Notorious
“Jimmy Stewart is always and indisputably the best man in the world, unless Cary Grant should happen to show up.â€
That’s a quote from this book, and it came to mind the other night when I watched an old Alfred Hitchcock classic, Notorious, which stars Cary Grant (though not Jimmy Stewart) and Ingrid Bergman. I would have to say that Notorious was DE-LI-CIOUS. I’m not sure how this film came to be in our Netflix queue, but I’m glad it did.
Ingrid Bergman plays Alicia Huberman, daughter of a convicted Nazi spy, in 1946. Cary Grant plays Devlin, a U.S. govt. agent who recruits Alicia to fly to Rio and ingratiate herself into a Nazi ring there. He picks her due to several factors…First, even though she plays it tough, the feds have been spying on Alicia and her father for awhile, so he knows that she loves America. Second, one of the Nazis in Rio used to be in love with Alicia, so he hopes she can get in with that crowd quite easily. And third, she is known for her drinking and her promiscuity, so the assumption is that she will take the job.
When Devlin and Alicia first meet, however, all that he knows is that he is to recruit her for a job spying on the Nazis. They spend a few days together, and fall in love. Then, he discovers the assignment, which will effectively put Alicia in the arms (and bed) of another man. He’s not too happy about it, but he’s not sure of Alicia’s morals himself, and of course, his country comes first, so he proposes the venture to her. She is torn…she knows that her morals have not been of the highest caliber up to this point. She wants to change her ways, and she wants very much for Devlin to believe in her, even while she doubts herself. When he gives no indication of believing in her, she agrees to the job.
I won’t give away too much of the plot here, except to say that she ends up married to the Nazi, in order to be a very effective spy, all the while in love with Devlin. At one point, we see that while he may not be sure of her morals, he still admires her strength and patriotism mightily. He is in a room with his boss and other agents, who take lightly the fact that Alicia is now married and sleeping with a man she despises, that she is in the lion’s den, living with Nazis. They take these facts lightly, because after all, she is not a lady. She drinks a lot and sleeps around, so why should she, or they, care. Devlin gets angry, and states that while their wives, most certainly ladies all, are home in the U.S. playing bridge, she is risking her life for her country. When he apologizes for the slight made to their wives, we know he doesn’t mean a word of it, that he deeply admires her bravery, and knows what she is going through.
Notorious is famous for its camera work. There is a scene where Devlin and Alicia are kissing, and the production rules of the day said that you could only kiss for 3 seconds at a time. Hitchcock had no trouble taking this rule and spinning it, making a much more dramatic and passionate scene than he could have even if they had been allowed to kiss for 3 hours. I’m not much of a film junkie, in that I don’t really pay attention to the camera angles and lighting. If you are, you would do well to read this review by Roger Ebert, who details the innovations and delights for cinemaphiles (is that a word?). There are plenty of spoilers in the review, however, so see the movie first.
Claude Rains is so good as her Nazi husband, you feel quite sorry for him at the end of the film. And I loved the fact that the actress who played Rains’ overbearing mother, Leopoldine Konstantin, was credited as “Madame Konstantin”. De-Li-Cious.
15 Comments
ally bean
I remember seeing this movie on tv last winter. Or at least I was seeing parts of it. I’ll try to be more attentive to it the next time I stumble upon it. I’m missing something here, aren’t I? Old movies are great. Must remember that.
Karen MEG
I saw this film years ago, I think as a teenager on TV, and that kiss got me then… I must rent this one again! I love old movies too.
Py Korry
You liked this film so much you’re willing to watch it again since I wasn’t able to see it when you were watching it.
Movie night tonight? 🙂
Ml
I’ll take Jimmy Stewart over Cary Grant any day 😉
Good review. I haven’t seen this movie, but it looks interesting.
Autumn's Mom
J, you are making me want to watch the Philadelphia Story again! I can’t remember if I saw Notorious or not.. I just love listening (and watching) Cary Grant.
J
ML, Jimmy is quite delicious himself, isn’t he? Esp. in It’s a Wonderful Life. But Cary…oh, it’s a hard choice. You know, except that they’re so old…I mean…dead.
Ginger
I’ve always loved Grant and Stewart. I haven’t seen this one. Thanks for the review.
Gina
I think I like Cary Grant just a bit better.
And you know, there are so many good old movies that people don’t even want to see because they think they aren’t up to today’s “standards” when usually they are ten times better!
I remember seeing “It Happened One Night” after initial resistance, and I adored it!
Lalunas
Cary Grant, wow I literally melt, he is probably # one on my list for the Best Man out. I have seen most of his Movies, including this one. Great movie.
Alfred Hitchcock was truely a genious. His work is so well done, it humbles alot of today’s directors. His personal life was really saucey. Ingrid Bergman was a classic beauty and well bewitching. I just love classic films and can ramble on an on about them.. I am so glad you got to enjoy this little treasure..
wanderlust scarlett
I’ve been in love with Cary Grant forever. Since I was a young preteen/teen girl and saw To Kill a Mockingbird for the first time. Sean Connery even falls after Cary Grant.
SIIIIIIIIIIIIGH.
SWOOOOOOOOOOOON.
I also love Ingrid Bergman, she’s fabulous.
I am an ‘old movie’ buff, just adore them, but somehow I missed this one.
I’m off to get it immediately.
Thank you for the tip, and the wonderful review!
No spoilers!!
Scarlett & Viaggiatore
J
I don’t know how to tell you this, Scarlett, but Cary Grant wasn’t in To Kill a Mockingbird. That was Gregory Peck. He was awesome, though, and it was a great film!
Let me know if you enjoy Notorious! We watched it last night, so Py could enjoy it with me. 🙂
Michelle
Oh I LOVE Cary Grant. Now I have to say if you liked him in Notorious try North by Northwest, To Catch a Thief (with Grace Kelly), Suspicion with Joan what’s-her-nose, Charade with Audrey Hepburn and another Ingrid Bergman classic: Indiscreet.
Of course then you can always enjoy the comedies like Father Goose with Leslie Caron or That Touch of Mink with Doris Day. I also liked Bringing up Baby with Marilyn Monroe and some of his sadder movies like Penny Serenade (a real tear jerker) and Night and Day where he portrays Cole Porter.
I guess I’ve shown my love of old movies, huh? 🙂
J
Michelle, I don’t think I’ve seen ANY of these, except it was Katherine Hepburn in Bringing up Baby. I’m going to research some of these and add them to my Netflix queue!
debra
I’ve added it to my queue. Thanks for the suggestion!
kookiejar
Somewhat off topic:
I love ‘The Philadelphia Story’ but I always get mad because I feel like Katharine Hepburn chose the wrong man. If given a choice between Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart, there is no contest in my mind. I’ll take Jimmy Stewart.