Right now I’m reading “The Art of Alfred Hitchcock,” by Donald Spoto, which reports that though “The Lady Vanishes” was the crossover hit that helped bring Hitchcock from the U.K. to Hollywood, the film was set up to be made under another director – the script was written, cast announced and most preproduction under way. Nonetheless, it feels like a Hitchcock-brand film to me. Would anyone else have guessed this movie had a different stamp on it?
7 comments:
Hmmm. I might try to find that remake and test out my idea that this was a project better suited to a different filmmaker. Shepherd/Gould/Lansbury is at least a promising lineup.
I think it feels Hitchcockian, yes. Something about the witty repartee, the light-heartedness that takes the edge off the darkness while still allowing for a fair amount of creepiness. Plus the cosmopolitan feel that I generally associate with Hitchcock.
Thanks for the background info, by the way.
"..the light-heartedness that takes the edge off the darkness while still allowing for a fair amount of creepiness."
Yes! That's so true.
I think this is the first Hitchcock I've ever seen, so I can't compare.
"The Lady Vanishes" isn't his best, Ben. I'd sit down with "Rear Window," "Vertigo" and "Rebecca" for the five-star Hitchcock treatment. Or "Psycho" or "The Birds," since Halloween is coming.
Bonus: In "Vertigo," you get the music of Bernard Hermann.
I may have seen Vertigo. I'm sure I've seen clips of it.
Post a Comment