One crazy roller coaster

Rating: 10/10 (8 December 2019)

North by Northwest stars Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason and is directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The film revolves around an advertising executive named Roger Thornhill who is mistaken for another man named George Kaplan who is forced to go on the run from the government as well as a secret organization who is out looking to kill him. There are two ways of looking at this film. One is just looking at this picture as your standard plot with your typical protagonist and antagonist. But the second way is looking at this in a psychological way. Meaning did all of this actually happen or did he create this fantasy just to escape his boring mundane life? Or another way you can look at this is Roger Thornhill and George Kaplan the same person? And this movie isn't built or structured like a psychological thriller like some of Hitchcock's other movies. But this is Alfred Hitchcock were talking about here. And no other director can take this concept and turn it into a psychological film. Only he can turn a simple concept into something that will make you question your own sanity and have you dissect each frame and shot of the film. That's why this movie is so brilliant as we journey down the rabbit hole inside of Roger Thornhill's warped and twisted mind as he tries to solve the mystery that makes us never leave. I never found myself bored or irritated because I didn't want the journey to end as Alfred Hitchcock hypnotizes the viewer into joining him on this crazy adventure. And the adventure never stops as we have different genres like action, adventure, romance, and comedy all wrapped up in a nice bow. And all these different genres fit so perfectly together that you can sit back and relax without ever scathing your head in confusion. In the end this is one of those movies that will stand the test of time that it has become the inspiration for movies that borrow the same plot, but they will never live up to this. What makes this North by Northwest so brilliant to watch is that you forget your watching a two and a half hour and that the studio and everyone on board put in their sweat and tears to deliver an entertaining movie. And it's no surprise that this film is listed in AFI's top 10 mystery films of all time. So overall, this is by far one of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock movies that is definitely worth watching if you haven't seen it.