shadow of a doubt alfred hitchcock rotton tomatoes

Many of his films are more fondly remembered for the camera tricks they pulled or the iconic scenes they created, to the extent that the story of even some of his stronger works tends to be more easily forgotten. He has the same earthy yet magnetic presence that he had in To Kill A Mockingbird nearly two decades later, and unusually for a Hollywood leading man, he has no qualms in going all out in the more vulnerable moments of his character.Īs a director, Hitchcock was usually more interested in how best to tell a story than what the story was about. Peck has a fantastic ability to be restrained and understated without looking like he is forcibly reining himself in. But it would be wrong to presume that he was coasting. Gregory Peck doesn't have to do much to oppose her, since she is fighting against herself, something which is both entertaining and serves to deepen her character. Hitchcock uses Ingrid Bergman's naturally combative sensibility to his advantage, setting up her character as someone who seeks to explain love as a rational phenomenon and thereby resist any of its impulsive qualities. Even in magnificent works of the period, like Powell and Pressburger's A Matter of Life and Death, it can be frustrating when two people fall so deeply and unquestioningly in love after only a few minutes of screen time. Like Notorious, Spellbound's trump card is the often fractious nature of its central relationship. But it scores out over Notorious by more consistently maintaining the suspense it generates, resulting in a rounded and very enjoyable work. It is quite true that Spellbound is not a thorough-bred Hitchcock film, in that it is not an entirely singular vision (thanks in part to the involvement of Salvador Dali).

In an interview on the legacy of Hitchcock, Kim Newman described Spellbound as 'the one that Selznick won' he argued that Selznick's interest in psychoanalysis drove the project, whereas on Notorious Hitchcock had more room for manoeuvre to make the film as he wanted it to be. The partnership's output varied greatly (Rebecca on the one hand, The Paradine Case on the other), with its greatest legacy being Hitch's experimental work in the late-1940s.

The period between 19 saw the continuous clash of these two almighty reputations - Hitchcock's being founded on his 1930s output, such as The 39 Steps and The Lady Vanishes, and Selznick's being based largely on the success of Gone With The Wind. Much of Alfred Hitchcock's work in the 1940s is characterised by his tempestuous working relationship with producer David O.

Shadow of a doubt alfred hitchcock rotton tomatoes