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Download, Watch online Shadow of a Doubt Movie.
| Genres: | CrimeThrillerMyst |
| Starring: | Hume Cronyn, Henry Travers, Joseph Cotten, Wallace Ford, Janet Shaw, Teresa Wright, Patricia Collinge |
| Director(s): | Alfred Hitchcock |
| Country: | USA |
| Year: | 1943 |
| IMDB Rating: | 8.1 |
Charlotte Charlie Newton is bored with her quiet life at home with her parents and her younger sister. She wishes something exciting wold happen and knows exactly what they need a visit from her sophisticated and much traveled uncle Charlie Oakley, her mothers younger brother. Imagine her delight when, out of the blue, they receive a telegram from uncle Charlie announcing that he is coming to visit them for awhile. Charlie Oakley creates quite a stir and charms the ladies club as well as the bank president where his brother-in-law works. Young Charlie begins to notice some odd behavior on his part, such as cutting out a story in the local paper about a man who marries and then murders rich widows. When two strangers appear asking questions about him, she begins to imagine the worse about her dearly beloved uncle Charlie.
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Movie Photos: We have taken some photos of "Shadow of a Doubt". They represent actual movie quality.
Visitor Reviews: (20)
16 May 2012
Not that impressed
I was definitely hyped for this movie when I first saw it, if only becauseit was a young Joseph Cotten in a Hitchcock movie. This was a veryenjoyable movie, but I have to agree that this is definitely NOTHitchcock'sbest; with Psycho, Vertigo, and Spellbound easily beating it out.Of course, I can't blame either Hitchcock or Cotten for thisdisappointment.In 1943 when this movie was made, Hitchcock had just moved to Hollywoodfrom England and had to deal with big time movie producers, the mostnotablebeing David Selznick. Selznick thought he knew how to make a movie, andpressured Hitchcock to make cookie-cutter movies that would make big bucksat the box office. Hitchcock and Selznick continually fought about whatshould be a good movie. The two were like oil and water--they didn't mix,and neither does this Hitchcock production. Although Jack Skirball doesgetcredit with the production, it's either in the opening or endings creditswhere you can see the words "a David O. Selznick production," a goodindicator that Selznick was involved somehow. It's only after Hitchcock isreleased from Selznick's grasp that you see some of his truly great movieslike Psycho, Rear Window, North by Northwest, Dial M for Murder, andVertigo.So there's the history lesson why Shadow of a Doubt is not as good as otherHitchcocks. But that's not to detract from some of the ingenious parts ofthe movie. Thorton Wilder's writing is accurate of how a large familyconverses: by continually overlapping and interrupting each other. (ormaybeit was Hitchcock's idea, either way it was great!) And, of course, thegreatest part of it all, Henry Travers, the angel from It's a WonderfulLife, and a very young Hume Cronyn discussing how to kill each other! Whata great idea! I doubt very much if Selznick could have thought of that.Allin all a very enjoyable movie.
gengar843 15 May 2012
Not exactly Hitch's "greatest"
WARNING* SPOILERS * WARNING* MANY SPOILERS*Just finished watching "Shadow of a Doubt" for the third time, and onceagain I come away feeling that I just watched a silly film. First, let'sjust say right away that Joseph Cotten does a MAGNIFICENT job, although Ithink Robert Mitchum is much superior in "Night of the Hunter." Underplayedby Cotten? Certainly I feel that Mr. Cotten's shift of demeanors is thehighlight of the entire experience. But here are some of my observations onplot holes and general silliness:1) The bank president barely gets ruffled at Uncle Charlie's $40,000deposit, which is equivalent to maybe $200,000 in today's dollars. Irealize that in those days there weren't drug czars, but organized crime wasbig business then, and Uncle Charlie's comments that he's just "in business"doesn't seem to make a dent in anybody's sensibilities, whereas the mentionof the word "embezzlement" makes everyone turn and look at Joe. The depositis made and seemingly a signature on a scrap of paper is enough "detail" forboth Charlie and the bankers. Nobody else seems to care much about UncleCharlie's riches either, except for another "merry widow." The detectiveson Charlie's trail don't seem to know that Charlie just visited the bank,and if they do, the $40,000 in cash doesn't seem to arouse their suspicions. 