S-Stuart

25 May 2012

Young Charlie, the Library and Knowledge

This is a marvellous film, superbly acted and directed. Knowledge has, since the Garden of Eden, been associated with thediscovery of evil, and the transition from innocence and youth toadulthood and corruption. The scene where Young Charlie rushes to thePublic Library in pursuit of the newspaper cutting and, on discoveringthe truth, right out of her childhood is quite extraordinary.Patricia Collinge is, as always, splendid and, as is true so often ofher characters, never quite understands what's going on around her.Saying more might spoil the film. Let me just add that the sense ofnaiveté and menace is quite remarkable. It produces a quite mesmerisingtension throughout the film.

25 May 2012

Terror Comes Home

Hitchcock's films often feature good people who somehow get themselves involved in something not quite kosher which escalates to something they feel they can't report to the police, or else it will be bad for them. "Strangers on a Train" is like that; so is "Rear Window". Here in "Shadow of a Doubt", the same plot device rears its head again, but with a difference. Usually the "bad thing" is rooted in some kind of external event, but in this movie, the young niece uncovers a monstrous secret about her favorite uncle, who is visiting in the family home. This is about the only movie in which I like Teresa Wright (Young Charlie), whom I usually find grating. But here, she does a creditable job as an ordinary girl who must grow up awful quick if she is to defend herself against this wolf in sheep's clothing, Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten). I'm amazed by how convincing Joseph Cotten is as Uncle Charlie, the shady murderer whom these naive people take to be a sophisticate. Hard to believe that he didn't go on to make a career of creeps in the movies, but he went right back to his "good guy" roles. For instance, he was capable of a lot more than the artist in the later "Portrait of Jennie", a good movie to be sure, but not a challenging role by any means. The actress playing the mother is very good; I've known many women as "on the edge" emotionally as she is, with an almost morbid sentimentality. The only oddity in the whole cast is MacDonald Carey as the detective-love interest. Mother calls him a nice young man, but he didn't strike me as all that young, and golly, he certainly is no dream boat. Is he supposed to be the "everyman" that most women will wind up marrying, a safe choice after the thrill of knowing an "Uncle Charlie" wears off? And that brings me to my next observation, that there is something unsavory about the relationship between Uncle Charlie and Young Charlie. Even before Young Charlie finds out his secret, Uncle Charlie seems inordinately interested in the young girl. In today's climate, it doesn't take much imagination to wonder whether there's an incest subtext going on here. First the girl is very fond of her uncle, then can't bear his touching her, while he enjoins her to keep their secret because it would kill her mother to learn the truth. Also, the age difference between Wright and Cotten is not all that much, Hollywood-wise. It is highly conceivable they could've played love interests in a different movie, as she is also about the same amount of years younger than Gary Cooper in "Pride of the Yankees". So, "Shadow of a Doubt" is a somewhat disturbing movie because of its focus in the home and among the family. It is nonetheless very well executed. My only complaint is that it is a little too long; hence the 4 stars rather than 5.

stills-6

23 May 2012

Uhh... Great camera work!

The star of this movie is the camera - the scenes are shot with suchintelligence and deftness that its a shame all that skill was wasted on thismovie. There are some terrific experiments with angles and tracking shots,no doubt Orson Welles and Hitchcock kept track of each other'sworks.Theresa Wright is admirable in her attempts at torment and Joseph Cotten isgood, but it's the camera that tells most of the story. Most of the reasonCotten is good is that he lets the camera do its job.The pacing and the editing is where this movie really lost me. It's either awacky experiment in storytelling or it was left until the last minute. Thefirst twenty minutes are very slow, until we get to the first shock, and itisn't even all that shocking. Then it slows down again and doesn't reallyget going until the final sequences. Normally, this wouldn't bother me, butit's really obvious and distracting. Crucial plot elements are zipped along,and then the camera experiments take their time to show us the inner livesof the characters, needlessly.Also, someone should remove about 80% of the orchestra from the soundtrack.It was way too much.

