Comments on: North By Northwest (1959)

By: Joe Valdez

Joe Valdez — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 23:07:31 +0000

Damian: Maybe Jurassic Park would have been a better example than Die Hard. Theyâ€™re both rollercoasters, whereas most critics ranking the Greatest Films Of All Time would probably favor movies that challenge an audience, rather than cater to it. If you have any interest in the engineering that goes into rollercoasters, North By Northwest is one of the masterpieces. Pat: â€œThe least I can do is afford you the opportunity of surviving the evening.â€ James Masonâ€™s diction is truly bad ass and heâ€™s wonderful in this movie. Thanks for your comment, Patricia. If youâ€™re worried about my psychological well being once October is over, a gift package of Hitchcockâ€™s Universal fare would make a great stocking stuffer. The holiday shopping season begins November 1, donâ€™t you know â€¦ Megan: That was Cary Grant's comment. He told Ernest Lehman that North By Northwest was a David Niven script, that he couldn't figure out what was going on and it was doubtful anyone else would either. Of course, when the movie came out and was a huge critical and commercial hit, Grant had a different interpretation of the film's worth, even complimenting Gene Wilder 20 years later for his Roger Thornhill type characterization in Silver Streak.

By: Megan

Megan — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 22:54:23 +0000

‘No, they didn’t give me a chaser.’ Love that scene.

Joe, when you say ‘David Niven script’ what do you (or what did Grant) mean? That it was more the type of film Niven would do/be offered? Or that the character reminded him of Niven himself?

By: Pat Evans

Pat Evans — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:39:43 +0000

I’m with you Joe. This is great escapist film-making (and who wants to be challenged all the time. Cary Grant is doing his best Cary Grant impersonation — and as always so likeable — and James Mason by his voice alone always makes a wonderful villain.

When your 31 days are up you may find you have withdrawal symptoms if you return to watching the standard run of current possibilities.

By: Damian

Damian — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 05:18:47 +0000

That's a very good analogy, Joe (and rather clever of you to use two of my all-time favorite films in the process). With that in mind I can understand completely why North By Northwest would be considered one of the greatest films ever made. Good job. The obvious question that then arises is whether or not there is something about films like Schindler's List or Vertigo that makes them somehow "deeper" or "of more substance" than films like North By Northwest or Die Hard and if that should factor into one's criteria when trying to determine "great works of art." Although I am not prepared, at this point in my lifelong journey thinking about art, to say with certainty that there is, I can't help but lean in that direction.

By: Joe Valdez

Joe Valdez — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:38:58 +0000

Damian: If this were the SATs, North By Northwest would be to Vertigo as Die Hard is to Schindler's List. It may be sacrelige for me to even mention that to a Spielberg fan like you, but I think all of those films are the epitome of their genre.

By: Damian

Damian — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:32:14 +0000

I’m somewhat of an anomanly among Hitchcock fans when it comes to North By Northwest. While I can concede that the film is indeed a lot of fun (on those rare occasions when I do watch it, quite naturally I enjoy it), I must admit that out of all the films often considered Hitch’s “greatest,” it’s always been my least favorite. I do not think that it’s a bad movie by any means, but I’ve never really been convinced (even when I first saw it) that it belongs in the company of Vertigo, Psycho, Strangers on a Train, Rear Window, etc.