|
Rating:  - A Shadow Haunting Happiness
"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderly again...."
Joan Fontaine is captivating in Hitchcock's beautifully realized romantic drama of a new wife competing with a memory so strong it hangs like a shadow over every facet of her existence. Robert E. Sherwood and Joan Harrison crafted a riveting screenplay from Michael Hogan and Scottish mystery writer Phillip MacDonald's adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's now classic tale of dark romance.
Franz Waxman's lovely score and George Barnes' lushly photographed scenes frame David O. Selznick's stellar production like a mist forming on the grounds of Manderly. A wonderful cast of screen veterans make this very long film a mezmerizing drama from which you can't look away.
Olivier gives a strong performance as the dashing yet troubled widower, Maxim, but it is Fontaine as the young and unsure girl overwhelmed by his romantic attentions who stole our hearts and became a film favorite, winning the Academy Award the next year for Hitchcock's Suspicion.
Fontaine is swept off her feet by the debonair but brooding widower, Maxim. Mousy and shy, there is an endearing charm to her performance in the early portion of the film which has the viewer falling in love with her. It all seems like a dream to her, and Hitchcock uses a rainy windshield to give she and the viewer a snow globe like first glance at Manderly, further augmenting the story's dreamlike quality.
Their fairy-tale romance has its darker elements, however, and from her first moments at Manderly she begins to realize that Rebecca is still very much alive, though long dead. She must compete with a ghost at every turn, diminishing her self-confidence. Friends like Reginald Denny and Nigel Bruce cannot offset the twisted loyalty of Maxim's housekeeper, Miss Danvers (Judith Anderson).
Just when she finds the strength to break free from Rebecca's memory, a battered boat and startling revelations from Maxim about his marriage turn everything upside down. George Sanders causes much trouble during this phase of the story but the revelations are not as yet fully disclosed, nor is the outcome for Manderly and the couple certain in any way. Fontaine is amazing as she grows up and becomes an anchor for Maxim, finally becoming Mrs. De Winter.
A romantically haunting drama with a tremendously enchanting performance from Joan Fontaine, Rebecca is a cinematic masterpiece and a must see film.
Rating:  - Do you speak Taiwanese?
This is a typically excellent Afred Hitchcock movie. Unfortunately I purchased mine from a 3rd party vendor in the US through Amazon along with Notorious. These products originate, as they are stamped on the back of the boxes, from a company in Taiwan. They ship with Taiwanese subtitles which you have to turn off. The main menu is in Taiwanese but you cannot turn it back to English so this makes all your DVD settings useless. The US vendor's comment when I complained was to turn off the Taiwanese.....don't quite understand that. When I put in for a refund, the vendor said to ship the two back to them, me to pay the shipping. This is a long standing problem which has been found on products Amazon handles through 3rd parties. The last one I bought was one called Rome Adventure which had the same problem but the quality on that one was so poor, that you could hardly view the movie. I read on Amazon that 3:10 from Yuma originally had the same problem. It had a Chinese train on the front of the box with Chinese flags on it. Amazon's Dispute Resolution appears to have worked for one of them but not both. Stay away from these vendors. This vendor had a selling percentage of 97%.
Rating: - Rebeca
One of the finest films of all time! The acting is superb you can trace the actors to many films of the period - but this film lets that spark, of genius show through! The development of the charactures is exelant.
The story of a girl becoming a woman and what a woman! If I had only one film to watch it would be this!
Rating: - Outstanding Video Quality.
As both the Criterion and earlier Anchor Bay releases of Hitchcock's "Rebecca" are out-of-print and very exspensive to purchase as used, I decided to try this Korean import. Turns out to be excellent and appears to come from the Criterion source! It even has their excellent Commentary Track. The many other Extras found on the Criterion release are not included, but the picture, sound and commentary are all first class. A great DVD at a rock-bottom price!
Rating: - A masterpiece of mystery and suspense.
Rebecca is an atmospheric psychological drama that tells the story of a young, naive girl who marries a man of means who is recently widowed. She moves to Manderley, a house with all the best qualities of the house in Dark Shadows, to find that all the servants and the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, have some mysterious allegiance to Rebecca, the deceased wife.
The young wife's weaknesses are manipulated ruthlessly by Mrs. Danvers, who strangely seems to be maintaining a shrine to Rebecca. Her dedication to her is even suggestive of a homosexual relationship. Although it is never stated, the suggestion is there. Whatever that relationship was, it is not the relationship between a housekeeper and employer. Most employees don't hold on to their employer's underwear. After Mrs. Danvers plays a cruel trick on the second Mrs. De Winter, causing her to make an appearance at a costume party in the same gown worn by Rebecca, she tries to pursuade her to commit suicide.
Amidst swirling fog and dark shadows, it is eventually revealed that Mr. De Winter hated his first wife, and she hated him. They stayed together for the sake of the family's reputation. Without spoiling the suspense for anyone who hasn't seen this fabulous film, the ending is not what you would expect. There's good reason why many people list Rebecca as one of their favorite movies of all time.
|
