Wonderful.

Rating: 10/10 (5 April 2001)

There are certain films in existance that you can watch over and over and they will always remain fresh and vibrant as the day they were released. North By Northwest is one such film. Filled with the usual Hitchcock themes, the movie begins innocently enough when Roger Thornhill calls for a bell boy calling for a George Caplan. From there, he's whisked into a world of murder, espionage, smuggling and late night romances aboard trains. The suspense and plot build together as we, along with Thornhill, try to figure out what's happening, and try not to get killed along the way. Among the films highlights is the infamous crop duster sequence, in which Hitchcock shows you that even in the middle of nowhere, there is still danger. Cary Grant is perfectly cast as the rather quick witted Roger O. Thornhill. Eva Marie Saint is the prerequisite blonde Eve Kendall who helps Thornhill in his quest. The always wonderful James Mason is oily and sinister as Phillip Vandamm, and Martin Landau hides a hidden menace behind his slightly crooked grin. Throw in a wonderful score from Bernard Herrmann, a top notch script from Ernest Lehman and masterful direction from Alfred Hitchcock, and you have a movie that you can never grow tired of. Plus, you have to love that last shot.