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The Man Who Knew Too Much

The Man Who Knew Too Much

List Price: $19.98
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Best Hitchcock Film I Have Watched
Review: This film is not only one of Mr. Hitchcock's greatest films, it is also one of Jimmy Stuart's most suspenseful acting films. I could not take my eyes off watching the film, and when it was done, I was thankful for having such a wonderful and a very suspenseful Hitchkcock film. This movie has inspired me to start collecting some of Hitchcock's other great films like Vertigo, Marnie, Torn Curtain, and The Birds.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: the best hitchcock ever!
Review: I have seen almost all of this director's movies, and have loved almost all of them-- but this easily tops them all. Suspenseful and fun, and a true classic! The scene near the end, with the clash of the symbols is vintage Hitchcock!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good Hitch Thriller, but not best
Review: Definatly not his best of the period. Easily rivaled by "To Catch a Thief" and "North By Northwest". However it can't be denied that Jimmy Stewarts staitforward charm is, as always, enjoyable. Watch the original (1934) for a real treat. Peter Lorre as the villian rivals anything seen in this movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: From Hitchcock With Suspense
Review: Hitchcock does it again. He creates an enourmously satisfying suspense thriller. This time he doesn't make us afraid of birds or the shower, but he manages to provide an excellent vision of cloak-and-dagger. Jim Stewart and Doris Day turn up an excellent performance as an American vacationing in Morrocco. They encounter a French spy who ends up dead in their arms. As his dying words he whispers that a statesman is to be killed soon, very soon. Then their son is abducted to obtain their silence. The scene in Albert Hall where Doris Day realizes that she is helpless to stop the impending assassination keeps your face inches away from the television, it's the best. A fine Hitchcock thriller.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Campy but great nonetheless
Review: This film seems a bit campier than Hitchcock's other late-50s classics (Vertigo, North by Northwest, etc.), but that's part of its charm. You just know that Jimmy Stewart will outwit his villains and that Doris Day will end up singing her troubles away but its a fun ride anyway.

If you're a serious cinema buff rent the '34 original but for sheer entertainment I'll take this one.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An exciting and suspenseful story of a family in danger.
Review: "The Man Who Knew Too Much" is superb cinematic storytelling that skillfully packs a series of suspenseful situations and believable action into a tight timeframe. Its faraway locations such as the marketplace of Marrakech and the streets of London (with the famous Albert Hall thrown in for good measure) give the film a feel of "bigness." Yet at its heart is a "small" story about the anguish and courage of an American father and mother after their young son is kidnapped. Despite its pacing, shifting locales and large cast of characters (all of them well-drawn), Hitchcock never allows his tale to lose this critical focus. James Stewart is, as usual, excellent in the title role as a doctor bringing his family along on a medical convention in Morroco. Doris Day is effective as his wife, Jo. When a dying Frenchman whispers vital information into Stewart's ear, a "friendly" English couple arrange to kidnap his son, Hank to pressure Stewart into revealing what he knows. Fighting down their panic, Stewart and Day arrange to fly to London, where the Frenchman has told him he is to find "Alonso Chappell." After a humorous mixup and scuffle with a taxidermist by that name, Stewart locates the Alonso Chapel, a small English church where he and Day discover none other than the British couple from Marrakech. Knowing that Hank must be nearby, Stewart struggles with the Englishman and his henchmen while Day rushes out for the police. Day's discovery of the kidnappers' plan to assassinatean important ambassador leads her to the Royal Albert Hall, where the victim is to be shot during a concert. Here one of Hitchcock's most masterful sequences unfolds, as Day agonizes helplessly while the moment for the assassin's shot draws nearer with each beat of the music. The movie's climax takes place in a London embassy. Here the anxious parents hatch a scheme to flush out the kidnappers and make a last attempt to rescue their son. Hitchcock's unparalleled ability to wring suspense out of every moment of key scenes is in full force here, making "The Man Who Knew Too Much" one of the Master's finest efforts.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Good film, less suspenseful than dramatic
Review: There is great tension in this film, but the suspense is less frightening than we see in some of Hitchcock's other films.

What's really great about this film is the directorial art, in visuals and timing and setups -- and the acting is fabulous. How often did we get to see Stewart really flex his dramatic muscles in so complex and potentially somewhat dark and hard character? Song or no song, Doris Day does a fine job of acting through Que Sera-Sera, and it is artfully placed and used within the film for dramatic effect. Personally, I feel and understand her predicament, even though I don't find myself as involved with the characters as I do in Rear Window. That, however, may just be me, since Rear Window is my favorite Hitchcock film -- and I find it easier to identify with Grace Kelly's character than I do with this one.

Overall, a fabulous film, worth watching. If you get past the clothes and cars, you'd never know when it was made -- personally, I don't care!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: GR8! GR8! GR8! GR8! GR8!
Review: THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH is a fabulous mystery that you will like; even if you aren't a fan of old movies. This movie is about a couple (Doris Day and Jimmy Stewart) who's son get's kiddnapped in a foriegn city. They have to find him, before the kidnappers kill him. Sounds stupid and old, i know, but IT IS GR8!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Hitchcock Sleeper Classic now on WIDESCREEN DVD!!!!
Review: The 1956 Widescreen Color "The Man Who Knew Too Much" is a remake of Hitch's 1934 Standard Screen Black & White British version. (Hitch didn't come to the United States until 1939). As he stated, "the 1934 version was directed by an amateur and the 1956 version by a professional."