ann-65

22 May 2012

favorite Hitchcock

This is my favorite Hitchcock movie. Joseph Cotten and Teresa Wright wereboth excellent, and unlike other reviewers, I never had a problem with themovie's pace. But I think what makes this movie so creepy, and in aHitchcockian way, so subversive, is the juxtaposition of the image ofsunny,happy small-town America and insensate, predatory violence. I'm no filmhistorian, so I can't comment on war-time mentality or place this all incontext. I also don't think Hitchcock was slamming us with any specificsocial criticism. It's just a shadow of a doubt about human nature, andwhat we believe about others. And that subtlety is why it's such aneffective film.

21 May 2012

A forgotten gem

This review is from: Shadow of a Doubt (Enhanced) 1943 (DVD) I hadn't seen this movie in probably 40 years and actually forgot about it until it came up on a recommended list from Amazon. Great movie with a great cast of actors.A must for Alfred Hitchcock fans.

21 May 2012

Beware!

I received this DVD through Amazon as a Christmas present and when I sat down to watch it with my family, I noticed that instead of easing into the film with a menu and then the credits, it jumped directly into the film, with some strange digital glitches at various points. Later, the film jumped into an endless loop as it couldn't progress through the video then jumped back to the beginning of that scene. I know there's nothing wrong with my DVD player and upon closer inspection of the DVD, it doesn't have the familiar silvery reflective surface, characteristic of a commercially produced DVD, but a purple coloration, characteristic of a home burned DVD. I think the distributor that's supplying these to Amazon needs to be investigated because I'm convinced this is a bootlegged DVD. Buyer beware.

20 May 2012

Creepy

One of my favorite Hitchcock efforts. What can I say in a review about a suspense flick? As little as possible. Having said that, there's more than one psychopath in that family! Maybe between 3 and 4 stars, because it's a little wooden, owing to the circumstances of the era: pleasing the 1940 American audience, making box office, and framed within the popular attitude of the period. (One fingernails-on-the-chalkboard aspect is the earnest but mechanical performances of the supporting child actors); but the story quickly steamrolls over that with a trainload of plotline ingenuity, even after some "big reveals." For film buffs: This is a nice "museum exhibit" of perceived American attitudes of the era. Director Hitchcock, an Englishman and family man, lived in Santa Rosa, CA, and has done, IMO, a credible job of preserving small town American attitudes of that time. Special mention to actress Patricia Collinge for her role as the mother. That's a tough part to pull off.

20 May 2012

it brings murder back into the home where it belongs, hitchcock said

this is hitchcock's greatest movie i think because it is so grounded in the ho-hum day to day life of a small town(santa rosa,calif.) and just as it gets you hooked that way it then pulls back the cover and you see the terror underneath the everyday world. young girl(teresa wright)named charlie after he uncle and sole mate(joseph cotten in the best creepy role of a lifetime)decides to invite her uncle to come and visit,just to get some fun started. she is very happy to learn he is on his way here. what she doesn't know ,but we do,is that uncle charlie is a killer and hoping to out run two cops on his trail. the rest is one of the best thrillers ever made! the tension is in the air and you are hooked till the very last frame. don't miss this one!!!!