2) On the train, at the end, the two little kids are told to "run along andplay." Immediately after that, the train starts moving. Don't the motherand father have any concern that all three of their children are on thisdeparting train? Wouldn't Roger and Anne come back to tell Charlie that thetrain was moving? The entire scene seems rather contrived.3) Charlie's girlfriends (teenagers, right?) all seem inordinately drawn tomuch older men (the detectives). Notice Kathy always coyly eying upSaunders? And isn't Graham a little OLD for "little Charlie?"4) How is it that Uncle Charlie comes into Santa Rosa, virtually unnoticed,appears at the bank with loads of cash and no explanation, and the nextthing you know he's giving a speech and is a town HERO? I know he'scharming and a conniver, but how he comes to this is just not satisfactorilyexplained, and I think is a key element in the film, i.e., how Uncle Charlieis able to survive and get by in a world that he obviously hates.5) The fact that the OTHER suspect(in Maine)gets chopped up by propellorswhile fleeing does not necessarily clear Uncle Charlie. In fact, the photowas already, according to Saunders, on its way to be viewed inMassachussetts when the news in Maine broke. Wouldn't the police in Mass.want to show the photo ANYWAY, just as a matter of course, or of detail?Wouldn't there be ONE person in command who would INSIST that the finaldetail be worked out? I mean, OK, the other suspect is chopped up...thatdoesn't LOGICALLY clear Charlie? After all, there were no remains toidentify the other suspect; why not just "make sure?" Or is the plotelement of "not a very good detective" more far-reaching than just Graham?Does Hitch think ALL cops are boobs?6) What was the point of the "hanging sub-plot" where Charlie's mother wasstarting to get suspicious of foul play? Why did that end abruptly? OK, I've made my points.I DID like the movie, though. I give it 3 stars out of 4 for a number ofreasons: it IS suspenseful, well-acted, well-photographed, nicely-paced, andhas great humorous moments.It's hard to pick a favorite Hitchcock movie, but right now, mine are Northby Northwest, Saboteur, Topaz, The Birds, Psycho, Vertigo, and Frenzy.
ma-cortes 12 May 2012
This is one of Hitch's best with images full of suspense , drama and tension
Handsome and uncomplicated uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten)has come tovisit his family in Santa Rosa, returning to home town after longerabsence. Although he seems a good man, his young niece (TeresaWright)slowly comes to aware he is a wanted merry widow killer and hecomes to recognize her malignant suspicions. The suspicious uncleCharlie gradually becoming stronger and mysterious. Meantime twodetectives (Mcdonald Carey and Wallace Ford) are investigating. Furtherdevelopments ensure an exciting climax on train.From the story by Gordon McConnell, the picture gets unlimited suspensein crescendo, tense, full of lingering frames and with the typicaltouches Hitchcock. Besides a literately and thoughtful dialog signed byThornton Wilder and Alma Reville (Hitchcock's usual screenwriter andwife) though lacking humor . After his successful British films as ¨39steps¨ and ¨Jamaica Inn¨ , Hitch was encouraged to go to America andpromptly shot his first work in Hollywood hired by the great producerDavid O'Selznick ; later on he directed this excellent picture . Fineperformance by Joseph Cotten as sunny and cynic uncle Charlie . TeresaWright as shy and glad young is superb and enjoyable . Likable coupleformed by Henry Travers and Hume Cronyn in his film debut , booth ofwhom speaking continuously about murders. And of course cameo role byAlfred Hitchcock , this time as a man on train playing cards.Atmospheric and perceptible music by the maestro Dimitri Tiomkin,including piano sounds . Sensational visual style in black and whitecinematography by the cameraman by Joseph Valentine . This interestingmovie is brilliantly directed by the Master Hitchcock, resulting to behis favorite personal. It's remade in 1958 in quite inferior remaketitled ¨Step down to terror¨ by Harry Keller with Charles Drake, RodTaylor,Jocelyn Brando and Josephine Hutchinson, furthermore a lousyTelevision movie. The motion picture is indispensable watching forHithcock lovers achieving the maximum impact on his audience. Rating :Very good, engrossing and essential viewing.
11 May 2012
My Favorite Hitchcock!
