North By Northwest
Alfred Hitchcock
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Plot Summary
Selected as one of the top 50 American films of all time by the prestigious American Film Institute, and considered by many critics to be Hitchcock's greatest film, this fast-paced thriller stars Oscar-winner Cary Grant ("Notorious," "The Philadelphia Story") as a Madison Avenue advertising exec who is mistaken for someone else and kidnapped by a group of international spies, headed by James Mason ("A Star Is Born," "Lolita"). After a hair-raising escape, he is framed for a murder he didn't commit and goes on the run with the lovely Eva Marie Saint ("Superman Returns," "On the Waterfront"). Famous for a wild plane attack and a harrowing chase across the faces of Mount Rushmore, this is quintessential Hitchcock ("Psycho," "The Birds"). With Academy Award-winner Martin Landau ("Ed Wood," "The Majestic") as Mason's evil henchman, this film is the rare combination of action, suspense and humor.
Credits
Director
Screenwriter
- Ernest Lehman
Movie Reviews from Rotten Tomatoes
TOMATOMETER
100%- Reviews Counted: 61
- Fresh: 61
- Rotten: 0
- Average Rating: 9.0/10
Top Critics' Reviews
Fresh: ... a colorful and exciting route for spies, counterspies and lovers.
Fresh: Smoothly troweled and thoroughly entertaining.
Fresh: At times it seems Hitchcock is kidding his own penchant for the bizarre, but this sardonic attitude is so deftly handled it only enhances the thrills.
Fresh: Hitchcock's ultimate wrong-man comedy.
Customer Reviews
Hitchcock Out-Hitchcock’s... Well, Himself
North By Northwest is by far the most upbeat, fun and accessible of all of Hitch’s many suspense films. Hitchcock’s perfect, frothy concoction begins with the classic Saul Bass titles on the side of a Madison Avenue skyscraper (which inspired the opening titles of Mad Men) then across the midwest to that Frank Lloyd Wright inspired house, and ends at the top of Mt. Rushmore. All the classic Hitchcock themes and patterns are used to maximum effect: mistaken identity of everyday ad-man Cary Grant, the icy blond, the MacGuffin, the cold war’s amorality, Freudian symbolism, and evil threatening America's most sacred icons.
While the crop duster sequence is probably the most famous sequence in the history of cinema, North By Northwest also became the template for all the James Bond films, starting with Dr. No. This is the perfect film for newcomers to the master of suspense, although many Hitchcock enthusiasts do consider Rear Window or Vertigo as his very best.
North by Northwest!
It's Cary Grant, the sexy Eva Maeie Saint and the very unknown James Mason. This trio gave some of their best performances ever. This is one one of the movies up with Psycho, Vertigo, Dial M for Murder and The Birds. Also it you happen to like Cary Grant you would also like Suspision, Notorious, To Catch a Thief and His Girl Friday. And if you like James Mason see Forever Darling and A Star is Born. I Love Hitchcock!
A True Classic
My father (a film professor) always has movies for us to see, and not too long ago we watched this together. He had recommended it and I was not disappointed. Cary Grant stars as an advertiser (Roger O. Thornhill) who gets caught up with a criminal named Van Damm (James Mason) and becomes framed for murder. On the run, he boards a train where Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) helps him hide from the police. Thornhill and Kendall are almost immediately attracted to one another, but there will be many difficulties for them along the way. This movie has a little of everything: comedy, romance, action, and of course (Being a Hitchcock film) suspense. Grant performs fantastically: he is likeable and convincing as the determined yet slightly naive hero, Saint is perfect as the seductive femme fatale (but is she really a femme fatale? You'll have to watch it to find out.) and Mason is brilliant as the aristocratic yet cold-blooded villian Van Damm. Martin Landau also delivers a excellent performance as Van Damm's sinister right hand man, Lenoard. To top it all off, the music is quite compelling.
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