough of investigations. Wendice may have wiped clean most of his fingerprints with his encounter with Lesgate, but he still touched the silk stockings that he used as planted evidence with his bare hands. Maybe I'm being overly critical. Fingerprinting might not have had the importance it does now.

But what did puzzle me was the final act. After Margot is sentenced for Lesgate's murder, Chief Inspector Hubbard (John Williams) returns to the crime scene to conduct his own investigation. He then listens to Wendice and Halliday suggest their own theories. And I don't believe that any chief inspector would even consider entertaining such crazy ideas.

Finally, the backdrops for the exterior shots in Maida Vale were so obviously backdrops. I know this was the fifties, but come on.

Overall, I did enjoy this film. Sure it wasn't always the most believable, but it had a delicious dramatic irony that kept me engrossed throughout.