Notorious

http://feelthefilms.wordpress.com/2013/08/14/hitchcock/

Roger Ebert once said he never leaves a film early, no matter how bad it is, he always wants to stay until the end. Notorious is a great example of Ebert’s mindset on watching movies. The first third of Notorious is difficult to sit through, the plot is muddled and not explained as crisply as Hitchcock usually does. The film takes off, though, and the second and third Acts are phenomenal. I have the same opinion of Ingrid Bergman’s performance as I do the film itself, I thought the exposition of the character was terrible on her behalf, but Bergman skyrockets in the later scenes. At times, the editing chops the film with short, quick cuts, but it’s also used to create great suspense. The scene that hit me like a bulldozer was the party/wine cellar/key sequence. One of Hitchcock’s finest scenes ever. Claude Raines gives a superb performance as the antagonist; he never makes him the “villain” and Raines steals the picture from it’s enormous stars. A little inconsistent, but so worth the time you put into it.

Rating: 8.5/10

Grade: A-

Feel the Films: A Blog by R.C.S. -> http://feelthefilms.wordpress.com/