Hitchcock's own favorite movie

Francis 2022-03-22 09:02:01

It's hard to believe that this movie is actually Xi Fatty's self-proclaimed favorite movie. Against the backdrop of the famous masterpieces "Vertigo" and "Psycho", this film seems too simple and superficial, but it does have its own particularity and excellence.

In this film, Xi Fat is still focusing on what he is good at - suspense setting and psychological analysis. In the suspense setting, Xi Pang used his usual method of "tell the audience where the bomb is without telling the audience when it exploded". The niece Charlie naively and blindly walked to the victim's position step by step without knowing it, but the audience has been hanging on her heart, and even angry that she was so blind because of infatuation. In terms of psychological analysis, through a table speech, the audience can feel why Uncle Charlie has become Merry Widow Murderer - inner emptiness and lack of empathy - which echoes the opening scene of him lying like a walking dead on a bed full of money .

In addition, the film also focuses on the exploration of duality, the duality of two Charlie's, and eventually one kills the other. There is also a depiction of love's blindness to reason, much like "Suspicion". The portrayal of family roles and tensions is interesting, especially the role of Ann is so addictive. The difference is that this time, there is no role of Blonde, who is the favorite, as the victim. I am afraid he does not think that Charlie is sexual.

Two of my favorite shots in the movie, one is the close-up of the newspaper with the impactful music, and the overhead shot, which highlights Charlie's insignificance and helplessness; the other is Uncle Charlie after saying "I can eat a good dinner" today" and then walked up the stairs, the 3-second long back.

ps. The reversal in the last 3 minutes is a bit rushed and funny

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

    Both men and women in love want to kill each other. film noir

  • Cecelia 2022-01-03 08:01:14

    The flower is destroyed by hand, and the flower is destroyed by hand.

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.