AZINDN

17 May 2012

An Age of Innocence Shadowed

A film of subtleties, Shadow of a Doubt is a slow moving characterstudy of young "Charlie" (Teresa Wright), the namesake of sinisteruncle, Charles Oakley (Joseph Cotton), formerly of Philadelphia, a manof dubious talents. Contrasting with the light and seemingly perfectAmericana of 40s, middle class, small town Northern California, UncleCharles is the shadow who comes into the lives of his sister's family.As young Charlie, Wright is an average but purposeless girl whose worldhas become boring largely by her failure to give it any meaning. Shewants her uncle Charles to "shake them up." However, she is part of afamily where everyone talks over one another without heed, they presentan assortment of conversations lost. The kids prattle, the mother/wifebabbles, and the family's men persist in mindless discussions of how toplot murder effectively. Somehow, this connotes as the average familydynamic in Hitchcock's translation. This is a film of many dialoguesbut only one voice is heard without interruption, that of UncleCharles. His monologue is the most menacing at the dinner table as hedescribes the "silly wives," useless, fat, women whom he sees as lessthan human, faded, fat, greedy animals deserving to die. Young Charlie adores her uncle until the "shadow of a doubt" is placedin her mind by detective MacDonald Cary, one of two detectives on anational hunt for the "Merry Widow" serial murderer. Once the seeds ofdoubt are sown, however, young Charlie's dream of the perfect uncle andher perfect world are forever shattered. Uncle Charles rips away atordinary Charlie, her sleepwalking innocence forcing her to see thewarped world he has experienced. The real world is not a nice place andCharlie attempts to shield her simplistic family from the evil undertheir roof becomes her responsibility for she has ultimately summonedthe devil to their door. Will she keep the family ignorant of UncleCharles murderous past but at a cost to her own happiness?Hitchcock acknowledged the film was his personal favorite and itdefines the idea of suspense, noir, and thriller without blood orvisual carnage. A literate script by Thorton Wilder (Our Town) alludesto all the violence that is only suggested but never seen, and throughthe physical presence of the brilliant character actor, Joseph Cotton,the menace and diabolic threat to the virginal Theresa Wright isalluded to in eye, body language, and hands. Sophisticated andcerebral, Hitch was playing with the audience by creating a masterpieceof normality and averageness through the evil veneer of a sophisticatedcharacter versus the idealized characters of small town America.

babygeniusesvseightcrazynights

17 May 2012

Quite a change from modern films

This 1943 Hitchcock film is really like nothing I've ever seen. It isdevoid of twists or needlessly flashy film-making—it just tells a storyfrom beginning to the end, and all the while keeps you very entertainedwith great acting, dialog and various indescribable nuances.The story revolves around a family in a small California town(interesting note: the movie was made in 1943 yet there's no mention ofthe war. I think this helps preserve the feeling of small townisolation). The oldest daughter named Charlie is bored with herfamily's ho-hum life. Then, UNCLE Charlie comes to town (playedmagnificently by Joseph Cotton) because he wants "to settle down", butto the viewer it seems like he's running away from something. He has alot of cash and wants to open a bank account. Two men have beencarefully following him since the beginning of the film. I'm not goingto give away any more because it's pretty cool.What was so stunning about this movie is that we as modern movieenthusiasts expect a good movie to have something hidden, something upits sleeve. Well, this one doesn't, which is a fresh change for usmodern types. A remake would be impossible--modern audiences wouldconsider it "tame". However, the story excels within the confines ofits time. Any remake would be a joke.The family is very interesting to observe. The little girl Anne almoststeals the show. She's literate and unintentionally snobby—like anine-year-old Ayn Rand. The father is kind of aloof and simple—he andhis neighbor friend are constantly talking about the "science" ofcommitting murders, which serves as a great backdrop to the suspensegoing on right under their noses.Thornton Wilder wrote it. This may have something to do with the storyand dialog being so engaging.

