ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Very perceptive contrast, Konway. I read mysteries. But it's not the solution I enjoy so much as the journey. DOUBLE INDEMNITY is a great detective story. Mystery? We know who did it from the start! There are some great film mysteries. MALTESE FALCON, THE BIG SLEEP. By and large, I think suspense is better suited for cinematic storytelling. Certainly for Mr. Hitchcock's method of telling it!
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
I think there is an interesting degree of suspense in The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep, because we don't know the level of danger Bogart's character is in. For Example, Sam Spade's partner gets killed in the beginning of The Maltese Falcon. So we learn that it is a dangerous investigation journey from the very beginning. We want Sam Spade to solve the case and we don't want him in any degree of danger. By the end, Sam is safe and the audience is relieved from Suspense.
Last edited by Konway on October 29th, 2012, 3:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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MissGoddess
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Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
I like this analysis of the two concepts...I think I must be a "suspense" girl since I never tire of watching Hitch's films and while I do love a good mystery, there aren't too many I re-watch frequently. They have to have something else to keep me coming back, be it suspense or a just as Red says, an enjoyable ride.
"There's only one thing that can kill the movies, and that's education."
-- Will Rogers
-- Will Rogers
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
I think there is an interesting degree of suspense in The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep, because we don't know the level of danger Bogart's character is in
I absolutely agree. That's precisely why I like those movies. I think that's true of all great mysteries. It may not be the main character who's in jeopardy, but somebody's life depends on their tenacity. "Falcon" moves so fast, on so many levels, I hardly have time to think about who did what. I'm just along for the ride!
I absolutely agree. That's precisely why I like those movies. I think that's true of all great mysteries. It may not be the main character who's in jeopardy, but somebody's life depends on their tenacity. "Falcon" moves so fast, on so many levels, I hardly have time to think about who did what. I'm just along for the ride!
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Rita Hayworth
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Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Falcon ... is one of those Bogart's movies that you have to watch it twice in row to enjoy it to the fullest. This is my favorite Humphrey Bogart Movie of all time ... I put this ahead of the immortal Casablanca anyday; because Falcon is a rollercoaster of a movie ... literally!RedRiver wrote:"Falcon" moves so fast, on so many levels, I hardly have time to think about who did what. I'm just along for the ride!
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Thank you for the kudoes Mrs.L. Your post tells me a coupla things I didn’t know:
( * ) The “kind” of marriage the Hitchcocks would have ( which makes me think of the Laughtons )
( * ) Shock scenes initiated by Alma ( a girl after my own bloody heart )
It sort of makes sense that Tippi might endure the unwanted advances by Hitch, just to work with that hunk from the James Bond movies...but I dunno. Seems like she went through a bit too much for Connery to be the reason.
The little man was Toby Jones:
...who did a grand job of playing Truman Capote a few years back.
Hitch didn’t only use blondes: there was Teresa Wright, Sylvia Sidney, the raven-haired beauty of Margaret Lockwood, Laraine Day. There was also Valli, Julie Andrews and the beautiful Ingrid Bergman. He loved those blondes, but I think he loved good actresses that could represent his ideal Woman, and his ideas.
( * ) The “kind” of marriage the Hitchcocks would have ( which makes me think of the Laughtons )
( * ) Shock scenes initiated by Alma ( a girl after my own bloody heart )
It sort of makes sense that Tippi might endure the unwanted advances by Hitch, just to work with that hunk from the James Bond movies...but I dunno. Seems like she went through a bit too much for Connery to be the reason.
The little man was Toby Jones:
...who did a grand job of playing Truman Capote a few years back.
Hitch didn’t only use blondes: there was Teresa Wright, Sylvia Sidney, the raven-haired beauty of Margaret Lockwood, Laraine Day. There was also Valli, Julie Andrews and the beautiful Ingrid Bergman. He loved those blondes, but I think he loved good actresses that could represent his ideal Woman, and his ideas.
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Cinemaven, Don't forget Jane Wyman in Stage Fright.
What do you all think about Hitchcock's The Trouble with Harry? I think this film has a beautiful cinematography. I also get the humor that goes in the film.
What do you all think about Hitchcock's The Trouble with Harry? I think this film has a beautiful cinematography. I also get the humor that goes in the film.
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
AHhhh yes, Jane Wyman, Konway. She & Dietrich flitted briefly across my brain as I was thinking of non-blondes but then the thought just poofed out of my head. He did like the blondes, but there were others as well.