This was to be the second of 5 brilliant films made from 1954 - 1960. (the others are; Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959) & Psycho (1960)). This was Hitchcock at his best, in fact these last 4 were voted to AFI's (American Film Institute's) top 100 films in the last 100 years (1998). So you can see why "The Man Who Knew Too Much" was overlooked. A definite sleeper classic!!!

Summary: James Stewart, wife Doris Day and son are on a vacation in Morocco. They are accidently swept up in an assassination plot to occur in London. The assassin group kidnaps their son as insurance of their silence and hold him hostage. Doris Days rare dramatic role is outstanding and her singing the Oscar winning song, ("Que Sera, Sera") high light this brilliant spy thriller. Jimmy Stewarts natural acting ability (Hitchcocks favorite male actor) pulls off being Doris Days husband.

The Anamorphic Widescreen Color presentation is excellent. The "Making of - with Patricia Hitchocks (Hitch's daughter) comments is very interesting & informative.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Que Sera Sera
Review:


Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Format: Color
Studio: Universal Studios
Video Release Date: August 3, 1999

Cast:

James Stewart ... Dr. Ben McKenna
Doris Day ... Jo McKenna
Brenda De Banzie ... Lucy Drayton
Bernard Miles ... Edward Drayton
Ralph Truman ... Buchanan
Daniel Gélin ... Louis Bernard
Mogens Wieth ... Ambassador
Alan Mowbray ... Val Parnell
Hillary Brooke ... Jan Peterson
Christopher Olsen ... Hank McKenna
Reggie Nalder ... The assassin
Richard Wattis ... Assistant manager
Noel Willman ... Woburn
Alix Talton ... Helen Parnell
Yves Brainville ... Police inspector
Carolyn Jones ... Cindy Fontaine
Harry Fine ... Edington
Alex Frazer ... Man
Wolf Frees ... Aide to the foreign Prime Minister
Milton Frome ... Guard
Leo Gordon ... Chauffer
Walter Gotell ... Guard
Frank Atkinson ... Taxidermist
Bernard Herrmann ... Himself (conductor)
Alfred Hitchcock ... Man in Morocco marketplace
George Howe ... Ambrose Chappell Sr

Harold Kasket ... Butler
Barry Keegan ... Patterson
Lou Krugman ... Arab
Lloyd Lamble ... General manager of Albert Hall
Donald Lawton ... Desk clerk
Mayne Lynton ... Taxidermist
John Barrard ... Taxidermist
Edward Manouk ... French waiter
Richard Marner ... Aide to the foreign Prime Minister
John Marshall ... Butler
Lewis Martin ... Detective
Louis Mercier ... French policeman
Ralph Neff ... Henchman
Leslie Newport ... Inspector at Albert Hall
John O'Malley ... Uniformed attendant
Liddell Peddieson ... Taxidermist
Arthur Ridley ... Ticket collector
Patrick Aherne ... Handyman
Eric Snowden ... Special Branch officer
Alexi Bobrinskoy ... Foreign Prime Minister
Guy Verney ... Footman
Anthony Warde ... French policewoman
Patrick Whyte ... Special Branch officer
Peter Williams ... Police sergeant
Richard Wordsworth ... Ambrose Chappell Jr
Allen Zeidman ... Assistant manager
Clifford Buckton ... Sir Kenneth Clarke
Peter Camlin ... Headwaiter
Abdelhaq Chraibi ... Arab
Gladys Holland ... Bernard's girlfriend
Barbara Howitt ... Soloist in Albert Hall sequence
Enid Lindsey ... Lady Clarke
Janet Macfarlane ... Lady in audience
Betty Bascomb ... Edna
Elsa Palmer ... Cook
Mahin S. Shahrivar ... Arab woman
Alma Taylor ... Box office woman
Janet Bruce ... Box office woman
Naida Buckingham ... Lady in audience
Barbara Burke ... Assassin's girlfriend
Pauline Farr ... Ambassador's wife
Bess Flowers ... Woman in Hotel Lobby

On vacation in Marrakech, Morocco, Dr. Ben McKenna (James Stewart), his wife Jo (Doris Day) and their son Hank (Chrisopher Olson), meet a secret agent, Louis Bernard (Daniel Gélin) who is killed because he is in possession of a secret: a statesman is about to be assassinated in London. Before he dies, he confides in McKenna some of the details. To keep the doctor quiet, the
bad guys grab his son, Hank, and threaten his life.

This is the story as it unfolds. Hitchcock does his usual fine job of keeping up the tension, and of course Stewart and Day do their usual excellent job of acting. This is a superb thriller, and endlessly entertaining.

Joseph (Joe) Pierre

author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books




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