thecavernclub

14 May 2012

Hitchs Best...Without A Doubt

SHADOW OF A DOUBT (1943) (UNIVERSAL) This film is my favorite AlfredHitchcock picture. From most accounts it's Hitch's favorite, as well.It is very tough to pick a favorite from his fantastic body of work,but this one has always affected me personally. Growing up in a smalltown, whether it be Santa Rosa, CA., where this film is set or anyother small town in North America is an experience that stays with youno matter how far you go away from home, how successful you may becomeor long you have been away from home. It is a very nostalgic film & avery frightening film, at the same time. Only Hitchcock could havepulled this film off. In lesser hands this would have been just anotherstudio potboiler of the era.This is the story of a serial killer & prodigal son who comes home tosleepy Santa Rosa, to lie low. Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) is adoredby his family, especially his niece Charlotte "Charlie" (TeresaWright). The close bond between these two leads to a delicious cat &mouse game, that eventually pits niece against uncle, good againstevil.Hitch's shows that even in small town America, this evil can reside.When Cotten is dressing down his niece, as he realizes that she is onto him, he delivers a cynical monologue ending with "Do you know if yourip off the fronts of house you'd find swine? The world's a hell. Whatdoes it matter what happens in it?" To this very day that scene makesmy skin crawl.The cast is top rate. Joseph Cotten is as good here as he was in"Citzen Kane" or "The 3rd Man". Beautiful Teresa Wright gives herfinest performance, in only her 4th film. She is a very underrated &under-appreciated actress. Hume Cronyn, in his film debut (HerbieHawkins) & Henry Travers (Charlie's father) give the film the righttouch of "black" comedy relief, as mystery novel buffs who areconstantly trying to come up with the perfect way to kill someone.Macdonald Carey (Detective Jack Graham) & Patricia Collinge (Charlie'smother) are also well cast. Also look for Hitch's cameo, which has himplaying cards, on the train to Santa Rosa.Hitchcock's direction keeps the film moving at the right pace & bringsyou into story, as if you were living in Santa Rosa & watching all ofthis unravel from your front porch. Thorton Wilder, Sally Benson &Hitch's wife Alma Reville paint the picture with marvelous dialog,adapted from Gordon McDonell's original story. Joseph Valentine'sphotography on this film is stunning. The contrasting scenes of UncleCharlie in bed at his flop house hotel & Charlie in bed in her home,drives home the point of good vs. evil, without a word of dialog. Thisfilm also began the long partnership of Hitch & legendary composerDimitri Tiomkin.Rating 10 Stars

14 May 2012

Hitchcocks Underappreciated Best

Will not leave a shadow of a doubt in your mind that it is one of Hitchcock's greatest, though it may not readily come to mind when his classic are discussed. This gem is both a knowing commentary on post-World War America, an innocent time slowly coming to terms with the evil in its midst, and a chilling (though probably unwitting) foreshadowing of things to come. The wholesome family life of the Newtons in one of the last sleepy towns in California, the final American frontier, hums along while Uncle Charlie's insidiousness slowly takes root, aided by the initial adoration of Charlie, his niece and psychic twin. The two eventually play out the enduring, mortal struggle between good and evil, but the ending is neither as clean and tidy as we'd like it to be in life nor as it was beginning to be in movies.

14 May 2012

The serial killer in Uncles clothing...

This review is from: Shadow of a Doubt (DVD) This is simply fabulous; a completely unique story, set in a quiet, gentle small town, innocent in all its doings, until Uncle Charlie comes to call. Really the finest of Joseph Cotten's performances, this role is perfect, and he is truly frightening in his contrast of personalities, one for his sister and family, the surface one, and his hidden personality, that of the malevolent murderer. He despises rich women, particularly rich widows, and goes after them with a vengenace. Attractive and charismatic, he has no problem attracting them, to their eventual doom. He makes a slip and gives Charlie, his niece, a ring he stole from one of his victims, with the initials engraved on the inside of the band, and Charlie, her admiration and love for her uncle rapidly dwindling, does some late night research at the local library and discovers the identity of the intials on her ring. Theresa Wright is brilliant and believable, as are her entire family, her mother, whom I greatly admire, and father, perfect in his small town role, and her little brother and sister, the bookworm sister my favorite of all. Hume Cronyn, a friend and neighbor of the father's, engages in an ongoing game of how to create the perfect murder...always arriving during dinnertime and when asked how his mother is (he lives with her) he says "Middling, just middling." As the movie progresses and Charlie becomes more and more convinced that her uncle is the serial killer being sought by the two detectives who followed him to Santa Rosa, the tension increases and Charlie's life is threatened as well. My favorite scene is at the dinner table when Uncle Charlie tips his mitt a bit by expounding on rich widows: "Fat, greedy women, eating the money, drinking the money, proud of their jewelry but nothing else...and what do we do with animals when they grow too old and too fat?"And the scene in the bar, foreign land for Charlie, and a great scene, with Joseph Cotten twisting a napkin in his hands, and Charlie watching him do it, and thinking about all the women done away with by these same hands...there is a bit part of a barmaid, a school acquaintance of Charlie's with a jaded, resigned air of her lot in life as that of a waitress with no hope for the future. Uncle Charlie tells his niece that she knows nothing of him or life in general, and she "lives her perfect, ordinary life in her ordinary little town, dreaming stupid, silly dreams...and "I brought you nightmares..." Indeed.Hitchcock filmed this in the town of Santa Rosa, in a real house, and the attention to the small town aura is evident throughout; also the decade of the 1940s, lends an air of real innocence, a world complacent and happy and unaware of the Uncle Charlies of the outside world. Well worth adding to your Hitchcock collection...a true classic of the Master Director's skills.

