North by Northwest

Rating: 10/10 (13 September 2005)

I had no idea what was going on the first time I saw this "classic masterpiece" from the great Sir Alfred Hitchcock, but paying much closer attention the second time I can see why it is given that title. Basically Roger O. Thornhill (Cary Grant) has ended a normal day of work, and suddenly he is abducted at gunpoint by two henchmen mistaking him for a government agent named George Kaplan. After meeting their boss (unknown for the moment), he is intoxicated and put driving in a car. He manages to escape charges, as long as he can prove his innocence, so he is now following all leads and clues that can lead either back to the abductors, or this "Kaplan". Many crimes happen around him, and he is photographed as being the key suspect, but he manages to find a friendly girl, Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) on a train, who is instantly attracted to him and says she will help him with his search for answers. At one point Kaplan passes a message to meet Roger on an almost remote road with some crop fields, and this sees one of the most memorable scenes, with him being attacked by the crop dusting plane. After escaping this, he heads to the hotel where he believes Kaplan is staying, and there he finds Eve again, and this is when he starts suspecting she is part of the act. He is right, there is a point that the villains he met before are with her. But he eventually meets The Professor (Leo G. Carroll) who reveals she is working for the government agency trying to find out information about them stealing microfilm secrets, oh, and also that Kaplan is fictional, it's Eve. The conclusion of the film sees Roger going to the house where the villain, Phillip Vandamm (James Mason), and his henchman Leonard (Martin Landau) are staying, near the Mount Rushmore monument, and this sees the second most memorable scene, climbing all over the four presidents (LOL). In the end the villains fall to their deaths, the microfilm is recovered, and Roger and Eve are newlyweds. Also starring Jessie Royce Landis as Clara Thornhill, and Hitchcock's cameo is the man missing a bus. Grant is fantastically charming, the direction is impeccable, and it is just a film you can't miss. It was nominated the Oscars for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Film Editing and Best Writing, Story and Screenplay - Written Directly for the Screen. Sir Alfred Hitchcock was number 75 on The 100 Greatest Pop Culture Icons, Cary Grant was number 10 on The 100 Greatest Movie Stars, he was number 19 on The 50 Greatest British Actors, he was number 4 on Britain's Finest Actors, he was number 2 on 100 Years, 100 Stars - Men, and he was number 23 on The World's Greatest Actor, the film was number 4 on 100 Years, 100 Thrills, it was number 40 on 100 Years, 100 Movies, and it was number 7 on Film 4's 50 Films To See Before You Die. Outstanding!