Great wild convoluted fun ride

Rating: 8/10 (27 September 2014)

Madison Avenue ad executive Roger Thornhill (Cary Grant) is mistaken for a spy named George Kaplan. He is kidnapped and brought to the estate of Lester Townsend. He is interrogated by foreign spy Philip Vandamm (James Mason). His associate Leonard (Martin Landau) tries to set him up for a fatal accident. He manages to survive but the police doesn't believe him when he tells them the story. It also turns out that Townsend is an UN diplomat. He goes to the UN general assembly to track down Townsend. Vandamm kills Townsend and Thornhill becomes the fall guy for the murder. It turns out that George Kaplan is a fictional spy created by the government to divert attention away from the real agent. On the run from the police, he boards the 20th Century Limited train bound for Chicago. On board, he meets Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) who assists him in hiding from the cops. Then it's another twist when he finds out that Eve is working for Vandamm and Leonard. It's a long winding adventure that ends on top of Mt. Rushmore.
This is one convoluted story. Hitchcock is able to keep it going by the talents of Cary Grant and the audacity to keep piling on the twists. Cary Grant is a fun leading man. His charm is overflowing and he handles the wild story with great skill. Eva Marie Saint is a great Hitchcock blonde. This is simply a fun roller-coaster ride with the music, the style, and the non-stop thrills.