Monday, September 30, 2019

To Catch a Thief (Alfred Hitchcock, 1955)

So what's Alfred Hitchcock's worst film of the 1950s (the period most critics/scholars deem his greatest decade)? I used to think it was the meringue-stuffed To Catch a Thief (1955). But having just watched it again for the first time in eons, I'm struck by its pungent view of the wealthy. If the film feels inert compared to the masterpieces surrounding it, then that's because it's primarily about rich people courting danger in the face of being so bored with all their money. In this respect, the most important character is neither Cary Grant nor Grace Kelly; it's the crass, bourbon-swilling, nouveau riche widow Jessie (Jessie Royce Landis, one of dozens of actors who gave Hitch's films so much of their depth) who's cool with her jewels being stolen since she'll be reimbursed by John Williams' beleaguered insurance man. It just might be Hitchcock's most trenchant take on class. Other positives (apart from the famous fireworks): the dollar-green night scenes, the gorgeous location shooting, Cary Grant cruising man flesh, and a typically brilliant final shot which knocks the stuffing out of the requisite heterosexual coupling. So what IS Hitch's worst film of the 1950s?

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