Action-Packed Thriller and Comedy

Rating: 10/10 (10 December 2011)

The theme of North by Northwest is one of deception and mistaken identity. This film is an action packed thriller with comedy mixed in. Everyone was acting out a character and no one is who they seemed to be. The main character Roger Thornhill was mistaken as a spy for the US Government at the Plaza Hotel in New York by foreign spies. Later in the film he pretends to be a spy to protect a woman that he had fallen in love with Eve, who was a spy for the Central Intelligence Agency. Eve was pretending to be interested in Roger Thornhill and the foreign spy Phillp Vandamm. This kept the viewer in suspense until the end when it is revealed that she was playing both sides in order to protect her identity while trying to protect US secrets. One element or motif is the reoccurring thematic element of deception. Everyone in the film is playing a part of someone else except Roger's mom. This deception is displayed by everyone in this film. This film keeps you guessing. The famous crop-dusting scene uses different camera angles along with dynamic sound effects that make this scene very exciting and suspenseful. This scene reinforces the theme. The elements of this story unify the plot and make this a credible interesting movie. Although this North by Northwest is suspenseful, it is also simple and easy to follow. North by Northwest has a chronological structure. It starts with the characters introduced in New York. It is followed by the complication or conflict of the mistaken identity and deception of all the characters while ending in the Climax. The climax occurred when all the true identities are identified and the reason for all of the deception is explained. This was when the foreign spies dropped the art object and microfilm containing Government secrets were exposed. The characterization of the film was through external action. The motivations of the characters were revealed throughout the film. Although there were not many symbols in the film, the irony was displayed with by the suspense and periodic humor from the characters of this film. The theme is repeated until the end of the film. Towards the end of the film Roger Thornhill said to the Phillip Vandamm, "The only performance that will satisfy you is when I play dead." This thriller involves a chase going from the North to Northwest. The romance and comedy continues as do the changing of the character's identities.