He is just a shadow, a stinky skin

Jaylen 2022-01-03 08:01:14

The film "Mystery" is not outstanding in Hitchcock's work, it can only be regarded as a modest movie. Of course, it is still branded by the control mad Hitchcock that belongs to him alone, allowing fans to smell the breath of this suspenseful master in numerous noir films. For example, the Hitchcock-style cigar symbolizing the male penis that Uncle Charlie played in the film.

The story takes place in a peaceful and backward town. Our villain, Uncle Charlie, came here and became a well-respected character. Only his niece, Charlie, who had the same name as him, came to see the uncle's original face in a well-dressed manner. Of course, she didn't think so at first, she could be said to be obsessed with him. Limited to the censorship of the 1940s, the film can only be considered a non-obvious hint of the incestuous relationship between Charlie and his uncle.

Uncle Charlie’s appearance is like a zombie. Or more like a vampire. He lay stiffly on the bed, like a vampire lying in his coffin. When the maid closed the curtains and night fell, he began to move. The subsequent role setting echoes his vampire image. He could easily throw away the two detectives and didn't know when he escaped from Charlie's bedroom. He was extremely afraid of taking pictures. He was around him because of the cigar smoke from time to time, his amazing grip and so on. And his death echoed his appearance. Originally, he wanted to push Charlie under the galloping train, but instead he once again rushed to the railroad track in a stiff posture, like a memorial to a vampire. It's just that this time it really went to death. At the same time, this is also a manifestation of the film's imperfections or the director's joking character. Regardless of body shape, physical strength, etc., little Charlie will never be his uncle's opponent.

What is ridiculous is that at the memorial service of Uncle Charlie, people mourned him like this: "Their pure character...the sweetness of character will live with us." It satirized the American society at that time. Yes, Hitchcock has always had a soft spot for family themes. He has always believed that family life is a battlefield for spiritual struggle, moral struggle and emotional struggle. In this "Mysterious Voice", he chose a petty-bourgeois family in a small community for analysis and irony. We can feel the panic and anxiety in American society in the 1940s. It is not difficult for us to think of the protagonist in "Citizen Kane". He has everything but is so lonely. Uncle Charlie is also desperate and helpless in his seemingly glamorous life. Just as Charlie said at the end of the film: "No one knows him, he is never happy." I have to admit that Charlie and his uncle did not disappear until the end of his uncle's death. It was this call of induction. Uncle (the demon) came, and it was this induction that sent him onto Huangquan Road.

However, I vaguely feel that Uncle Charlie has lost the meaning of living, just like he was lying on the bed at the beginning of the film, indifferent and extremely indifferent to the world. Finally, he finally went to another place. It can also be said to be a kind of salvation.

Because everything is so empty, he will never believe in this world anymore. He just felt that this place was a pigsty, and he mentally gave himself the mission of "Vengeance Angel", walking around the world like a shadow.

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Extended Reading
  • Crawford 2022-01-03 08:01:14

    It turned out to be the original version of Park Chan-wook's "Stoke", but the storyline is much more solid than the plain version, and it also reflects Hitchcock's grasp of details. All characters in the play have their own characteristics, but they are not abrupt (Little Girl Too robbed of the show!). (The camera shifted at 1 hour 01 minutes btw to help out: -D)

  • Robyn 2022-04-21 09:02:28

    In the early days, the suspenseful style of Xifa was very similar to Truffaut's imitation works. Although immature, Xi Fat is still more clever than Rueffer in that he adds a lot of irony to highlight the advanced points. 6.5

Shadow of a Doubt quotes

  • Emma Newton: What does he do? Oh, he's just in business, you know, the way men are.

  • Young Charlie: We just sort of go along and nothing happens. We're in a terrible rut. It's been on my mind for months. What's gonna be our future?

    Joseph Newton: Oh, come now, Charlie. Things aren't as bad as that. The bank gave me a raise last January.

    Young Charlie: Money? How can you talk about money when I'm talking about souls? We eat and sleep and that's about all. We don't even have any real conversations. We just talk.