Review of Shadow of a Doubt (1943) by Steven C — 06 Apr 2012
Alfred Hitchcock and I wouldn't have gotten along. He claimed that "Shadow of a Doubt" was his favorite film and it's my least favorite of his. He claimed that Jimmy Stewart ruined "Vertigo" and he ended up hating the film and never speaking to the actor again, I on the other hand think it's his crowing achievement and a fantastic Stewart performance.
For me, "Shadow of a Doubt" is just to disparate for me to embrace. While each of the elements seem interesting on their own, none of it congeals. The film has no back story, you are supposed to be caring for Charlie (or at least that's what the overwrought score seems to convey).
How can we care for this main character (and Young Charlie) if we don't know anything about them. We know she is good and he is bad, but WHY? How can we possibly love a character when we know so little about their decision making process? To me, this is lazy filmmaking.
The film tries to be thrilling, funny, dark, romantic and fails every step of the way due to the lack of characterization. All we end up with is a film that will only scare the naive morons of Middle America.
.. (which is what the film is about, so maybe it works?... nahhh).
This review of Shadow of a Doubt (1943) was written by Steven C on 06 April 2012.
Shadow of a Doubt has generally received very positive reviews.
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