Rating: 
Summary: Casts a Long Shadow
Review: This is my favorite film of all time, as well as Alfred Hitchcock's personal favorite of all his films. There is so much to admire in this movie. The story is compelling and suspenseful, the acting is among the best you'll see in American cinema. When Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotton) visits his sister's family in Santa Rosa, California, from the east (Philadelphia), a series of events that may identify him as "The Merry Widow Murderer, " crushes young Charlie Newton (Teresa Wright), his niece, who idolizes him. Wright's journey from young, innocent girl into a woman who struggles to do the right thing, while protecting her family, is a wonderful study in character development. Wright's performance ranks among the best in American film, and it's her genuine goodness and believability that helps make this film so successful. Cotton manages to be absolutely chilling and charming at the same time, which is what makes his characterization so amazing. It's hard to believe that his performance was overlooked at Oscar time in 1943. Hitchcock couldn't have assembled a better cast of supporting players: Hume Cronyn (his film debut), MacDonald Carey, Henry Travers (made immortal as Clarence the angel in It's a Wonderful Life), Patricia Collinge, and Wallace Ford. The character roles are wonderfully drawn, each actor giving memorable performances. Patricia Collinge is particularly effective as Wright's mother and Cotton's older sister. The friendly banter between neighbors Travers and Cronyn is hysterically gruesome, since the two are obsessed with murder mysteries, each one trying to out do the other in creating the perfect murder. The camera work, always excellent in Hitchcock films, is exemplary here. From the opening sequences, which sets the scene without any dialogue to the wonderful climax aboard a train. Thornton Wilder (the author of Our Town) helped write the screenplay, peppering it with small town touches, setting it against the evil represented by Uncle Charlie. And take note of all the doubling and twos. Young Charlie, Old Charlie, Till Two Tavern, where the waitress has been working there for two weeks, two train sequences, two important dinners at the Newton home, two celebratory toast, and on and on. This is one film to watch again and again. If you get the opportunity to see it on the big screen, by all means do so. I did at a recent Hitchcock film festival in Philly and it was like seeing it for the first time.
Rating:
Summary: The very essence of Hitchcock.
Review: The presence of evil where you least suspect it was Alfred Hitchcock's greatest theme. Shadow of a Doubt gave him the opportunity of his career: to join with Thornton Wilder, author of Our Town and the great celebrant of the poetry in everyday life, to create a story about the horror in everyday life. Joseph Cotten plays Uncle Charlie--an elegant, genial, seemingly upstanding citizen, adored by his family in sleepy Santa Rosa, Calif.--who is actually a deranged serial killer. Teresa Wright is his niece and namesake, who slowly awakens to the truth about her uncle and finds herself in peril. The film is impeccably paced and the dialogue brilliant, but much of the impact of the film must be credited to Cotten, who had a natural ability to play sinister roles and never again had such a great opportunity to do so. His great speech to his niece gives us goosebumps just to think about: "Do you know that the world is a foul sty? And if you ripped the facades off houses, you'd find swine?" (Considering that this film was made in the middle of World War II, that line must have had sledgehammer impact on the film's first audiences.) Teresa Wright and all the other performers are excellent, but special mention must be made of Patricia Collinge, who as the mother of the family plays a character as close to the pure spirit of love as has ever been portrayed on the screen. She is deeply moving, all the more so because of her contrast to Uncle Charlie, the baby brother she adores. This film is simultaneously poignant and spine-tingling; it was Hitchcock's favorite among his films, and--tied with Vertigo--his greatest.
Rating:
Summary: One of Hitchcock's Best = Masterpiece
Review: Consider two classic Hitchcock motif's - the staircase at night (cf Suspicion, Notorious) and the brattish little girl. In SHADOW OF A DOUBT there is one five second scene of the former in which Charlie (played by Ms Teresa Wright) niece to a serial killer, her Uncle Charlie, ascends the staircase at night in the dark with a jug of water and glasses for that Uncle, played by Mr Joseph Cotton. The bannister bars and the shadows of the staircase fill the scene as she, dressed in a white dress that was a gift from that Uncle, a dress moreover that fits snugly over her hips and thighs and is momentarily transparent as she reaches the top of the stairs, moves towards his door. It is a moment of erotic tension and dread. Dramatic irony, filmic composition, film movement, lighting, design, sound all at their most masterful.
In the latter case - the "stock" brattish little girl - we have Ann, Charlie'
s sister and niece to the killer (cf Strangers on a Train) played marvellously throughout by Edna May Wonacott. Ann wears glasses, (naturally) reads incessantly, has a sharp eye, biting tongue and is nosey little busy body - a miniature intellectual with an IQ of 150 and rising. When asked by her Uncle Charlie at the close of a meal whether she would like to read the newspaper funnies she responds " I'm too old for the funnies. I read two books a week. I took a sacred oath I would. Besides, in this family no one in the family is allowed to read at the table. It isn't polite." No patronizing me!! But it is Ann, the intellectual child whose INTUITION tells her, this Uncle is NOT GOOD.