To tell the truth, I've never seen "THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY" in its entirety. The little that I've seen, I have to say I didn't like a funny Hitchcock. One of those arsenic and old lace funny comedies about murder. I should give it a chance, but I probably am not gonna. I did finally give "SABOTAGE" and "RICH AND STRANGE" a chance last year and loved them.
Don't ask...I'm a haaaard-headed Maven.
Nicely written post on "Sabotage" by the way!
To tell the truth, I've never seen "THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY" in its entirety. The little that I've seen, I have to say I didn't like a funny Hitchcock. One of those arsenic and old lace funny comedies about murder. I should give it a chance, but I probably am not gonna. I did finally give "SABOTAGE" and "RICH AND STRANGE" a chance last year and loved them.
Don't ask...I'm a haaaard-headed Maven.
Nicely written post on "Sabotage" by the way!
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Falcon ... is one of those Bogart's movies that you have to watch it twice in row to enjoy it to the fullest
Perfect! I must have watched it three times before I stopped being surprised by things! It's exceptionally well written.
Perfect! I must have watched it three times before I stopped being surprised by things! It's exceptionally well written.
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JackFavell
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Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Konway, I really love Sabotage, and what you wrote about it. It's one of my favorite Hitch films. I don't think the boy with the bomb was a mistake, not at all. It always seems someone thinks that Hitch made this mistake or that mistake, but for me, most of his films are incredible and I never think about his choices being 'mistakes' until some critic mentions them. Except for Paul Newman in Torn Curtain. THAT was a mistake. 
I doubt that those who mention these 'mistakes' could make a film half as good as Hitch's least successful film. I prefer to make my own judgments about films anyway. Maybe it's the word 'mistake' I don't like.
I think what we want after Stevie's demise is for his sister to recover just a little, or have the hope of recovering from this blow. She can't fully at the end of the movie, it's too soon, but John Loder we know will give her the best chance at a happy life later on, when the sting of Stevie's death has faded a little.
Oscar Homolka delivers one of the best performances of any Hitchcock villain. The way he sweats it out, worrying whether someone will know he was involved, makes YOU the audience sweat. He is not a good man, as Mrs. Verloc always states, but is a man who has been kind to Stevie in order to get what he wants. His instincts are good, but he constantly veers to the weak side, or the side that satisfies himself above others. He makes excuses for his choices. He knows they are wrong on some level, but continues to make the wrong ones. He's very human, but not the good way that we see in Saboteur among the carnival folk, more in the way that was responsible for the rise of Nazism.
The case can be made that he is a victim as well and this is what I love best about the film - he's not really completely responsible for the evil things he puts in place - he's just stupid and greedy. He and Claude Rains in Notorious are both fascinating villains, I think alone in Hitch's canon, they are victims of a larger group (not to mention poor Claude has to deal with his mother, too...yikes!) that is simply using them as a means to an end, and doesn't care whether they are discarded along the way. I feel sorry for Homolka, I come just that close to liking him - were he to break down, in his guilt ridden state over Stevie's death, I could really think him a tragic figure. But there is that one scene - where instead his guilt comes out in anger and irritation - telling Mrs. Verloc to just get over it, as if Stevie's death were some small matter, like a lost ring, or a broken toy. That's what makes him irredeemable, and it sets up his own downfall because it is only just that he die at the end. Homolka is such a great actor that he really carries off this dilemma, a somewhat likeable man who is also capable of murder.
I love The Trouble With Harry, I think it's perfect, and it may just be the first Hitch I show to my daughter, who has the same perverse sense of humor that I do.
You talked about the differences between suspense and mystery. On which side of the line would you put Rebecca, Suspicion and Spellbound? They all have mystery stories at their basis, which have twist endings... are they less enjoyable than Hitch's other suspense films?
I doubt that those who mention these 'mistakes' could make a film half as good as Hitch's least successful film. I prefer to make my own judgments about films anyway. Maybe it's the word 'mistake' I don't like. I think what we want after Stevie's demise is for his sister to recover just a little, or have the hope of recovering from this blow. She can't fully at the end of the movie, it's too soon, but John Loder we know will give her the best chance at a happy life later on, when the sting of Stevie's death has faded a little.
