Post by klep on Mar 2, 2020 7:53:08 GMT -6
MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 3/3: Rebecca
ADAPTATION WEEK!
Note: This is a rerun of my essay from when Rebecca was covered by the Next Picture Show Podcast
Rebecca was Hitchcock's Hollywood debut, and it's seen as something of a turning point for him - the point where his films start getting richer and his characters fuller. But there's much of producer David O. Selznick in the film as well, though perhaps seen more in what's not present than what is.
Because it takes quite a while for the film to get to the psychodrama that was Hitchcock's bread and butter. Rebecca starts as a light, breezy romance about a young woman (Joan Fontaine) - never named - swept up by wealthy aristocrat Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier). It's a truly delightful whirlwind romance, and the only hint of Hitchcock's traditional darkness is the shadow that keeps falling across Maxim's face.
Things go in a direction more familiar to fans of Hitchcock's work after the pair get married and move back to Maxim's Manderlay estate. As the in over her head Mrs. de Winter struggles to adjust to living like aristocracy, she's constantly feeling the pressure of the previous Mrs. de Winter - Rebecca - whose presence is everywhere and against whom she constantly feels she's being measured. This pressure is personified in the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), whose own overbearing presence carries with it an unstated menace at all times, and ultimately nearly drives the new Mrs. de Winter to madness and suicide.
But the psychodrama fades into the background for the last bit of the movie, in which the focus is shifted to a murder investigation that - while interesting - distracts from the compelling conflict between Mrs. de Winter and Mrs. Danvers. It's as if Selznick took over from Hitchcock, deeming Mrs. de Winter finding self-confidence and security in her place in Maxim's life ends her part of the story.
Of course on the other hand, Hitchcock was also known to step on his endings from time to time and overexplaining things, but it's hard to imagine he wouldn't have relished showing us just one more intense confrontation between the two women. Regardless, the film as a whole does not suffer for it. The resolution of the investigation into Rebecca's death is as gripping and dramatic as you could wish for, and its final frames bring the story to a satisfying and chilling conclusion.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 3/10: Starship Troopers
FRONTIER WEEK!
I've heard it said that space is the final frontier, and next week we'll be venturing into the black for a war against some goddamn bugs. Join us next week for our coverage of Paul Verhoeven's satirical adaptation of Starship Troopers, available in the usual places.
NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST for 3/4: Birds of Prey or the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn
Next week the podcast takes on the latest comic book movie for another look at films with women banding together and giving the law and the patriarchy the finger. Join us Wednesday for our discussion of Birds of Prey, still in theaters.
ADAPTATION WEEK!
Note: This is a rerun of my essay from when Rebecca was covered by the Next Picture Show Podcast
Rebecca was Hitchcock's Hollywood debut, and it's seen as something of a turning point for him - the point where his films start getting richer and his characters fuller. But there's much of producer David O. Selznick in the film as well, though perhaps seen more in what's not present than what is.
Because it takes quite a while for the film to get to the psychodrama that was Hitchcock's bread and butter. Rebecca starts as a light, breezy romance about a young woman (Joan Fontaine) - never named - swept up by wealthy aristocrat Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier). It's a truly delightful whirlwind romance, and the only hint of Hitchcock's traditional darkness is the shadow that keeps falling across Maxim's face.
Things go in a direction more familiar to fans of Hitchcock's work after the pair get married and move back to Maxim's Manderlay estate. As the in over her head Mrs. de Winter struggles to adjust to living like aristocracy, she's constantly feeling the pressure of the previous Mrs. de Winter - Rebecca - whose presence is everywhere and against whom she constantly feels she's being measured. This pressure is personified in the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), whose own overbearing presence carries with it an unstated menace at all times, and ultimately nearly drives the new Mrs. de Winter to madness and suicide.
But the psychodrama fades into the background for the last bit of the movie, in which the focus is shifted to a murder investigation that - while interesting - distracts from the compelling conflict between Mrs. de Winter and Mrs. Danvers. It's as if Selznick took over from Hitchcock, deeming Mrs. de Winter finding self-confidence and security in her place in Maxim's life ends her part of the story.
Of course on the other hand, Hitchcock was also known to step on his endings from time to time and overexplaining things, but it's hard to imagine he wouldn't have relished showing us just one more intense confrontation between the two women. Regardless, the film as a whole does not suffer for it. The resolution of the investigation into Rebecca's death is as gripping and dramatic as you could wish for, and its final frames bring the story to a satisfying and chilling conclusion.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 3/10: Starship Troopers
FRONTIER WEEK!
I've heard it said that space is the final frontier, and next week we'll be venturing into the black for a war against some goddamn bugs. Join us next week for our coverage of Paul Verhoeven's satirical adaptation of Starship Troopers, available in the usual places.
NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST for 3/4: Birds of Prey or the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn
Next week the podcast takes on the latest comic book movie for another look at films with women banding together and giving the law and the patriarchy the finger. Join us Wednesday for our discussion of Birds of Prey, still in theaters.