13 May 2012

Shadow of a Doubtful Transfer

This review is from: Shadow of a Doubt (DVD) I've seen worse transfers but this one is not great. The opening titles are cut-off, they start with the director's credit and the film begins. The gray range is OK from black to white but it appears that this transfer is from a video that had "Time-Compression" used on it. As you watch in some panning shots there appears to be a "strobing" movement, a bit jerky, like we used to see on old TV shows that needed to get more commercials in the time slot. Get the Universal product for this film...much better!

Eternality

12 May 2012

This is said to be Hitchcocks favorite film, but its by no means his best.

**This review was written before I have seen Vertigo (1958), which Iconsider as Hitchcock's best, receiving full marks from me.Shadow Of A Doubt confirms my speculation that Hitchcock films cannever reach the score of 10/10. As legendary as the Master of Suspensewas, his pictures has never really hit the perfect note with me, butstrangely he's still in the list of my Top 5 film-makers of all-time. Ilove all his films (especially Rear Window, and Psycho), but most ofthem are not serious heavyweights, or in other words, films that youhave to be in the right frame of mind before viewing it. Shadow Of ADoubt is a typical Hitchcock feature, a mystery plot set in a smalltown that starts out like a lighted-hearted family show, but slowlybecomes suspenseful.In the tradition of Dial M For Murder, and Rope, the villains aredeveloped in such a manner that viewers tend to like them even thoughthey are evil. Maybe that's what makes Hitchcock films so fascinating.There are engaging performances by the cast, with special mention givento Patricia Collinge (who plays the mother of the family). The endingis masterfully executed by Hitchcock, relying on close-up shots to makethe 'struggle' sequence more frightening. This is said to be hisfavorite film, but it's by no means his best.SCORE: 8/10 (www.filmnomenon.blogspot.com) All rights reserved!