There are many delights in this film shot in stunning and gloriously defined BLACK AND WHITE. A major one is the LOCATION shooting in Santa Rosa. The scene of the arrival of the train in town is stunning. Another one is the dialogue - Uncle Charlie declaiming at dinner his freelings towards widows as "faded, fat, greedy, wheezy animals" is electrifying. Less "theatrical" than most of his films, quieter perhaps, more subtle but no less powerful. The extras include a lengthy interview with Ms Wright.
Rating:
Summary: Best Hitchcock film ever made, bar none, even Vertigo
Review: Easily the best Hitchock film ever made, thanks in large part to Joseph Cotton and Teresa Wright, not to mention Thorton Wilder of Our Town fame.
Rating:
Summary: Hitchcock's Best Film
Review: It's odd that this film isn't more widely recognized because it is clearly Hitchock's best. He even said so himself late in his career when all but Marnie, Topaz, Torn Curtain, and Family Plot, had already been made.Rear Window in my mind is a close second, but is defintely second. Shadow of a Doubt has perfect casting (except for the detective), impeccable acting, and the best sceenplay and dialogue of any Hitchock film. Thorton Wilder, who wrote the classic play, Our Town, penned most of Shadow of a Doubt before he went off to war, and it really shows. In this film a handsome, sophisticated uncle comes to stay with his sister and her ordinary middle American family. He is the apple of her eye, and is especially beloved by his neice. This film is essentially about the relationship between Teresa Wright, who plays Charlie, and Joseph Cotton, who plays Uncle Charlie. Neice Charlie thinks of herself as her Uncle Charlie's psychic and spiritual twin, and is head over heels for her uncle until she begins to learn a few things. To say more would ruin the film, but I can say that nothing, and I mean nothing, in this film is there for its own sake. Every shot, every line, every detail, contributes something to further character and plot on more than one level. It is exquisite, and after seeing it half a dozen times I still see new things. If you like Hitchcock and haven't seen this film you simply must see it.
Rating: 
Summary: Good.
Review: 'Shadow of a Doubt' is yet another fantasic mystery from Alfred Hitchcock. Although I don't remember the storyline too much, I remember liking it enough to give it a four-star review.
Rating:
Summary: One of Hitchcock's Best
Review: This film doesn't really represent all that Hitchcock was about--it doesn't feature any of his familiar themes or his trademark sexual tension--but it's still one of his best. Unlike his exciting chase films (NORTH BY NORTHWEST, THE 39 STEPS), his espionage movies (NOTORIOUS), or his straight-up horror films (PSYCHO, THE BIRDS), SHADOW OF A DOUBT is a quiet, subtly disturbing psychological thriller set in a sleepy California town. Joseph Cotten plays a murderer who stops in to visit his sister and her family while on the run from the police. Of course, the family has no idea that their charming, charismatic uncle is actually a killer. However, Cotten's favorite neice--played remarkably in a heartbreaking performance by Teresa Wright--soon catches on and is the only one who knows of his horrifying secret. Every detail of this masterfully constructed film is brilliant; the portrait of middle-class family life in small-town America has never been clearer or more nostalgically rendered. As a result, Hitchcock achieves in placing danger right among the innocent charm of the suburbs. As usual with Hitchcock's films, it is also wonderfully directed and edited. Hitchcock himself has named this film as one of his favorites among all those he made. This disc also features an interesting documentary about the film.
Rating:
Summary: Charlie, think. How much do you know about your uncle?
Review: Having just watched Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943) last night for the first time, I was surprised at how good it was, and why I've never seen it before. I mean, I am a fan of Hitchcock, and I've seen many of his movies, but to have heard so little of this particular film seems puzzling to me, as it's an excellent film, and worthy of a lot more recognition than it seems to have gotten. Either that or I just need to get out of my cookie jar more often... Anyway, the film, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and written by Thornton Wilder, stars a wonderful cast including Teresa Wright, who appeared with Gary Cooper the previous year in The Pride of the Yankees (1942), Joseph Cotten (Citizen Kane, The Third Man), and Henry Travers (High Sierra, Mrs. Miniver, It's a Wonderful Life). Also making an appearance is Hume Cronyn making his film debut in a supporting role as a mousy neighbor. The story involves a family in a small California town, and the impending arrival of a relative, Charlie (Cotten), from back east. Most anticipatory is younger Charlie (Wright), named after her uncle, as she feels a deep, almost telepathic connection to this man she hasn't seen in quite awhile. Now, before Charlie's departure for California, we get a general sense of unease, as it seems Charlie is involved in something of a sinister nature. Upon arriving in California, the visit seems to be going well, as the family welcomes him with open arms, but soon we learn that trouble has followed Charlie in the form of two rather shady individuals who present themselves with a certain amount of deception, which is elaborated on later. The older Charlie's behavior begins to change subtly, perceptible only to the younger Charlie and us, the audience. As various bits of information are disseminated, the younger Charlie's begins to realize that her uncle may harbor a terrible secret that could tear apart the very fabric of her family. As her uncle's slick veneer is slowly peeled away, she eventually learns the truth, with the older Charlie realizing that the relative safety he sought in coming to stay with his sister and her family is in jeopardy. What lengths will he go to to protect himself from his past? The film starts out very slowly, but it's obviously