Alfred Hitchcock became a very successful director during his career and was known for creating suspenseful movies. Earlier this year, I decided to pick up more of his movies, including some that I haven't seen before. I just watched another of those movies, Notorious.
After World War II, the United States government is still tracking down suspected Nazis. Alicia Hubermann is the daughter of a Nazi convicted of treason who has a bit of a reputation for drinking and dating several men. The U.S. government decides that she could be used to get some of her father's friends, so agent T.R. Devlin is sent to recruit her. Alicia isn't interested at first, but she changes her mind and is soon flying off to Rio with Devlin to await her assignment. The two spend a lot of time together and she falls in love with him. He also has feelings for her, but he is more reserved because of his knowledge of her past.
When Alicia finally receives her assignment, she discovers that she is supposed to get close to Alex Sebastian, one of her father's friends, and start a romance with him so that she can discover more about his activities on behalf of the Nazis. Devlin is upset by the assignment, but he doesn't let Alicia know and actually basically encourages her to do it. Then when she goes through with it, Devlin is upset with her. Alex is completely taken with Alicia even though his mother, Madame Anna Sebastian, is suspicious of her. When Alex proposes, Alicia goes through with the marriage, but it isn't long before her life is in danger.
Notorious begins by showing the sentencing of Alicia's father, the only time he is shown in the movie. That does help to set up why the government is interested in using Alicia to gather evidence against some of her father's friends who are also Nazis. Things do move slower for a while, but it works to help set up what is going on. Once Alicia actually starts her assignment, things do pick up a bit. The movie does have a slower pace overall, which I think works well to help build up the tension and suspense. I was never bored by what was going on and felt the plot is entertaining.
When Notorious was released in 1946, it wasn't long after the end of World War II. At the time, people still remembered what the Nazis had done, so having a character be a Nazi worked as the main reason for why they would be a villain. I think it makes sense to have a group of Nazis take refuge in a different country while they try to develop new plans. Not a lot of what they are planning is dealt with during the movie, but it is made clear that they are planning something. Having Nazis be the villains for the movie does date things a bit. Nazis probably aren't as threatening to some viewers now. The things connected to what the Nazis were planning could have been developed a bit more, but I still thought that aspect of the plot worked. Certain things about Alex do make him slightly sympathetic, but he is still a villain.
There is some mystery tied to what Alex and his group are planning in Notorious. Devlin and the men he works for are sure that Alex and his group are up to something, but they aren't sure what. A few meetings of the group are briefly shown, without any specifics being shared for the most part. It quickly becomes clear that wine bottles are somehow involved, though it takes longer for exactly how they are involved to come out. That does add some mystery to what is going on and there is one or two suspenseful scenes connected to the that aspect of the plot. The mystery could have been a bit stronger, but it still works to make the plot interesting. Later in the movie, something is being done to one of the characters who is unaware of what is happening while viewers know what is going on. That does add a bit of suspense, but I'm thinking there would have been more suspense and mystery if the audience had been kept in the dark along with the character.
Romance does play a part in what is going on in Notorious even though it isn't the main focus of the movie. It is established early in the movie that Alicia has had a bit of a wild past where men are concerned, though nothing too specific is shared. Several suggestive things are said, making it seem like she has been intimate with a few different men. She change a bit once she spends time with Devlin and falls in love with him. Basically all that is shown for that is them kissing and embracing a few different times. Devlin is more reserved with his feelings for her because of her past. Things are complicated when a decision is made to get Alicia to seduce Alex for her assignment. She goes through with it after Devlin basically pushes her into it. At one point, shortly after she started to spend time with Alex, she claims that he is her newest playmate. That suggests to me that she had sex with him, or at least she wanted Devlin to believe that. Shortly after that, Alex says something that indicates he is wanting sex from her. The two of them are shown kissing briefly a few times without showing anything more intimate. There are a lot of suggestive things to the relationships without anything explicit being shown.
Alicia is a more complicated character than she appears to be at first and she goes through a lot. She has a reputation for being a bit wild and for drinking a lot. She decides to go with Devlin to Rio and falls in love with him, which causes her all sorts of complications when she finds out she is supposed to seduce another man. She is smart and observant for the most part, but she does take risks that put her in danger. Ingrid Bergman does really well with the part. Alicia's father is only briefly shown, though he is mentioned every so often throughout the movie.
T.R. Devlin is some kind of agent for the government of the United States, though it isn't said which agency he works for. He is more reserved, though he does care for Alicia. Those feelings make him act in a way that isn't exactly logical at times. Devlin is a good guy overall even though he doesn't always act that nice. Cary Grant does very well with the part. He and Bergman do have a good amount of chemistry. Some other agents turn up every so often without being that developed.
Alex Sebastian is a member of a group of Nazis who have moved to Rio to work on a plan. He had been friends with Alicia's father and met her previously. He was interested in her even then, though she turned him down. He isn't suspicious when she acts differently toward him when they meet again and it doesn't take long for him to propose to her. He does serve as the main villain even though he sort of seems harmless for the most part despite appearing menacing in a few scenes. There is a bit of sympathy to the character. Claude Rains handles the part well.
Alex has a close relationship with his mother, Madame Anna Sebastian. As the movie progresses, it becomes clear that she is also involved with the Nazis. She is very supportive of her son and has suspicions about Alicia from the beginning. Madame comes across as a domineering woman, even with her son. She isn't shown to be completely horrible, but she isn't depicted in a way to make her likable either. The way she takes control and bosses Alex around at times did make me think of the relationship between Norman and his mother from the Psycho movies. Madame Konstantin does well with the part. Alex's friends who are also Nazis also turn up every so often as well.
Main Cast
Ingrid Bergman - Alicia Cary Grant - T.R. Devlin Madame Konstantin - Madame Anna Sebastian Claude Rains - Alex Sebastian
Alfred Hitchcock - Director
DVD Information
There have been a few different DVD releases for Notorious. I have the version that is part of The Alfred Hitchcock Premier Collection along with seven of his other movies. This version of the DVD can also be bought by itself. One of the extras is a restoration comparison. The picture quality is very good throughout the movie, though it doesn't look as good in a few shots.
The special features include commentaries with two film historians that I haven't listened to. The Ultimate Romance: The Making of Notorious Featurette has people talking about the making of the movie. Some pictures taken during the filming of the movie are shown during the featurette. The cast and how the movie came to be made are discussed. I think the information shared is interesting. Alfred Hitchcock: The Ultimate Spymaster Featurette has people talking about how Hitchcock was really the first to make spy movies and how his movie influenced other movies. Several of the people featured mention how they feel Notorious is the first major spy movie. There are comparisons brought up between the movie and a few of the James Bond movies. The featurette is very interesting and entertaining.
The American Film Institute Aware: The Key to Hitchcock Featurette is shorter than the other two featurettes. In this one, Hitchcock's granddaughter talks about him receiving the award. Some of the speech he gave is shown, as is what Ingrid Bergman said and how she presented Hitchcock with an important key prop from Notorious. There is a 1948 radio play, interviews with Hitchcock with Peter Bogdanovich and Francois Truffaut, an isolated music and effects track, the original trailer and a still gallery.
Notorious is another wonderful movie from Hitchcock. The fact that the villains are Nazis does date the movie slightly, but it is still very worth watching. People that have enjoyed other Hitchcock movies should give this one a chance.
9/9/09 marks the 10th birthday of Epinions.com. This review is part of sleeper54's 9/9/09 Write off to celebrate the occasion.
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