As devoted fan of Hitchcock's classic back and white movies, Shadow of a Doubt is my favorite. Impeccable dialouge, setting, mood, and acting combine to create an engaging thriller not-to-be-missed by fans of classic movies. Hitchcock created a very realistic world, which adds to the suspense and drama of the film; viewers can fully indentify with the "typical" young girl whose life changes forever with because of the presence of her beloved uncle. My sister and I have seen it well over a dozen times, and still enjoy it; noticing every detail.
Michael Neumann 06 May 2012
Hitchcock does it again
In one of his most chilling and memorable intrigues Alfred Hitchcocklays bare the myth of small town virtue with a perverse piece ofAmericana about a wholesome family unaware of the gruesome skeletonlurking in its closet. The arrival of everyone's much loved UncleCharlie (Joseph Cotton, in his favorite role) is the catalyst todisaster, with eldest daughter Charlie in particular welcoming thearrival of her affectionate namesake as a relief from the humdrumroutine of suburban life. But evidence soon begins to suggest the elderCharles might actually be a cold-blooded serial killer, and a lethalgame of charades begins between uncle and niece: she knows the truth,and he knows that she knows the truth. The tension builds to analarming climax, in a trademark sequence (another one for the Hitchcockhighlight reel) showing the Master of Suspense at the top of his form.The film was shot in sunny Santa Rosa, California, where the shadowsare darker because the sunlight is so much brighter.
telegonus 05 May 2012
What Lies Beneath
Shadow Of a Doubt is Hitchcock's favorite of his more than fifty films. Manyfind this puzzling, since it's rather cool, light and detached, and has fewreally suspenseful set-pieces till near the end. The setting is prosaic,--asmall California town in wartime--and though Hitch didn't generally go forthunderstorms and castles, he tended to set his films in glamorous,cosmopolitan locales, while this one is extremely bland. One half-expectsAndy Hardy to turn up in his jalopy. It takes several viewings of thissubtle, complex film to understand why Hitchcock chose to make it the way hedid, and where he did. In the end, I'm inclined to agree with the directorin so far as while this may not be my favorite Hitchcock, I can think ofnone better.The story revolves around an outwardly normal middle class American familywhose eldest daughter, Charlie, is the most intelligent and imaginativemember. She can hardly wait till her handsome, mysterious uncle, also namedCharlie, will arrive for a visit. Uncle Charlie proves to be a charming,sophisticated fellow, and if not quite the knight in shining armor his nieceimagined him to be, he manages to make a pretty big noise with his relativesand various of their friends. As things turn out, some lawmen are on thelookout for a fugitive psychopath known as "the merry widow murderer", whoseduces and then kills wealthy women for their money and jewels. Since uncleCharlie happens to match certain of their criteria for this criminal, nieceCharlie grows understandably suspicious. At first, niece Charlie regards the notion of her uncle as a murderer asludicrous. Then uncle Charlie begins to drop hints that he may be not bequite so nice a fellow as he seems. There's no one for niece Charlie toturn to. Her father is distracted by fantasies of, oddly enough, murder, ashe and neighbor Herbie read murder mysteries constantly, and dream of evermore efficient ways of killing someone; while her mother, Charlie's sister,is nervous and not, well, not a hundred percent. Patricia Collinge plays thepart brilliantly, using her voice in such a way as to suggest someone inwhom years of affectation have become normal, and who yet still cannotcomfortably be herself. Niece Charlie's suspicions about her beloved uncle increase. She comes tounderstand, as we all must, that things are not as they appear. In suchcircumstances there's really no one to turn to but oneself. Most people aretoo self-absorbed to care, or are not interested in the finer points ofpsychology and behavior. What makes this all the more disturbing is that thepeople one loves the most are often the least reliable in their insightsbecause they're so loving; when it comes to getting at the truth, any truth,one often has to go it on one's own. In a strange way, Shadow Of a Doubt is a coming of age tale masquerading asa murder mystery. It's that, too, and grandly entertaining, but Hitch andauthor Thornton Wilder seem to be probing deeper, into what it's like tobecome and be an adult, and how difficult this is in a world that cares onlyfor appearances and impressions. In this regard, the movie is also a satireof the middle classes, with their hidden morbid traits and nervousafflictions no one wants to talk about. That the film came out in wartimegives it an added resonance. America was shielded from the war by twooceans, and though there were homefront hardships, they were minor whencompared to the suffering in Europe and Asia. Yet for all this, we werenever so safe as we imagined. Crimes were still committed; the darkness andcomplexity of humanity didn't vanish just because there was a war on. Thereare murderers here, in our very midst, Hitchcock and Wilder are telling us.Some of them might even be mass murderers, in a manner of speaking. Theymight even be members of our family.
