Doesn't live up to the expectation

Rating: 5/10 (4 March 2013)

North By Northwest starts pretty well: it's intriguing, tense, captivating. Not for long unfortunately, because after barely about 30 minutes, the pace, suspense, tension, drop significantly and the movie becomes totally convenient and linear until the final outcome.
Hitchcock piles up overlong passages such as the train trip and the romance between Roger and Eve that seemed endless, and questionable ideas like the plane scene or the final chase at Mount Rushmore, unrealistic and ending the film in the most abrupt way. And that is only a small part of the conveniences and incoherences that badly discredit the script.
Under these circumstances, how can this movie be considered an all time classic ? Yes, the direction and mise-en-scène are good, if you put aside the dated special effects and extensive use of matte paintings, but that hardly compensates for a mediocre scenario.