carlso_me

12 May 2012

analysis of the theme

************************Careful SPOILERS ahead************************Theme is the underlying subject of the entire film one is watching. Thetheme of Shadow of a Doubt is subtle at times but nonetheless important.The theme of the film seems to be the duality of the human condition.Stated another way, the theme is that human beings are capable of doinggoodand evil. As Spoto says, Little Charlie (Teresa Wright) and UncleCharlie(Uncle Charlie) are two sides of a coin. Uncle Charlie is an `evil'murderer of helpless widows. Little Charlie is a kind, loving niece whowould never do such things.What Hitchcock does is to almost make Uncle Charlie and Little Charliethesame character. It is as if they are two dueling sides of one personsmind.One tells the person to do good while the other tells the person to doevil. This is similar to the relationship between Bruno and Guy inStrangers on a Train. Bruno and Guy meet `accidentally' on a train andimmediately it is evident that they are polar opposites. However, theyareboth related in some way. There is a strange homosexual attractionbetweenBruno and Guy. This is similar to the incestuous relationship betweenUncleCharlie and Little Charlie. She says that they are more than uncle andniece. She knows him. I do not, however, believe that Hitchcock wantstomake them lovers. Instead, I think the strange relationship is supposedtostrengthen the connection between the two and make it clear that they arethe same person.This theme of duality is expressed in many of the scenes in Shadow of aDoubt. One scene Spoto gets at when he talks about the presentation ofthecharacters. The scene takes place at the very beginning of the film. Wesee the camera zoom in on the streets of Philadelphia, cutting in closertoan apartment building. The camera finds itself zooming in on UncleCharlie,lying on a bed. This whole part is done to show the darkness of UncleCharlie's surroundings, thus showing the darkness of his character. Thisisjuxtaposed with a shot of Little Charlie's house. It is in the verybeautiful Santa Rosa. It zooms in and cuts to Little Charlie's room.Likeher uncle, she is lying on the bed thinking. This whole scene shows thebeauty and peacefulness of Little Charlie's surroundings, thus showingherbeautiful character. Both characters lie in the same position and arepresented very similarly. What Hitchcock shows is the two sides of thecoin. He shows the good Little Charlie and the evil UncleCharlie.Another scene, which reflects the theme, is one in which Little Charliewalks up the stairs to find her uncle waiting for her. He stands in thedark while she is has more light on her. The young Charlie has found outthat her uncle is a serial killer. She tells him to leave and he says hewill in time. This scene reflects the theme in that it shows the twosidesof the psyche conflicting, one in light and one in shadow. Charlie isthegood side trying to get the bad side to leave.The theme of the film can also be seen in the techniques that Hitchcockuses. One technique is his running motif of the `Merry Widow March.'Thistune that jumps from Uncle Charlie's head to his niece's helps tostrengthenthe link between the two. It makes them more the same character. Thistuneis in fact the MaGuffin of the film. It is the clue that we never noticewhile watching the film. One scene in which the motif is used is onethattakes place at the dinner table. Little Charlie comes to the table withatune stuck in her head. She says she cannot think of what it is. UncleCharlie attempts to call it the Blue Danube Waltz, but his niece soonfigures it out. Before she can say the name of it, he spills wine. Thisisa sign that the uncle wants to separate himself from his niece, orperhapshis other half. This tune brings the two closer together, thus makingthemconflict more.Another technique that contributes to the theme is Hitchcock's use ofangles. For Uncle Charlie in many scenes, he uses low angle shots tomakehim seem more imposing and powerful. In many scenes, high angle shotsareused for Little Charlie. This makes her seem much more confused by hersurroundings. She does not hold power like her uncle. She looks like apawn being played in a disturbing chess game. One shot that exemplifiesthis shows Uncle Charlie in his room. He looks out to see his niecetalkingwith her friend/boyfriend Detective Jack Graham (MacDonald Carey). Alowangle shot shows him dropping his cigar and position his hands as if tostrangle someone. This shows the evil power of the uncle. A high angleP.O.V. shot is used to see Little Charlie conversing with her friend.Theseangles in the scene make Uncle Charlie look like the evil power, whilehisniece is good and almost without power.All of these scenes and techniques point to the theme of conflictingpsyches. The scenes show that Little Charlie is the good sideconflictingwith her uncle, the evil side. They are meant to be parts of the sameperson. The incestuous relationship makes them look closer than justuncleand niece. They are psychologically linked and will fight for what theybelieve is right.

09 May 2012

Hitchcocks best

I love all Hitchcock but this is by far Hitchcock at his finest. I have heard it was his favorite as well. Teresa Wright and Jospeh Cotten are wonderful. I can watch this video again and again and never tire of it. A must see!

MBunge

09 May 2012

Perhaps the best of all Hitchcock films, which is saying a hell of a lot.