deliberate, as the sense of dread within the viewer is cultivated in meticulous fashion. This seems a common tactic with Hitchcock, but I did get the feeling it was more drawn out here than in most of his other films. The pacing felt very similar to Rebecca, another Hitchcock film, which was released in 1940, but while that film had a much more grandiose feel to it, this film keeps things fairly simple, which really works well. There is a good amount of leaving the viewer in the dark within the first hour or so of the film, but when the secrets of the character is revealed, the plot points prior to this fall into place nicely, making sense of these once less meaningful elements. Teresa Wright's character is wonderful as the perceptive and intelligent niece forced to make a very difficult decision between her family and her uncle, trying to deal with the consequences of whatever path she chooses. Cotten is the real standout performance in the film, presenting a very likeable character, with a highly polished exterior, but an exterior you learn is barely hiding a very ugly and, ultimately, dangerous core. He figuratively becomes the fox in the hen house, as his sinister nature encroaches upon this quiet, unassuming community. As I said before, the pacing is pretty slow, picking up moderately within the last 30 minutes (it has a running time of 108 minutes) to a very suitable and satisfying ending, one that provides a nice jolt during an already tense scene. The print provided by Universal for this release looks very good, despite a few hardly noticeable signs of age and wear. Special features include a featurette on the making of the film, detailing why Hitchcock considered this to be one of his favorite movies he made, production notes, drawings and photographs, recommendations (to other Hitchcock films), and a theatrical trailer for the film. All in all, and excellent, if underrated, Hitchcock classic. Cookieman108
Rating:
Summary: I'll Go With the Masses on This One
Review: No question about it: this one of Hitchcock's best, and it ought to be a lot better known. There's some truth in the contention that much of Hitchcock's work is based on flimsy plotting, gimmickry, and attractive stick figures racing from one scene to the next just a step ahead of sense or logic. This is easily seen even in much-admired films like "North by Northwest".
But "Shadow of a Doubt" (along with "Vertigo" and the first half of "Psycho") gives the lie to the claim that this was all there was to Hitchcock. This is a film in which every turn of the narrative is governed by the development of character, as a girl matures from giddy teenager to strong (and even deadly) young woman while grappling with the knowledge that her beloved uncle is a serial killer. The acting is uniformly outstanding. Cotten is in full lounge-lizard mode here--nobody ever enunciated a perfectly-balanced sentence with more venom. Hume Cronyn plays a neighborhood geek almost--but not quite--to the point of parody. But it's Teresa Wright who takes the prize here. Wright was a pleasant but unremarkable presence in a number of films, but in "Doubt" she really shows what she was capable of. Consider the expression on her face as she descends the stairs in the climactic scene, and how easy it would have been to overplay it. Perhaps it was the influence of Wilder (though his biographers state that he actually didn't really do much work on the picture), but "Shadow of a Doubt" is one film in which the master outdid himself, stepping beyond the limits of entertainment into something approaching art.
Rating:
Summary: The Merry Widow Murderer strikes again
Review: Hitchcock loved to subvert what others took for granted. Set in the Northern California town of Santa Rosa, Shadow of a Doubt is most subversive about the very normal, tranquil qualities of small town life. Like all of Hitchcock's most convincing and powerful thrillers, the mystery is revealed right away. Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotton)is on the run from the police. He's endearing, charming and a serial killer nicknamed The Merry Widow Murderer. With the police hot on his trail he turns to the only place he can--home. Uncle Charlie visits with his sister and her family in a sleepy small town. Uncle Charlie gets the chance to visit with his namesake and favorite niece nicknamed Young Charlie (Teresa Wright). They have a grand old name visiting until the past comes haunting. Young Charlie begins to suspect that Uncle Charlie is the Merry Window Murderer. What's worse, he realizes that she knows. Suddenly, he must find a way to murder his favorite niece and escape without suspicion. Shadow is one of Hitchcock's earliest films where his favorite themes finally come together in a great collabortive effort with Thornton Wilder (Our Town). Wilder's early drafts (Hitchcock's wife and frequent collaborator Alma Reville did extensive rewrites along with Sally Benson and, of course, Hitchcock himself, as always, uncredited). Like many of the releases from Universal in the Alfred Hitchcock Collection, Shadow comes back with some interesting extras. The documentary which includes interviews with Teresa Wright, Hume Cronyn, Robert Boyle, Pat Hitchcock O'Connell and director Peter Bogdanovich, isn't the usual slapdash affair. There's some interesting insights and observations about the film (if you'd like real insight into the film, I'd suggest the recent Hitchcock biography). Joseph Cotton, Teresa Wright and the rest of this stunning cast capture the atmosphere (or least Hollywood's version of it with a bit more realism courtesy of Wilder and Hitchcock)of life in a small town during the 40's. It's one of Hitchcock's early American masterpieces (along with the wonderful Notorious). The transfer looks pretty good overall. There are some minor issues with edge enhancement but the overall look of the film is very clean considering the age of the negative. It's a pity that so many Hitchcock films are spread over so many studios. Shadow would work well in a boxed set with Strangers on a Train and even Rear Window.
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