BenP 05 May 2012
James Cotton!
I've never seen James Cotton before in such a nasty, hideous role but he sure was hecka good at it in this one! I couldn't make out whether James Cotton was protagonist or antagonist in Citizen Cane because the much revered "greatest movie of all time" got a big fat D from yours truly! He was great in The Abominable Dr. Phibes, though! Watch him work his magic in this flick, a much underrated actor, to say the least!
billymac72 04 May 2012
And their wives...their greedy little wives...
This is certainly my favorite Hitchcock (mmm 'Strangers on a Train' comespretty close too). It has so many great things going for it that I'm noteven sure where to begin. For a film made such a long time ago, the way itholds up today speaks volumes about its power. I showed this film to my grandmother who, having never seen it, fell in lovewith the depiction of 40s small town life (the on-location shoot in SantaRosa really made a difference here. It is in fact a character unto itself.).By the 40s, my grandmother was a schoolteacher/housewife living in Queensand by no means the teenager Charlie is in the movie. But I think for thoselooking to capture a fairly accurate glimpse of how people spent their timeback then, this film will be of great interest. Here we see as world whereteens are certainly not the entity they are now and are more or less treatedas adults. Where people took to the streets at night for enjoyment withtheir friends and neighbors instead of sitting in front of TV or a computer.Where people lived a fairly contained, contented life in a place where thelocal cop might cut you a break just because he knows you.But this ain't all Frank Capra, baby, it's Hitchcock, and he is definitelymaking a certain kind of statement about the small town America he foundhimself fascinated with when he arrived from his native London (this, Ithink, is his first real American made film). He manipulates us with thisgreat, comfortable, familiar  and accurate!  American atmosphere and showsus something extremely sinister lying-in-wait through the arrival of UncleCharlie (check out the dark shadow cast by the train carrying Charlie as itpulls in to Santa Rosa). In our modern terminology, I guess one could saythat Hitch is showing a world that, while a very nice place, is blanketed indenial. The mother, played by Patricia Collinge, perhaps best personifiesthis notion to the point where she practically flat-out refuses to believeanything amiss could possibly be happening within her glorious household.She is hysterically happy in an almost forceful, even disturbing,way! For younger audiences, I think they will begin the movie with apreconceived Frank Capra-type expectation (which really seems old fashionedtoday), but slowly develop appreciation as these two worlds begin tocollide. John Carpenter approached `Halloween' in much the same way: evil isa natural force in human nature that cannot be avoided or reasoned with nomatter how hard one tries to act superior to it. Anyone who believes theycan is merely deluding themselves. We often cannot control where or when itwill enter and throw our lives asunder. As for the players, they are entirely outstanding. Teresa Wright practicallygrows up before our eyes. Hume Cronyn provides intelligently fun comedicrelief. Joseph Cotton is absolutely amazing as the heavy. His smirk reflectsa cynicism and arrogance that attests to the hardships of the many darkcorners of his world  the world Santa Rosa consciously shuts out. Hisnegative energy would make him the perfect villain, but he's not an easy guyto hate. Just as his niece, Charlie, observes, we too find him dashing,charming, experienced, interesting and even friendly. By returning to SantaRosa, we know that he's looking for something that has long been corruptedfrom his soul. We slowly realize that he can't ever truly return to hishome, or what it represents for him, ever again. In that sense, UncleCharlie is quite tragic. On the other hand, Hitch doesn't spare us of theevil lurking within, and Cotton's soliloquy at the dinner table is nothingshort in awesome in giving us a peek inside the violent hatred fueling thisserial killer.
01 May 2012
You live in a dream world, and I have brought you nightmares.
This movie may start out similarly to many other 40's films, but Joseph Cotten's uncharacteristic creepiness brings this film a sense of dread not seen in american cinema until in the 70's. Uncle Charlie is more comparable to Travis Bickle than to any of Hitchcock's often confused, tragic characters, and this is where the films strength lies.Of course, all of Hitchcock's films are immaculately directed; but this film is almost kafkaesque in its embrace of the psycopath. That this is Hitchcock's favorite comes as no surprise--its darkness is almost overwhelming.
watkins39 30 April 2012
Family Noir...?
