Hitchcock at his best
January 13, 2009 12:08 pm action, comedy, mystery/thriller “North by Northwest” delivers thrills, chills and fun
Rumor has it that Alfred Hitchcock’s “North by Northwest” began life as “The Man in Lincoln’s Nose.”
The title refers to a climatic chase across the literal face of Mount Rushmore, which at one point finds star Cary Grant taking refuge in Abraham Lincoln’s nostril. Then he sneezes. Ewww.
Lucky for us, Hitchcock and screenwriter Ernest Lehman found a more elegant name for the Cold War comic thriller.
Grant stars as Roger Thornhill, a mild-mannered Madison Avenue advertising exec who is kidnapped, interrogated and nearly killed by a gang of spies who believe he’s really a government agent named George Kaplan.
Thornhill escapes, only to stumble upon the murder of a United Nations official. Now a fugitive from justice and desperate to find the real Kaplan, he sneaks aboard a train in Chicago and meets the lovely Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint), who has a secret of her own.
“North by Northwest” boasts some of the most memorable scenes in movie history — Cary Grant being chased through a cornfield by a crop-duster, heroes and villains clambering across Mount Rushmore — as well as some of the snappiest dialog. (Who could forget Eva Marie Saint purring, “I never discuss love on an empty stomach”?)
The chemistry between suave Cary and sexy Eva is undeniable.
“Rear Window” and “Vertigo” may be better examples of Hitchcock’s genius for psychological thrills, but 1959’s “North by Northwest” has the whole package: action, suspense and mistaken identities complete with a classic movie MacGuffin (in this case, microfilm) and silly, saucy wit.
No wonder it’s listed as No. 4 in the American Film Institute’s list of “100 Years … 100 Thrills.”
See “North by Northwest” on the big screen tonight at 7 p.m. at the Fremont movie theater, 1055 Monterey St. in San Luis Obispo. Come a half-hour early for trivia and prizes.
Tickets are $7.50.
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Here’s proof of the cultural impact of “North by Northwest.”
During a Google image search, I stumbled upon this adorable Lego parody of the famous cropduster scene. Vanity Fair did their own version with Seth Rogen in the Cary Grant role.
Grant’s tailored gray suit has also influenced thousands, as evidenced by its No. 1 slot in GQ magazine’s list of fashionable movies. Tom Cruise copied the look in “Collateral,” while Ben Affleck borrowed it in “Paycheck.” (Suffice it to say that neither man looked quite as good as Cary.)
You can figure out why in Benjamin Schwarz’s brilliant essay about the smart, stylish and charismatic Cary Grant.
Nick :
Date: January 13, 2009 @ 12:39 pm
Love North by Northwest. But that movie with the guy obsessed with a tennis player that Hitchcock did is very good, too. Still, North by Northwest is the closest thing to the perfect movie. You can’t beat the mix of suspense, romance, visual awesomeness and the acting skill. Wow, just thinking about it gets me excited. I just can’t hide it.
Sally :
Date: January 13, 2009 @ 5:22 pm
I like Rear Window and Rebecca better. I think North by Northwest was okay though, just not my fave.
I used to love The Birds, but then I saw it with my children and they think the special effects are such a hoot (pun intended) that they have ruined it for me.
Sarah :
Date: January 13, 2009 @ 5:25 pm
Nick, do you mean “Strangers on a Train”?
Tyrone Huevo :
Date: January 14, 2009 @ 6:46 am
Speaking of “The Birds,” there’s a section of Cuesta College where crows assemble in the winter. Apparently these birds have some 30 phrases they use to communicate, so they’re cackling all day long … and fluttering into and out of trees … and using the nearby parking lot as a runway. Yes … it reminds me of a scene in the Hitchcock classic. Which brings me back to “North by Northwest.” There may be easier ways to kill off a character in a movie, but none as visually stunning as chasing a businessman through a corn field with a crop-dusting biplane. The Mt. Rushmore segment is also a visual treat. And it reminds me of a story of when I was at the Grand Canyon: A front desk worker received a call from a guest who was complaining that she didn’t have a view. “What room are you in?” asked the worker. The woman told her. The worker said, “That room HAS a view.” To which the guest replied: “But I wanted to see the presidents’ faces.”
David :
Date: January 14, 2009 @ 9:36 am
I have to put North by Northwest at the top. Who hasn’t gotten off the Greyhound in the middle of nowhere and been attacked by a mad crop-duster?
(Though they claim to be international super spies, it seems like an inefficient choice for rubbing out the competition. Amazing documentary footage.)
Psycho has to be on the list and Vertigo. Perhaps I just like movies that have the letter o in the title.