Shadow of a Doubt

Theatrical Release Poster

Macdonald Carey

Patricia Collinge

Henry Travers

**Shadow of a Doubt** is a 1943 American psychological thriller film noir directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten. Written by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson, and Alma Reville, the film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Story for Gordon McDonell. In 1991, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

## Plot

Charlie Newton is a bored teenaged girl living in the idyllic town of Santa Rosa, California. She receives wonderful news: Her mother's younger brother (her namesake), Charles Oakley, is arriving for a visit. Two men appear, supposedly working on a national survey. One takes a photo of Uncle Charlie, who demands the roll of film, because "no one takes my photograph." The younger surveyor, Jack Graham, asks young Charlie out, and she guesses that he is really a detective. He explains that her uncle is one of two suspects who may be the "Merry Widow Murderer". Charlie refuses to believe it at first, but then observes Uncle Charlie acting strangely, primarily with a certain news clipping from her father's newspaper. The initials engraved inside a ring he gave her match those of one of the murdered women, and during a family dinner he reveals his hatred of rich widows.

One night, when Charlie's father and his friend Herbie discuss how to commit the perfect murder, Uncle Charlie lets his guard down and describes elderly widows as "fat, wheezing animals"; he then says, "What happens to animals when they get too fat and too old?" Horrified, Charlie runs out. Uncle Charlie follows and takes her into a seedy bar. He admits he is one of the two suspects. He begs her for help; she reluctantly agrees not to say anything, as long as he leaves soon, to avoid a horrible confrontation that would destroy her mother, who idolizes her younger brother. Detective Saunders tells Charlie that the photo they took of Uncle Charlie was sent for identification by witnesses. News breaks that an alternative suspect was chased by police and killed by an airplane propeller; it is assumed that he was the murderer. Jack tells young Charlie that he loves her and would like to marry her, and leaves.

Uncle Charlie is delighted to be exonerated, but young Charlie knows all his secrets. Soon, she falls down dangerously steep stairs which were cut through. Uncle Charlie says he wants to settle down, and young Charlie says she will kill him if he stays. Later that night, she is trapped in the garage with a car spewing exhaust fumes, and almost dies.

Uncle Charlie announces he is leaving for San Francisco, along with a rich widow, Mrs. Potter. Young Charlie boards the train with her younger sister Ann and their brother to see Uncle Charlie's compartment. As the children disembark, Uncle Charlie restrains his niece Charlie on the train, hoping to kill her by shoving her out after it picks up speed. However, in the ensuing struggle, he falls in front of an oncoming train. At his funeral, Uncle Charlie is honored by the townspeople. Jack has returned, and Charlie confesses that she withheld crucial information. They resolve to keep Uncle Charlie's crimes a secret.

## Cast

* Teresa Wright as Charlie Newton
* Joseph Cotten as Charlie Oakley
* Henry Travers as Joseph Newton
* Patricia Collinge as Emma Newton
* Macdonald Carey as Detective Jack Graham
* Wallace Ford as Detective Fred Saunders
* Hume Cronyn as Herbie Hawkins
* Edna May Wonacott as Ann Newton
* Charles Bates as Roger Newton
* Irving Bacon as Station Master
* Clarence Muse as Pullman Porter
* Janet Shaw as Louise
* Estelle Jewell as Catherine

## Trivia

* Alfred Hitchcock often said that this was his favorite film.
* A box office failure when it was released in 1943. The box office rank was #81 for the year.
* The name "Charlie" is spoken approximately 170 times.
* Patricia Collinge, who plays Emma Newton in the film, wrote the garage scene between Charlie Newton and Jack Graham.
* Alfred Hitchcock considered Cary Grant for the role of Uncle Charlie.
* Edna May Wonacott, who plays young Ann Newton, and Estelle Jewell, who plays Charlie's friend, Catherine, were both locals of Santa Rosa, where the film was shot on location. Many of the film's extras were also locals of the town, which was too far away from Hollywood to be affected by Actors Guild guidelines demanding the use of professional actors.