North by Northwest (1959)

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writer:

Ernest Lehman (written by)

Release Date:

17 September 1959 (Japan)

Genre:

Adventure | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A 3000 MILE CHASE . . . That blazes a trail of TERROR to a gripping, spine-chilling climax !

Plot:

A hapless New York advertising executive is mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and is pursued across the country while he looks for a way to survive.

Plot Keywords:

Running | Biplane | Punch Into Camera | Director Cameo | Oedipus Complex

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Cary Grant	...	Roger O. Thornhill
Eva Marie Saint	...	Eve Kendall
James Mason	...	Phillip Vandamm
Jessie Royce Landis	...	Clara Thornhill
Leo G. Carroll	...	The Professor
Josephine Hutchinson	...	Mrs. Townsend
Philip Ober	...	Lester Townsend
Martin Landau	...	Leonard
Adam Williams	...	Valerian
Edward Platt	...	Victor Larrabee
Robert Ellenstein	...	Licht
Les Tremayne	...	Auctioneer
Philip Coolidge	...	Dr. Cross
Patrick McVey	...	Sergeant Flamm - Chicago Policeman
Ed Binns	...	Captain Junket (as Edward Binns)

Also Known As:

Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (USA) (complete title)
Breathless (USA) (working title)
In a Northwesterly Direction (USA) (working title)
The Man in Lincoln's Nose (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

136 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | Dolby SR | Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Sweden:15 | Netherlands:AL (DVD rating) | Netherlands:12 (2008 re-release) | UK:A (1959) | USA:Approved (PCA #19156) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Netherlands:12 (re-rating) | Spain:13 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (2000) | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:G (1959-1998) | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Germany:12 (re-rating) | Peru:14 | UK:PG | West Germany:16 (original rating) | Norway:16

Filming Locations:

Bakersfield, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Jessie Royce Landis played Thornhill's (Cary Grant's) mother, yet she was only seven years older than he (according to the 'making of' on the DVD).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: During the climactic Mt. Rushmore scene at the end of the film, the top of the mountain set, and equipment, are clearly visible for a number of seconds.

Quotes:

Eve Kendall: I'm a big girl.
Roger Thornhill: Yeah, and in all the right places, too.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Soundtrack:

Singin' in the Rain

From The Master of Suspense Came the Daddy of the Modern Adventure Thrillers

Many feel this is Alfred Hitchcock's greatest American movie, and I agree! NORTH BY NORTHWEST is the Hitchcock film to end all Hitch films, with all his pet themes covered with maximum wit, panache, and suspense, as well as a romance between Cary Grant and a soignée Eva Marie Saint that's as tender as it is sexy. Grant has never been more engaging and dashing (literally and figuratively :-), though the smoothly villainous James Mason nearly out-suaves him. My husband and I have joked that if Mason had played Thornhill, the film would have been over in mere moments. With all due respect to Grant, if the imperious, unshakably confident Mason asked the Glen Cove police, "Do you honestly believe that this happened the way you think it did?" they would immediately reply, "No, sir, you must be right, you're free to go, sorry we bothered you." :-) Also boasts a great early performance by a reptilian young Martin Landau as Mason's possessive henchman, as well as one of Oscar nominee Ernest Lehman's best screenplays (in fact, he borrowed liberally from it for his script for the film version of THE PRIZE starring Paul Newman) and one of Bernard Herrmann's finest scores. Anybody who wants to write or direct a chase thriller should watch NORTH BY NORTHWEST first to see how it's done!