Hitchcock has put a spell on me- from the filmography I have seen from him. I’ve gotten through about half of them and every one of them has the same Hitchcock flavor but original alone. If you asked me who a master of classic cinema I would automatically call out Hitchcock. He uses repetitive trends- for instance blondes reoccurring, images of birds, trains, and staircases that appear in his films. Here is a brief analysis of everything I witnessed from these two masterpieces.
Strangers on a Train is a 1951 thriller that can be summarized with a mostly simple plot. Two guys meet on a train- Guy and Bruno. They both have someone in their life that they are tired of so Bruno brings up the strange idea of swapping murders. The two chat up a conversation- and Bruno is a big tennis fan and recognizes Guy. Hitchcock uses “double motif” to symbolize the differences between the two. The parallel back and forth shots of the two walking to converge uses this method as well. There are more visual representations of this, like when the lines of the train shade cover Bruno’s face. And Bruno even says “criss cross.” The cinematography is astounding. The story takes a dark turn and I wasn’t expecting it to be the type of film that it was. I was pleasantly surprised. Bruno kicks his plans into actions. He’s absolutely serious. Bruno follows her into a stunning and reoccurring set piece- a carnival with an island. He murders her and it’s shown through the reflection of Miriam (Guy’s wife) glasses. Another curious notion of double motif tactic is when Bruno is at a party he looks into Barbara (Guy’s sister)’s eyes and sees the face of Miriam. They look similar so it plays as a stylistic choice and a reflection of Bruno’s terror. He nearly chokes a woman because he is in such a trance. There’s several scenes that recall earlier sequences that are nice easter eggs. Every character is believable and the actor that played Bruno was perfectly annoying-which made his character devious and challenging. There’s a carnival sequence towards the end of the film that had me on the edge of my seat. Hitchcock is known as the master of suspense and there’s no doubt that was what happened there. While it’s not my favorite it certainly seems underrated for him.
North by Northwest is deemed one of the greatest Hitchcock films and my personal favorite. It feels like his passion piece- his greatest achievement, even next to Psycho (which I haven’t seen yet.) It wastes no time jumping into the action. Cary Grant plays the leading man- with all his Bond like swagger and charm, he makes for the excellent protagonist. His sly smile and quick thinking made him most enjoyable on screen. I couldn’t see anyone else in the role except for him. In fact as soon as I was into the film in nearly thirty minutes I said to myself “this is James Bond before it was cool.” It’s exactly that. Grant is a New York advertising executive who is falsely pegged as a government agent by a group of foreign spies. His journey begins when he has to escape and is chased across the country. Another surprising face- Eva Marie Saint stars opposite him as his cold hearted lover and rescuer? I saw her in On the Waterfront (1954), another favorite classic of mine and she was great in that so it was nice to see her in a bigger role here. She’s more layered and complex, also reminded me of Eva Green’s Vesper Lynd in the Bond installment Casino Royale (2006), which happens to be my favorite action film. Grant takes us with him every moment he’s on the run. Twists are around every corner and you don’t know who to trust. All you know is that you’re rooting for Grant. Every decision Grant makes is relatable and logistic making for this suspense thriller to be everything and more. There’s nothing more frustrating then a protagonist who doesn’t think right. Thankfully, Grant is the mastermind here. He evades his enemies long enough until the last half hour, which is absolutely gripping. His motivation and lack of fear results in all the mishaps working themselves out. He really goes for it in order to survive. The screenplay is consistent and there really isn’t anything to pick apart. The iconic crop duster plane sequence was some of the best four minutes in cinema ever. It was shot and edited to keep you anxiously awaiting the demise of our protagonist, or so we thought. Another monument of this film is the score by Bernard Hermann. The theme is memorable and uses loud orchestral pieces to ramp up the atmosphere of the film. The gripping conclusion doesn’t quite take an exhale- it’s an eleven second shot and then it ends. That was surprising to me. North by Northwest is gorgeous in all the right places, from it’s deeply saturated picture to the gripping actions of these characters, it’s a classic for decades to come, and so far my favorite Hitchcock film. It’s ahead of it’s time and extremely self aware.
