North by Northwest came out a year after Vertigo, in 1959. It stars the great Cary Grant and also Eva Marie Saint and James Mason. It is a film I thoroughly enjoy and here's why.
Grant plays Roger Thornhill, a successful advertising executive who is mistaken for a government agent and is immediately abducted by a group of foreign spies.
They lead him to a manor where they call him "Kaplan" while they ask him about his next plans. When he doesn't co-operate, they make him drink a whole bottle of bourbon and then put him in a car to eliminate him.
However, he is captured by the police and is taken to trial for driving drunk.
Thornhill starts to investigate this mysterious man, named "Kaplan" and he finds himself in the United Nations Building where he experiences the murder of a UN official. From then on, he is on the run as he is considered guilty for the murder.
On the train to Chicago, he meets a beautiful blonde woman, Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) who seems to believe his innocence and tries to seduce him.
Not all is what it seems however and he soon finds himself in the middle of nowhere.
Here is where the most famous scene of the movie takes place, in which Thornhill tries to get out of the way of a plane that chases him and shoots him.
The film is full of mysteries and twists and if you haven't seen it, you never know what's going to happen next.
The story behind this film is that James Stewart desperately wanted the lead, however, Hitchcock had made his mind about Cary Grant. So he deliberately delayed the production of North by Northwest until Stewart had signed on another project before he "officially" made him the offer. Naturally, Stewart had to say no and the production went on with Grant on board.
Grant is always wonderful when he plays the wanted man and his charm and wit is shown even in a thriller like this. The scene in an auction room where he tries to get himself arrested is a perfect example.
The last big set of the film is Mount Rushmore. Hitchcock wasn't allowed to film there as he couldn't get permission to film an attempted murder on a national monument. The scene was shot in a studio replica of the mountain.
Interestingly enough, filming in the United Nations building wasn't allowed either. Hitchcock used a hidden camera to film the outdoor scenes and a studio for the indoor ones.
The cinematography is, as always in a Hitchcock film, breathtaking and the sets are various and magnificent.
If there is one thing I don't particularly enjoy in this film, is the choice of Eva Marie Saint for the lead lady. I would have personally prefered the other choices such as Sophia Loren or Cyd Charisse.
James Mason (on the left) who plays the main villain, Vandamm had a severe heart attack after the end of filming.
North by Northwest was voted the #55 Greatest Movie of All Time by the American Film Institute. It has also been ranked #7 on the Institute's list of the greatest films in the genre "Mystery".
Director Cameo: In the beginning of the film, just after the credits, Hitchcock is a man who misses the bus just for a second.
Memorable Quotes:
In the world of advertising, there's no such thing as a lie. There's only expedient exaggeration.- Roger Thornhill
I don't like the way Teddy Roosevelt is looking at me.- Roger Thornhill
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