Shadow of a Doubt is a very watchable film with an impressive performancefrom Joseph Cotton. I liked its slow pace and simplicity. Like othermovies of its kind - Cape Fear, Night of the Hunter - it sets up a familyreeking of ordinariness for an encounter with the macabre, but the menacehere is very slow to develop.It doesn't date too badly, but there is a laugh-out-loud scene where Cottonreveals his murderous past with a complete lack of subtlety. Strange thatsuch a measured, low-key thriller should be so clumsy in its psychology -but then it's easy to say that sixty years later.One of the kiddy actors, Edna May Wonacott, had me laughing, but she doesn'tseem to have acted beyond childhood.
moonspinner55 22 April 2012
Self-consciously bemused and droll Alfred Hitchcock...
Alfred Hitchcock and writer Thornton Wilder attempt to expose theunderside of Americana (a favorite Hitchcock theme), but "Shadow of aDoubt" is self-consciously dry and droll. Joseph Cotten is very good asmalevolent relative to middle-class California family who pays them asurprise visit and brings mystery into their household. Before hisfirst night is over, he's already acting strange, tearing up Dad'snewspaper and then snatching it away from too-smart Teresa Wright(playing teenage detective, but not looking very happy about it). Thefilm's atmosphere and scenario are well-captured, but the plot startsto bog down (if not unravel) when two interviewers want to quiz thefamily about their lives; this would be suspicious in any era, and yetit leads to nothing. "Shadow" is a puzzling drama-lite with dangerlurking just outside the center; but when the reality of the situationcomes apart, the circumstances are no longer so absorbing. **1/2 from****
JackCerf 22 April 2012
Incestuous Triangle
There is a definite sexual tension in this movie between Charlie the uncleand Charlie the niece. He, being the sociopath that he is, is well awareofit and uses it to keep her loyal to him. She, of course, is an innocentwhohas no idea. She isn't ready to have her suspicions awakened until herattraction is transferred from her uncle to the cop. It's been a whilesince I've seen the film, but my recollection is that the cop understandsthis and that his courtship of her starts out with very mixed motives.TheProduction Code kept all this well below the surface.If Shadow of a Doubt were to be remade, this triangle would probably bemoreexplicit. If it had been remade, say, 15 years ago it would have beenveryexplicit. These days, though, the niece couldn't be played as plausiblynaive about her feelings for her uncle if older than 15 or 16, which wouldcomplicate her relationship to the detective.
08 April 2012
Shadow Across an Innocent Age
A film of subtleties and evil in plain sight, Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt is a slow moving character study of young "Charlie," the namesake niece of elegant but sinister uncle Charles. Formerly of Philadelphia, his visit to a younger sister in California is the kind of long visit by a relative everyone dreads in hindsight. Situated and contrasted by the light and seeming perfect American middle class small town of Petaluma, suave Charles Oakley (Joseph Cotten) is all fine suits and manners of a bachelor gentleman. Wholesome Theresa Wright is "Young Charlie," an average, and purposeless young woman whose guileless world has bored her by its failure to have meaning, although she is the cause. As a member of a family where everyone talks over one another without heeding, the kids prattle, the wife babbles, and the family's men persist in mindless discussions over how to plot a murder effectively as family dinner conversation, somehow this oddness is translated as the norm in Hitchcock's interpretation of small town America. It is a film of many dialogues, however, only one voice is audible without interruption: Uncle Charles. His dinner table monologue is most menacing as he describes the "useless, fat, women" who he sees as less than human and deserving of death. Until this moment, young Charlie had idolized her uncle until doubt is created by a detective played by MacDonald Cary. One of two detectives on a national hunt for the "Merry Widow" serial murderer, they have tracked the suspicious Uncle Charles across country to his unsuspecting sister's home and family. Once the seeds of doubt are sown, Charlie's dreamlike idealization of her perfect uncle and his world becomes shattered by her suspicion. Charlie no longer can fantasize about her dreamy uncle who she has erotic longings that can never be consummated. Once he realizes his charade is over, Uncle Charles rips away the curtain of sleepwalking in Charlie's perfect world with terrible consequence. The perfect world is not a nice place as Charlie's revelation is made all the more grusome through her uncle's warped eyes. As the evil grows more apparent, Charlie attempts to shield her storybook family by keeping them ignorant of his murderous past, but is it at a cost to her own happiness and life?Hitchcock acknowledged the film was his personal favorite and it defines the notions of suspense, noir, and thriller without blood or visual carnage. A literate script by Thorton Wilder (Our Town) alludes to violence that is only suggested never seen. Through the physical presence of the brilliant character actor, Joseph Cotton (Citizen Kane, Portrait of Jennie), the menace and diabolic threat to the snow white, virginal Theresa Wright is alluded in eye, body language, and especially his hands. Sophisticated and cerebral, Hitch was playing with audiences creating a masterpiece of normalcy and idealized family values under a looming presence that cast a shadow of a doubt. Classic, for every suspense library.
