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Notorious - Criterion Collection

Notorious - Criterion Collection

List Price: $39.95
Your Price: $31.96
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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: did i miss something?
Review: everyone seems to love this movie, including it being on imdb top 250, but i found almost nothing good about it at all. the only saving grace of the movie is cary grant. the rest of the movie is just boring romance fodder in the typical selznick/hitchcock trashy way. i wish we could just erase that era and remember hitchcock for his work before and after it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Cold, Hot, and Excellent
Review: Hitchcock has crafted his most cold film and for hitchcock that means watching it and making your own plot turns in your own mind only to be blown away by what unfolds on the screen! This film has everything, from the opening featuring Bergamn at her seductive best to Grant in all his charming swagger the car ride Hitchcock sends you on with the duo is heart pumping voyerism at it's best the whole film feels like your right there with them in every room feeling the same heat and paranoia they feel as they try to infultrate nazi secrets and unhatch a most sedious plan. Hitchcock has so much faith in Bergman's sexual ease he allows the other men in the film to fight over her with intelligence instead of fists the movie turns into a Freudian game of chess between Grant's and Raines' characters good versus evil in the ultimate grudge match-a woman's affections! At the end one man has the ultimate move and it's checkmate! But watch the final scene and the suspense that is built as the couple descends the stairs it's as if there were more stairs on the way down then the way up-infact there was!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Don't waste your time
Review: I was totally disappointed in this movie. It moves so slow and there is no suspense. I was expecting much better. I would not waste my time watching it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of Hitch's Best
Review: I was lucky enough find this on DVD recently, so I snatched it up. Anchor Bay's version has some small glitches in a couple places, but they are very minor and hardly noticable. The transfer is from a good print, so unless you are looking for extra's I see no reason to get the over-priced Criterion version. I am proud to add this movie to my Hitchcock collection, which so far includes Rear Window, Vertigo, North by Northwest, To Catch a Thief and The Birds. This movie with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, ranks among his very best. For those of you who shy away from Hitch's older B&W pictures, don't despair. After about 10 minutes of this movie you will be thoroughly engrossed. This moivie was way ahead of its time in my opinion, and you can clearly see elements in it that movie-makers are still stealing from today. Ingrid Bergman (Alicia Huberman) was never more beautiful and turns in a wonderful performance as the daughter of a Nazi spy. Cary Grant (Devlin) plays the American agent who enlists the help of Alicia to trap a top Nazi mastermind. Hitch doesn't let us down. It's a great mix of action, suspense and romance done in a sort of elegant style that makes this the unique and entertaining movie that it is. Notorious is a great film that you will want to watch again and again. Highly recommended.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best Hitchcock Ever
Review: If pressed mightily, I would choose 'Notorious' as my all time favorite Hitchcock film. It has everything: intrigue, romance, danger, misunderstanding, exotic settings, wealth and magnificence, patriotism, and more. The romance between Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman is swoon-worthy and incredibly erotic despite the fact that all they do is kiss. The large supporting cast of character actors is superb without exception. The suspense of the wine cellar and rescue scenes is thrilling. There are many great Hitchcok films. 'Notorious' has to be in the top five.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great
Review: Alfred Hitchcock came flying out of the gates at the beginning of his American studio work with Rebecca and this movie, both classics. This movie is more of a suspense movie than Rebecca, and showcases many of Hitchcocks trademarks such as the Macguffin, and long takes that are extremely effective in communicating a point, not just showing off. Watching this movie, it becomes evident just how great Hitchcock is, even 60 years after being made, it still is more entertaining and thoughtful than most other movies. These movies don't age, and Hitchcock made entertaining movies that are classics, so it is a no-brainer, just buy it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Purchase this one today!
Review: Indisputably one of Alfred Hitchcock's best films! Ingrid Bergman plays a spy who marries the leader of an enemy spy ring for the sake of exposing them. Cary Grant is the U.S. agent assigned to keep watch over her. For those of you who are thinking that this is nothing more than a spy movie, think again. There is a ton of suspense and several memorable romantic moments between Bergman and Grant. To top it off there is a fantastic ending. Highly recommended!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: notorious - hitchcock's best suspense/romance