Oscar Homolka delivers one of the best performances of any Hitchcock villain. The way he sweats it out, worrying whether someone will know he was involved, makes YOU the audience sweat. He is not a good man, as Mrs. Verloc always states, but is a man who has been kind to Stevie in order to get what he wants. His instincts are good, but he constantly veers to the weak side, or the side that satisfies himself above others. He makes excuses for his choices. He knows they are wrong on some level, but continues to make the wrong ones. He's very human, but not the good way that we see in Saboteur among the carnival folk, more in the way that was responsible for the rise of Nazism.
The case can be made that he is a victim as well and this is what I love best about the film - he's not really completely responsible for the evil things he puts in place - he's just stupid and greedy. He and Claude Rains in Notorious are both fascinating villains, I think alone in Hitch's canon, they are victims of a larger group (not to mention poor Claude has to deal with his mother, too...yikes!) that is simply using them as a means to an end, and doesn't care whether they are discarded along the way. I feel sorry for Homolka, I come just that close to liking him - were he to break down, in his guilt ridden state over Stevie's death, I could really think him a tragic figure. But there is that one scene - where instead his guilt comes out in anger and irritation - telling Mrs. Verloc to just get over it, as if Stevie's death were some small matter, like a lost ring, or a broken toy. That's what makes him irredeemable, and it sets up his own downfall because it is only just that he die at the end. Homolka is such a great actor that he really carries off this dilemma, a somewhat likeable man who is also capable of murder.
I love The Trouble With Harry, I think it's perfect, and it may just be the first Hitch I show to my daughter, who has the same perverse sense of humor that I do.
You talked about the differences between suspense and mystery. On which side of the line would you put Rebecca, Suspicion and Spellbound? They all have mystery stories at their basis, which have twist endings... are they less enjoyable than Hitch's other suspense films?
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Rita Hayworth
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Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
The problem with HITCHCOCK that he made too many great movies ... No wonder he is a MASTER STORYTELLER in FILM and TELEVISION.
I love Sabotage, Rich and Strange, Rebecca, Spellbound, and Suspicion.
I love Sabotage, Rich and Strange, Rebecca, Spellbound, and Suspicion.
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
I agree with you, Kingme.
Jackfavell, I believe it was the studio forced Hitchcock to cast Paul Newman for Professor Armstrong. Hitchcock wanted Anthony Perkins for Professor Armstrong. I think Anthony Perkins and Julie Andrews would have made a great pairing.
With Rebecca, I think it has both mystery and suspense. But I think there is suspense than mystery, because of the involvement of Mrs. Danvers and Jack Favell (played by George Sanders). From second half onwards to the final, the suspense increases because we are afraid that Maxim might get caught because of the evidences provided by Favell. Also at the same time, we are afraid that Mrs. Danvers may try to kill Second Mrs. de Winter. In the first half, there is mystery and suspense because we don't know anything about Rebecca. We are also in suspense, because we are wondering how long it will take to find out about Rebecca. Once Maxim reveals about Rebecca to Second Mrs. de Winter, the mystery decreases. But the suspense increases, because we are aware of the fact that Maxim is in danger of getting caught. So we wait to find out what happens.
With Suspicion, I think the film ended up becoming more powerful than the "original intention" of Hitchcock. Unlike the book it is based on, the film focuses far more on the psychology of Lina. With its current ending, we are still on the suspense, because we are still wondering if Lina is in danger or not. But the clues given throughout the film makes it more like it was all Lina's imagination. Johnnie was a man who was broken financially all of his life. His friendship with Beaky started at a very young age. But Lina's suspicion of Johnnie being a murderer only starts after the death of her father. Lina's father didn't like Johnnie. Lina herself says in the beginning to Johnnie that "Oh I know you didn't marry for my money. You couldn't have done much better else where." It was Lina who bought "Murder on the Footbridge." It was Lina who spelled Murder on the Anagram. After that, we see her imagining Johnnie being a murderer. From this point onwards, we travel with her and her fantasy world.
For Example, the atmosphere becomes very dark when Lina reaches the house after visiting the land Johnnie and Beaky decided for their corporation. When Lina finds out that Beaky is alive, the atmosphere becomes a bright and joyful atmosphere while Vienna Blood waltz is playing in the background. Unlike the book, the film also focuses on the psychological conflict of Lina. After the death of Beaky, there is a scene where Lina talks to her father's portrait - "He didn't go to Paris. He didn't go to Paris I tell you." Not only that, Johnnie changes his mind several times for Lina throughout the film. This makes the film look like a psychological film than a murder mystery.