Michael_Elliott 07 April 2012
Nice Thriller
Shadow of a Doubt (1943) *** (out of 4) The second film in the series is yet again one that I've only seen onceand that was probably fifteen years ago. The plot is pretty simple as ayoung woman (Teresa Wright) begins to think that her loving uncle(Joseph Cotten) might be a killer. Here's another one that I rememberedliking more back in the day but this still remains a rather nice andsatisfying thriller, although I didn't care too much for how it endedas it seemed to be walking a tight rope just like Suspicion did withits controversial ending. Outside of that Hitchcock does a nice jobbuilding suspense from start to finish, although I'm not really sure ifwe, the viewer, was every suppose to really suspect that the unclemight not be a killer. From my point of view, the viewer is suppose toknow Cotton is the killer while the young girl is suppose to find outalong the way. With that in mind, that takes some of the suspense awaybecause I feel it would have worked better had we not known just likethe girl. However, perhaps we're not suppose to know and I just didn'tsee it that way. As with any Hitchcock film you get some very strongperformances from the entire cast but the highlight here is withoutquestion Cotten who is the perfect snake of a man. At times he comesoff very charming but at the same time he pulls off that devilish smileso well. Henry Travers is always fun to watch as is Wallace Ford in hissmall role.
russian-movie-fan 04 April 2012
Predictable, linear plot, and just plain bad
Oh...how annoyed I was after watching this movie. Heralded asHitchcock's finest, I was impressed by the IMDb.com score it receivedand I settled in for a wonderful film noir/suspense experience. Whatresulted was a blatantly boring linear plot w/many unbelievable plotpoints that were very annoying, and an unsatisfying ending. First Iwill mention the one great thing about this film: the plot which issuperb in its own right although poorly executed by the "Shadow" inthis case and the acting of Joseph Cotton. I watched Cotton in otherfilms--very bland in "Gaslight" for example and thought he did anoutstanding job showing uneasiness with the fear of being suspected asthe murderous villain. So great acting range from him made the movietolerable. This is about all the praise the movie deserves. Thebeginning reels you in with a clever and suspenseful look at Cottonhiding out in his rented room trying to avoid men pursuing him. Theinterest vanishes however in the viewer when Cotton arrives toCalifornia to visit/hide out with his family. What follows is theniece's attempt at discovering why her uncle (Cotton) is acting sostrangely. Suddenly this innocent girl transforms into a SherlockHolmes with an esp-like ability to guess/predict everything about heruncle's doings/identity. Other than Cotton, the rest of the acting isforgettable in the movie. Somehow w/no explanation the cops are hot onCotton's trail!! He traveled from east coast to west coast and within ashort time the cops know who he is and where he is?? The problem withthis movie, is there is just no suspense; also I felt it was impossiblethat a smart criminal like Cotton was outsmarted by his young/innocentniece with really no hard facts to go on. These are the little detailsthat kept happening throughout the movie that made it veryunsatisfying. Oh yeah, and what really nailed it for me was the ending:Cotton struggles w/his niece on a train, between the carts, and sheshoves him to his death off the train (done w/atrocious special effectsby the way). A 6ft 2in 200lb man being outwrestled by his 5ft 5 100lbniece? I would not mind this lack of believability if it was a minorpart in a movie that served to advance some minor plot point, but thiswas THE most important part of the movie, the climax where it all endsand comes to a point. It was a huge letdown. If you enjoy a good story,find a book version of this movie, because Hitchcock's linear approachmakes it all but impossible to be surprised at what happens for thenext hour and a half of the movie.
cabotcove 04 April 2012
Perfect Hitchcock
Suspense, great acting, great score, marvelous humour, and flawless pacing-- all of it right here. The cast is magnificent from top to bottom.Humour and suspense blend seamlessly. Every character, every note, everyhint rings true. Not to be missed by anyone who likes Hitchcock, suspense,or good movies.