Review: I'll make this brief, Notorious happens to be one of Hitchcock's best suspense/romance films. The story of a imfamous party girl with questionable country alliances becomes a spy for the usa and goes so far as becoming involved with the enemy for uncle sam's sake. Against her own will and the man she loves (Cary), she does things against her better judgement. I won't say any more, so as not to ruin the wonderful Hitchcock plot. Although i will take acception to Brick King's review that Cary Grant was somehow showing disgust in his scenes with Ingrid Bergman. The dichotomy of an intelligence agent that has feelings for someone who may be willing to commit treason shows a level of acting that cary grant fans were not use to seeing. I think what Mr. Kng's saw as disgust towards Ms. Bergman was a geniune character struggle by Mr. Grant, worthy of an oscar nomination.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Key of Suspense from Alfred Hitchcock
Review: Hitchcock's 1946 "romantic" thriller stars Ingrid Bergman as the daughter of a Nazi spy living in the United States convicted of treason. Bergman an amorous and promiscuous playgirl who is reluctantly conscripted by an enigmatic American espionage agent Cary Grant, finds herself in more peril than she bargained for on her assignment in Brazil. This has always been considered one of Hitchcock's better thrillers, however personally I never found it that intriguing even though I am a Hitchcock enthusiast. I even watched this film again before I wrote this review. For me it seems a bit out of step from his other films. In a strange way it jumps ahead to a style Hitchcock employed in 1969's "TOPAZ." For me it lacks romanticism. There are love scenes just as there are in "TOPAZ." Equally as in "TOPAZ" the actors just seem to be going through the motions in these passionate scenes. However, there is no lack of acting talent in either film. Hitchcock's intent of the histrionics is for his actors to give as realistic performances as possible and downplay the dramatics. The characters in both films are spies and live their lives from day to day never knowing if this one will be their last. People leading such lives must learn to go on with detached indifference and suppress any feelings of emotion and love. Both Bergman and Grant turn in excellent performances. This is not the same Cary Grant audiences were used to seeing. He let none of his own personality surface and just played the character as written. He remains always distant and aloof in his scenes with Bergman. We can only read the disgust on his face when Bergman is off camera of his true feelings for her. Bergman playing off his aloofness also suppresses her love for him when both are on camera together. So there is a romantic theme in the film but it is not visually provocative as in other Hitchcock films because of the constraints of the film's plot. That is what makes it look so different from his other films. We also see shades of "PSYCHO" present in this film. Claude Rains as the aristocratic Nazi Alexander Sebastian has a similar quixotic relationship with his mother as Norman Bates has or had with his. One highlight of the film is underrated composer Roy Webb's beautifully written theme. From a technical standpoint Hitchcock once again pulls off an impressive and notable camera shot, somewhat similar to a shot he later used in "Marnie." Hitchcock brings the camera from the top of a stairway overlooking a huge cocktail party in Claude Rains' sprawling mansion and slowly moves through the guests right up to the "key" that is in Bergman 's hand. The close up of the "key" is a crucial one for that "key" physically and symbolically unlocks the secret disguised in Claude Rains' mysterious wine cellar. This film is Hitchcock's most underplayed and seductively sensuous. It is never overtly romantic yet remains absorbing and suspenseful. However I still do not think it looks like your typical Alfred Hitchcock film.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: great
Review: This film, while not Hitchcock's best, is far from his worst. The plot moves along at a nice even pace. Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman give marvelous performances as usual, but to me the gem of this movie is Claude Rains. The man is excellent in his Nazi role. He plays Sebastian as subdued but dangerous, controlling but easily manipulated by everyone.

The last scene is simply thrilling and is worth watching the whole movie for that long walk down the stairs. Watch for the signature cameo and the shot of Grant seen from an angle in the doorway with the light behind him. Oh, so very Hitchcockian.

Oh, if you happen to get the video with the trailer on it, I suggest not watching the trailer. There is a clip in it from the last ten minutes of the film. Not a shot, a full clip. Too much was given away in my opinion.


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