Rebecca (1940)

When a naive young woman marries a rich widower and settles in his gigantic mansion, she finds the memory of the first wife maintaining a grip on her husband and the servants.

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

Daphne Du Maurier (celebrated novel), Robert E. Sherwood (screen play),

Stars:

Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders

Top 250 #124 | Won 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Laurence Olivier	...	'Maxim' de Winter
Joan Fontaine	...	Mrs. de Winter
George Sanders	...	Jack Favell
Judith Anderson	...	Mrs. Danvers
Nigel Bruce	...	Major Giles Lacy
Reginald Denny	...	Frank Crawley
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Colonel Julyan
Gladys Cooper	...	Beatrice Lacy
Florence Bates	...	Mrs. Van Hopper
Melville Cooper	...	Coroner
Leo G. Carroll	...	Dr. Baker
Leonard Carey	...	Ben
Lumsden Hare	...	Tabbs
Edward Fielding	...	Frith
Philip Winter	...	Robert

Storyline

A shy ladies' companion, staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer, meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter. She and Max fall in love, marry and return to Manderley, his large country estate in Cornwall. Max is still troubled by the death of his first wife, Rebecca, in a boating accident the year before. The second Mrs. de Winter clashes with the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, and discovers that Rebecca still has a strange hold on everyone at Manderley.

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Plot Keywords:

Housekeeper | Love | Death | Widower | Cornwall | 

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Taglines:

The shadow of a remembered woman came between their lips... but these two had the courage to hope... and to live their love!

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

12 April 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rebeca

Filming Locations:

Big Sur, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,288,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Selznick International Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alfred Hitchcock:  walking past a phone booth just after Jack Favell (George Sanders) makes a call in the final part of the movie. There are photos showing Hitchcock standing beside the phone booth looking at Mr Sanders. Actually the scene isn't played that way and you have to be quick spotting Hitchcock, quickly passing by in the background while Sanders is discussing a parking matter with a police man. Sanders having only been seen in close up while talking on the phone.

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Goofs

Frank's hand holding the letter jumps from in front of the filing cabinet to resting on top of it.

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Quotes

Mrs. Danvers: [the new Mrs. de Winter wants to dispose of Rebecca's letters] But these are Mrs. de Winter's things.
The Second Mrs. de Winter: I *am* Mrs. de Winter now!

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Crazy Credits

The original 1940 credits read "Selznick International presents its picturization of Daphne Du Maurier's 'Rebecca'". The credits on the re-issue version read "The Selznick Studio presents its production of Daphne Du Maurier's 'Rebecca'".

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Connections

Spoofed in High Anxiety (1977)

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Soundtracks

"Love's Old Sweet Song (Just a Song at Twilight)"
(1884) (uncredited)
Music by J.L. Molloy
Hummed by Joan Fontaine

User Reviews

Haunting Hitchcock.

The only Alfred Hitchcock (Oscar-nominated for directing) film to win the Best Picture Oscar, "Rebecca" is one of those typical films from the amazing director that chills, entertains and puts you on the edge of your seat each time you watch it. Joan Fontaine (Oscar-nominated) has just married the very wealthy Laurence Olivier (also Oscar-nominated), but she is haunted by his mysterious housekeeper (a show-stopping Oscar-nominated performance by Judith Anderson) and the memory of the film's titled character (Olivier's late wife). Hitchcock, noted for his subtle sexual under-tones in films spares none of that here as Anderson's character and the late titled character's relationship seemed to go much further than employee-employer. Anderson slowly tries to drive Fontaine to insanity and the end she may accomplish her devious goal. Hitchcock's first real major U.S. debut stunned the Academy and audiences alike and would lead to the coveted Best Picture Oscar. It is not the best film the legendary director ever worked on, but it is still an amazingly good production that works on many cinematic levels. 4.5 out of 5 stars.