Boba_Fett1138 02 April 2012
Pretty nice thriller for its time.
I wouldn't exactly label this movie as a film-noir but it's a prettygood '40's thriller, that has a nice concept, which of course getshandled magnificently by the master of suspense; Alfred Hitchcock. It'snot his best and also certainly not his most memorable movie but thissays something more about the quality of the other movies he has donethan about this movie really.Like basically every '40's movie it begins rather slow and it takes itstime to set up its story and characters. However about halve waythrough, when things really start to take off, it becomes a great movieto watch. For '40's standards it's quite an unique little thriller. Itknows to build up its tension with a minimum amount of resources.It has a nice story about average people. This is one of the reasonswhy the thriller elements work out so effectively. The movie isn't setat any strange places, with stereotypical characters. The places,situations and characters are all easy to identify with. The mainconcept itself is pretty simple but somethings this is all you need fora movie to become a good one. Its screenplay got even nominated for anOscar.It's a nice shot movie, with some wonderful looking and constructedsequences, once you start paying attention to it. This is were AlfredHitchcock was great in; creating some solid, unique, great lookingsequences, with its original camera-work, in which he could capture alot of things and emotions and setting the right mood with for themovie.It also features some nice acting. What I like is that the charactersare changing throughout the movie. It gives the movie some nice tensionsince it provides the movie with a certain feeling of insecurity anduncertainty. Especially Joseph Cotten did a great job with this butTeresa Wright is also a nice leading lady.Nice little minimalistic thriller, made great by its concept and ofcourse wonderful and effective directing from Alfred Hitchcock.8/10
02 April 2012
Shadow of a Doubt
This review is from: Shadow of a Doubt (DVD) An early Hitchcock and according to his biography one of his favorites. Joseph Cotton is great and to see Santa Rosa in the early pre-war days is very enjoyable.
25 March 2012
"Charlie, think. How much do you know about your uncle?"
Alfred Hitchcock's "Shadow of a Doubt" is one of the less satisfying productions from the famed director. There is nothing groundbreaking to the film and there are no classic moments in it. Janet Leigh is not stabbed to death while showering in this film. Cary Grant is not buzzed by an airplane in this film. Claude Rains does not walk up a staircase in terror in this film. All we get this time around is a serial killer story that is full of routine moments. Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotton) visits his niece, Charlie (Teresa Wright). Charlie the niece adores the uncle she is named after and is overjoyed that he will be spending time at her home. Soon after, detectives show up at the doorstep believing that Uncle Charlie is the culprit behind a series of grisly murders. Charlie then becomes suspicious herself of her uncle and eventually does discover whether he is a guilty or innocent man. Fate then intervenes into the lives of the two Charlies when they board the same train and meet their respective destinies. Cotton and Wright are great in their roles but the story of "Shadow of the Doubt" is just too generic to be memorable. Its critique of the darker aspects of small-town life and the nature of gender identity is interesting on an analytical level, but adds little to the overall entertainment value of the film. In fact, precious little contributes to the entertainment value of "Shadow of a Doubt" - the pacing drags, the detectives in the film are too simple-minded to be credible, the romantic subplot with the female Charlie feels manufactured, and any suspense involving the identity of the serial killer is gutted immediately at the film's outset. Thankfully, Hitchcock is much better remembered for other films he previously and subsequently directed to this one. "Shadow of a Doubt" is simply not one of his better efforts.
ANDREWEHUNT 25 March 2012
A Masterpiece from the Master.
"Shadow of a Doubt" remains my personal favorite Hitchcock film. Itcontains all of the master's finest touches. The performances aremarvelously understated. It's Teresa Wright's finest moment on film (sheturns in an even more nuanced perfromance than in "The Best Years of OurLives"; she was truly one of the great underrated actresses). The filmalsoprovides a fascinating glimpse into small-town American life circa WorldWarII. It's a taut, humorous, and ultimately tragic coming-of-age film.