THE MAN WHO KNEW TO MUCH (1956)

(Week 11: James Stewart)

THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1956)

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

With Hitchcock I know I can always count on good storytelling. With this one, a remake of his own film from the 30s, almost every scene was surprising.

The story is about a young married couple, played by James Stewart and Doris Day, on a quest to rescue their kidnapped son and stop an assassination. Stewart plays an everyman well. In his youth he had the look of the boy next door. Now in his fifties, he is every husband and every father. He's not so good looking it's distracting or intimidating. Instead, he invites us to identify him with somebody in our lives.

As for Doris Day, the leading lady, I found her neither captivating nor convincing as an actress. She may have been a beauty icon in her time, but here she seems less like a star and more an understudy. She's not as charismatic as Hitchcock's other blondes, like Grace Kelly or Eva Marie Saint. I don't feel her pain as a mother worrying for her son's life. Although she does have a wonderful singing voice and shines during the last sequence where she sings by the piano. 

With such an intense story, humor is always appreciated. However, the comedy in this movie seems really clunky. Some of my least favorite examples are the scene in the restaurant where Stewart's character just can't manage to figure out the etiquette, and the scene in the taxidermy store, which shows some promise but just isn't funny. These scenes relied solely on the visual and physicality, which ends up being annoying rather than funny. Some sharp, witty dialogues might have saved them. But I did laugh with the humorous ending. I would have preferred a more wholesome closure, but this way is more surprising, more hitchcock-esque.

As a classical music aficionado, I enjoyed the way the assassination scene is orchestrated, literally and literarily speaking. But it feels more gimmicky  than effective. Maybe Hitchcock had intended it to be yet another funny scene. If so, I don't think it was a very good choice. This is, after all, a thriller, and what could have been the most intensely dramatic and thrilling scene just doesn't quite deliver.

What I see here is a film made by someone who likes to tell stories and enjoys experimenting with different styles and tactics, a common notion about Hitchcock. It is as if the effects his story has on the audience are secondary to his having a good time telling it. Nothing wrong with that. The fun definitely translates to the screen, and while THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH may not be the most thrilling of thrillers, it sure is a whole lot of fun to watch.

THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962)

(Week 10: John Wayne)

THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962)

Directed by John Ford

from rikuwrites.blogspot.com

This is a film about an underdog and an unsung hero. James Stewart plays Ransom Stoddard, a young lawyer who opposes to the violence of the old west and tries to change its way by teaching the townsfolk to read. John Wayne plays Tom Doniphon, a typical western hero, except that here he finds himself at odds with a changing world. As most of the town is quick to follow Stoddard's way, Tom's merits slowly becomes irrelevant. The girl Tom likes, Hallie (played by Vera Miles), is indifferent to his valor and partial to the lawyer's intellect. 

The two men have to band together to protect the town from its villain. Lee Marvin plays Liberty Valance, the leader of a gang of outlaws that have been menacing the town. While not being as fleshed out as the two heroes, this role is crucial to the film; he presents Stoddard a series of challenges that tests his tenacity. It is unclear why Tom hadn't done anything about Liberty until now, since Liberty seems to be afraid of him to some degree. Perhaps he doesn't feel that he alone can overthrow the whole gang, or perhaps he knows that without Liberty as the town's villain, he would no longer be the town's hero. 

The film was shot in black and white, either due to low budget or to conceal the actors' age. Stewart and Wayne don't look like the young men that their characters claim to be, and to some degree that has an effect on the film. A young actor would have made Stoddard's youthful idealism more strongly felt. And with Wayne, Tom's refusal to change his way sometimes comes across as a part of his old age. A more appropriate casting would have made for a much different film. Having said that, both Stewart and Wayne give a powerful performance. They play their characters seriously and with a lot of heart. 

This is a western that offers what is familiar and expected while also providing a heartfelt story and memorable characters. This is one of those films that left me with a feeling of having experienced something really special, like it flipped a switch somewhere. It manages to tell a morality tale without being heavy-handed. THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE isn't just a good western but a really good film.