Thursday, January 09, 2014

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)


The Review
          As audiences get more and more desensitized, these old films lose their power to shock modern audiences. And yet… it’s still possible to admire this film artistically.  In the concert hall scene, for example, the way Hitchcock keeps the tension building is a masterpiece of cinematography.
            Like most older suspense films, this one’s a slow burner, but it’s still highly watchable.
            Just try not to think about all the plot holes—for example, if the assassins are willing to kill the first person who finds out their secret, then why do they then resort to blackmailing for the second person?

Rating :
7/10 Stars (I’m basing this rating purely off of the watchability factor, and not the cultural or artistic significance of this film.)

Links
* A review of Vertigo,another Hitchcock film, here

Link of the Day
Noam Chomsky - Asking the right questions
And if you're up for wasting some time on the Internet, these dramatic readings of youtube comments crack me up.  See here, here, here and here.

2 comments:

dpreimer said...

Another one of Hitchcock/Stewart's profoundly flawed/surprisingly likeable protagonists. The trouble with this guy isn't just that he "knows too much" but that he thinks he knows better than everybody around him, especially his wife. Doris Day finds that balance between being put-upon, and finding her own inner steel. Quite a remarkable film, when I think about it. Funny, clever, often subtle in ways current movie makers can't emulate. Thanks for bringing this back to memory.

Joel Swagman said...

Yeah, I found this film remarkably watchable for it's age. And Stewart's performance is quite good.