With Spellbound, I think there is both Mystery and Suspense. But I think there is more mystery than Suspense. This is because we don't know why Peck's character is bothered by "the lines." Just like Bergman, we are interested more in findout the mystery behind "the lines." This mystery continues till until it is revealed "close" to the end of the film. So I think there is more of a mystery in the film than Suspense.
Jackfavell, I believe it was the studio forced Hitchcock to cast Paul Newman for Professor Armstrong. Hitchcock wanted Anthony Perkins for Professor Armstrong. I think Anthony Perkins and Julie Andrews would have made a great pairing.
With Rebecca, I think it has both mystery and suspense. But I think there is suspense than mystery, because of the involvement of Mrs. Danvers and Jack Favell (played by George Sanders). From second half onwards to the final, the suspense increases because we are afraid that Maxim might get caught because of the evidences provided by Favell. Also at the same time, we are afraid that Mrs. Danvers may try to kill Second Mrs. de Winter. In the first half, there is mystery and suspense because we don't know anything about Rebecca. We are also in suspense, because we are wondering how long it will take to find out about Rebecca. Once Maxim reveals about Rebecca to Second Mrs. de Winter, the mystery decreases. But the suspense increases, because we are aware of the fact that Maxim is in danger of getting caught. So we wait to find out what happens.
With Suspicion, I think the film ended up becoming more powerful than the "original intention" of Hitchcock. Unlike the book it is based on, the film focuses far more on the psychology of Lina. With its current ending, we are still on the suspense, because we are still wondering if Lina is in danger or not. But the clues given throughout the film makes it more like it was all Lina's imagination. Johnnie was a man who was broken financially all of his life. His friendship with Beaky started at a very young age. But Lina's suspicion of Johnnie being a murderer only starts after the death of her father. Lina's father didn't like Johnnie. Lina herself says in the beginning to Johnnie that "Oh I know you didn't marry for my money. You couldn't have done much better else where." It was Lina who bought "Murder on the Footbridge." It was Lina who spelled Murder on the Anagram. After that, we see her imagining Johnnie being a murderer. From this point onwards, we travel with her and her fantasy world.
For Example, the atmosphere becomes very dark when Lina reaches the house after visiting the land Johnnie and Beaky decided for their corporation. When Lina finds out that Beaky is alive, the atmosphere becomes a bright and joyful atmosphere while Vienna Blood waltz is playing in the background. Unlike the book, the film also focuses on the psychological conflict of Lina. After the death of Beaky, there is a scene where Lina talks to her father's portrait - "He didn't go to Paris. He didn't go to Paris I tell you." Not only that, Johnnie changes his mind several times for Lina throughout the film. This makes the film look like a psychological film than a murder mystery.
With Spellbound, I think there is both Mystery and Suspense. But I think there is more mystery than Suspense. This is because we don't know why Peck's character is bothered by "the lines." Just like Bergman, we are interested more in findout the mystery behind "the lines." This mystery continues till until it is revealed "close" to the end of the film. So I think there is more of a mystery in the film than Suspense.
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JackFavell
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Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Thanks for your reply, Konway, that all makes a lot of sense to me. I happen to think you are right, we remember Hitch because of the suspense of his films, not the mystery involved. But some of his movies cross back and forth between mystery and suspense, and sometimes, I wonder if these are the weaker films. However, I recently watched Suspicion with your words about it that you posted at the other site in mind, and enjoyed it much more than I ever had before.
Another thing that I enjoy greatly in Hitch films is his gift for art direction, which was his background. No matter what you think of his plots or his themes or even his direction, the art direction in every film is superb and sometimes can get me through a movie I normally wouldn't be very interested in.
Another thing that I enjoy greatly in Hitch films is his gift for art direction, which was his background. No matter what you think of his plots or his themes or even his direction, the art direction in every film is superb and sometimes can get me through a movie I normally wouldn't be very interested in.
Re: ALFRED HITCHCOCK
Even Hitchcock's lesser efforts are far more stronger than powerful efforts of many directors out there. I highly recommend Waltzes from Vienna. Its available here for free. This is because the film is in public domain.
It has Jessie Matthews, Edmund Gwenn, Esmond Knight, and Fay Compton. Esmond Knight went on to work with Director Michael Powell in 11 films. The subject of Fear is done in a very unique angle in this film.
I will post a review about The Trouble with Harry soon.
It has Jessie Matthews, Edmund Gwenn, Esmond Knight, and Fay Compton. Esmond Knight went on to work with Director Michael Powell in 11 films. The subject of Fear is done in a very unique angle in this film.
I will post a review about The Trouble with Harry soon.