Shadow of a Doubt
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Movie Reviews of Shadow of a Doubt
Movie Review: Alfred Hitchcock meets Our Town
Summary: 5 Stars
Many thanks to the reviews here by S. Whear, Arlan Ebel, and Mickey Moose 15. This is amazon reviewing at its best. Read those three in their entireties.
What stands out for me after watching this movie is the seductive and wholesome portrayal of Santa Rosa. Time has also given this film nostalgic value, deepening the American romance with small-town life. The details all work to make us feel comfortable in this town, down to the traffic cop who knows the names and whereabouts of everyone who lives in his town, the severe but helpful librarian, the lovely white house with its big porch and lawns, and the dinner scenes where all the (girl) children help their mother serve the mashed potatoes. The further we move in time from this movie, the more powerful its image of innocence becomes. The contribution of co-writer Thornton Wilder (Our Town) is very evident here.
The perfection of the location makes the arrival of Uncle Charley (played brilliantly by Joseph Cotten) all the more ominous. Ominous is what this movie is really good at. Outside of Santa Rosa all is confusion, as shown when a panicky Young Charlie is unable to locate her rescuer (the detective Jack Graham) at any of the addresses he's left with her. The ties between Santa Rosa and the rest of America remain tenuous. In the end, the battle between good and evil does seem to get resolved, but an allusion to the "crazy world" outside of Santa Rosa in the last scene, reminds us that this resolution is not meant to be felt as final. There is a "ghost world" outside the comfort of Santa Rosa that is its physical double, just as Uncle Charley shadows Young Charlie. It's in that world where the film significantly begins even if it's not where it ends.
In sum, that beautiful white house has both a front stairs and a back one. It's hard to forget seeing the shadowy figure of Uncle Charley through the window to those back stairs, which also become Young Charlie's preferred way in; it's because he knows that she will use them that her uncle is almost able to kill her on those stairs.
Movie Review: The apprentice is already a master
Summary: 5 Stars
Hitchcock is hatching in the US while the war is dragging along. He is building a tight little plot around a small criminal who gets into some serial killing of rich widows in New York or somewhere back East just because he likes money, because he does not like working at all, and because he hates these women who are wasting the money they inherited instead of giving it to someone like him who would make a better use of it since that would prevent him from working ever and forever and might even enable him to open some small business to cover up the bag of green backs. He is on the run. He escapes from the East and moves to California where his sister lives with her family. But the cops are on his tracks and they get quite close. One manages to capture the attention and care of the oldest girl of the family who is over eighteen in order to arrange with her the leaving of the uncle so that he is arrested out of the city. The uncle, the murderer as you have guessed, understands his niece has gotten through the cloud of mystery and has put two and two together and that it does make four in her head. So he has to get rid of her but he fails probably more out of lack of luck than anything else. But the luck of one is the lack of luck of the ether and vice versa. And during that time our uncle is courting the city and becoming some kind of glorious visitor on the music of some Merry Widow. The end is not going to be what he wanted it to be since he will not be able to leave the town but he will not remain at the surface of it either because he will nicely take residence is some kind of wooden underground chamber six feet under. You really feel the growing pains of Hitchcock under this little film that is probably already definitely too small for the big man who is inhabiting it. But he still has a few years to go before getting in the big shoes he deserves.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines
Movie Review: An Excellent Murderer
Summary: 5 Stars
Teresa Wright, innocent young woman, lives with her Betty Crocker, mom, Patricia Collinge and her bank clerk dad. He's a detective murder enthusiast, Henry Travers. Then there's Dad's creepy pal, Hume Cronvn, with various recipes for poison. A young bespectacled sister and goofy little brother complete the family circle. Indeed, Wright is just off the set from her Mrs. Miniver performance. The virginal attitudes, the very real naiveté of 1940's small town, middle class girlhood never to be seen again, contrasts with the, ah, insertion of evil.
Uncle Charlie shows up, the beloved, world traveling, younger brother of weepy mom. Actually, he's on the lam because his apparent wealth is accumulated after affairs with wealthy widows. Since these women had ended up in the morgue, the young detective, Macdonald Carey is on Joseph Cotton's trail. To get information, Carey romances Wright to get the goods on the Uncle. Hence, a confusing romance ensues, but can she give the detective information on her mother's favorite. It gets easier as Wright starts to get the picture.
This is Hitch's first American production and he certainly seems to enjoy the more expensive production values. The town of Santa Rosa literally pulls all the stops for the fat man. In those days, folks lived a block from the town business center. This is the same area where today there are crumbling buildings and high crime rates. In the forties, the middle class lived there, wandering the streets, walking to the library, strolling to the bank, or the local bar without a look over their shoulders. But watch out! Joseph Cotton, an excellent strangler, may be behind you.
Movie Review: "Charlie, think. How much do you know about your uncle?"
Summary: 5 Stars
Being directed by Hitchcock, people tend to overlook that the story was writing credits Thornton Niven Wilder who wrote "Our Town" three years earlier.
Teresa Wright one year earlier was in "Mrs. Miniver"
This film is creepy from the beginning as Charlie (Joseph Cotton) goes to his hometown to avoid two mysterious men following him. Who are they and what do they want of him?
Mean while back home things are just down right monotonous. Little Charlie (Teresa Wright) plans to send a telegram to Uncle Charlie to come and brighten up the place. She realizes she possesses telepathy when Uncle Charlie's telegram reaches her first. When Uncle Charlie arrives he brings secrets and the two mysterious men show up as magazine men doing a survey. Little Charlie must find the secrets and why the men are there. Each scene and secret reveals a more sinister environment. It just gets creepier.
The film and the camera angles are exceptional. The dialog helps build up the tension. Yet on this VHS copy I can not help but thing that some scenes were cut or something to that affect. One minute Little Charlie is walking happily with her quasi date. The next moment she is being apologized to for being deceived as he reveals his purpose. I wonder how many more scenes were cut or condensed.
However you will want to keep a copy of this classic.
The Trouble with Harry
Movie Review: Do You Believe a Stranger About Your Relative?
Summary: 5 Stars
Things have gotten boring and routine in the Newton family, and Young Charlie (Teresa Wright) especially is feeling the boredom. So she decides to wire her favorite uncle to come for a visit. As it happens, Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) is already planning a visit.
While Young Charlie is excited to see her namesake again, she can't help but notice that he is acting strangely. He's especially skittish around two men who arrive at the Newton house claiming to be conducting a survey. These men tell Young Charlie a strange tale about her uncle. Could it be true? Is so, what should she do?
I really have a hard time watching old movies because I often find them dull and slow. This one started out that way with the set up taking more time then I would have liked. This is especially true since I already knew where the story was going. Once it got there, however, things really heated up. I was watching the time, but only to figure out how much longer before I'd know how it all turned out. This isn't to say the second half was perfect. It includes a romantic sub-plot that, while important to the plot, feels forced on the story. This isn't the fault of the actors, all of whom do a great job bringing the story to life.
This movie is one of Hitchcock's lesser known efforts, and it's a shame. If you are looking for a good suspenseful movie, this one will certainly fit the bill.