In addition to being the "master of suspense", Shadow of a Doubt shouldgive Alfred Hitchcock a claim at being one of the first and best of thefilm noir generation. That might seem odd, given the many surfacedifferences between this movie and the rest of the genre. The story isset in a bright and cheerful small town, not the dark and menacinginner city. Most of its characters are much more normal, upright andsocially functional. There's relatively little violence here and agreat deal of humor. But under the surface and beyond Hitchcock'sartistry, the black and cynical blood of noir courses through thisfilm's veins.Shadow of a Doubt spins around the axis of young Charlotte "Charlie"Newton (Teresa Wright) and her namesake Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten).Charlie is a far too earnest girl who chafes at the ordinary life ofher ordinary family in her ordinary home town of Santa Rosa,California. She especially laments the life of family service thatdefines her mother, Emma (Patricia Collinge). When flamboyant andirrepressible Uncle Charlie comes to town for a visit, young Charlie isecstatic. Not only because Emma is overjoyed to be reunited with herbaby brother, who brings to life all her most cherished memories, butbecause the two Charlies aren't just uncle and niece. They're kindredspirits that recognize they are different than other people.However, Uncle Charlie isn't just visiting his dear relatives. He's onthe run from the East Coast, pursued by two detectives, and from hisvery first moments on screen, the audience is shown a bleak darknessthat simmers under Uncle Charlie's audacious charm. He is a man with asecret, one that's eating away at him and will forever change the lifeof his beloved niece.Like just about all his other movies, Shadow of a Doubt is filled withstriking and powerful imagery. There are some young fools who don'tappreciate Hitchcock's greatness and it is easy to understand why. Bythe time they get around to watching his work, they've seen his styleand techniques aped by innumerable lesser filmmakers. Even with today'stechnology, many directors are still following in Hitchcock'sfootsteps. They're just going a step or two past the physical, materiallimitations he faced. It's only when you ponder how a movie made nearly70 years ago can look and flow better than most modern films that youcan appreciate the genius at work.The chief argument against putting this movie in the film noir genre isthat it does not embrace and wallow in the blackness of life. Itdoesn't cast evil as the truth and good as merely pretense, butHitchcock and his writers infuse almost every inch of this ordinaryfamily and their ordinary lives with pain and anger and unease. It'snot only Uncle Charlie's hidden malevolence or young Charlie'sawakening rage. It's Emma's profound sadness at the childhood shedesperately wishes she had back. It's Charlie's father Joseph (HenryTavers) feeling uncomfortable at Uncle Charlie superseding him in thefamily dynamic. There's also Joseph's unusual hobby of talking withfellow detective magazine fan Herbie Hawkins (Hume Cronyn) about thebest way the two of them could murder each other. The burned outwaitress in the dance hall where the two Charlies have their firstconfrontation is a girl Charlie's age but with all the life beaten outof her. The difference between the two couldn't be more stark. Shadowof a Doubt is all about the mean underside of human existence and howit seeps up into the sunny surface.There are also some excellent performances on display here, somethingfor which Hitchcock films are not always known. Teresa Wright andJoseph Cotten are spectacular. Henry Travers and Patricia Collinge areamazing. These are probably some of the most real and genuinecharacters to ever be in a Hitchcock movie.Capped off with a truly wicked ending, Sadow of a Doubt is a greatmotion picture. It's not surprising Hitchcock called it his favoritefilm. Watch it and it might be yours.

oakyal

06 May 2012

great, but somewhat atypical Hitchcock

Wilder and Hitchcock make a terrific combination. Little details of thefamily and the town make you care about them very much. Theresa Wright isawonderful heroine, and quite strong. Her torment is not so much fear asconflicted emotions, and you feel them with her. Cotton is both charmingandfrightening.Aside: what game was Hitchcock playing, anyway?

RPICARD2

06 May 2012

Teresa Wright is believable as the young girl who matures quickly

Teresa Wright is believable as the young girl who matures quickly when shesuspects that her uncle is a murderer. Joseph Cotton is outstanding as theuncle who may or may not be a killer. Teresa's ability to grow frominnocentchild to mature adult is an amazing transformation. Each of her accidentsbuild suspense until the climax.The show makes fun of small town life.Shadow of a Doubt is truly a classic.