Any Hitchcock Fans Here??

[Mel]

We enjoy watching the pay movie channels when they're free. One of them had several Alfred Hitchcock movies, which we recorded.

Last night, we watched The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956; James Stewart and Doris Day). I've seen it many times. To my surprise, Doris Day didn't sing Que Sera Sara until the near-end of the film, when she belted it out at the piano while at the ambassador's house.

My recollection was that she first sang some of the song softly, at the beginning of the movie, while putting her son to bed.

I was sure I was right, and I did a search about deleted or missing scenes. But I didn't find anything about that. All I found was that, before the script was written, Hitchcock wanted a song the lead female could sing to her son at bedtime.

I'd *swear* that scene was actually filmed and part of the movie.

Anyone else remember this??

I did come across an interesting tit-bid. At the beginning, after the spy is stabbed, he staggers through the Moroccan crowd toward the doctor (James Stewart), who tries to catch him. When his hands touch the spy's face, the dark makeup comes off on his hands. The makeup artists couldn't get that effect to work, so they painted the doctor's fingers white. He left white streaks on the spy's face.

[TrekBeatTK]

I love The Man Who Knew Too Much. One of the best remakes out there.

Your recollection is correct. She definitely sings it once in the beginning of the movie with her son while either putting him to bed, and before they leave for the evening. This establishes the song so that at the end when she sings it, he recognizes it.

So I don't know why it wasn't there when you watched it last night, or maybe it was and you just missed it, but it's DEFINITELY in the movie. The scene in question is this one:



-TK

[Mel]

TK, thanks so much for the info!! I never thought to check youtube. I don't remember if it came up in my search. Most things aren't captioned, so I usually don't use it. While watching the show, I don't think I missed the scene, but maybe I did. The others in the room didn't remember seeing it either.

[captainbasil]

I'm a big Hitchcock fan. I think my favorite film is Rope, but it's tough to pick just one. I also love Alfred Hitchcock Presents which I think is the best TV anthology show ever. I love it even more than Twilight Zone.

[TrekBeatTK]

Rope is great. I'm also very partial to Shadow of a Doubt, which I think is so much better than the other films of the 1940s that get more notoriety (I don't see what so many like about Notorious).

I've been debating whether to take the summer and watch all Hitchcock's films. There are still a number I've been saving.

-TK

[Mel]

I'd be hard-pressed to choose a Hitchcock favorite movie too, not to mention I'm a fan of the TV shows.

Many of the movies hold up over time. Along with the ones you two mentioned, Psycho, Rear Window, 39 Steps, Strangers on a Train, The Birds, and others.

But I think Shadow of a Doubt is my favorite. The cast, the plot, the setting, the building fear, are perfect. I love Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten. They're in other favorite movies of mine. Teresa is in The Best Years of Our Lives, and Joseph is in Gaslight, not to mention a few SF movies, like Soylent Green.

Both appeared in Hitchcock's TV shows, but not together.

I love Rope because it's so cold-blooded, and the techniques used to film were interesting, the long shots, and the moving background.

I also don't see the appeal of Hitchcock's Norotious, To Catch a Thief, or North by Northwest, which is considered a classic. Maybe it's because everyone loves Cary Grant.

[StarFuryG7]

May 1, 2013 18:14:12 GMT -5 captainbasil said:

I'm a big Hitchcock fan. I think my favorite film is Rope, but it's tough to pick just one. I also love Alfred Hitchcock Presents which I think is the best TV anthology show ever. I love it even more than Twilight Zone.

I'm forced to disagree with you there. I studied Hitchcock as part of my major in College, even though I'd been familiar with a good portion of his work going back to when I was a kid. "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" was aired in syndication for many years just like "The Twilight Zone," but as TV series' go, I always preferred TZ. Hitchcock tended to make his portions of his show more whimsical in contrast, even downright silly, whereas Serling's monologues were spot-on pertinent to the episodes, and often masterfully written. Hitchcock, on the other hand, had a staff of television writers and people on the production end that he had been involved with for years and was comfortable working with producing all of the material for him. Rod Serling was a great prolific writer, whereas Hitchcock was a masterful director. The two men were in the same business, but they worked it from very different angles.

[captainbasil]

I would never want to pick a favorite Hitchcock movie. I love:
Rope
Strangers on a Train
Shadow of a Doubt (thanks for bringing this flick up , I forgot how much I liked it)
Rear Window (It's fantastic.)
I was sick of Psycho for a while because it was always on TV when I was a kid, but it is an almost flawless film and everyone should see it and read the original Robert Bloch novel. Anything by Robert Bloch is worth a read.

As for AH Presents vs Twilight Zone, I don't want to disparage TZ. It's great and my wife is a TZ addict. The first thing I ever bought her when we were dating was a book on the series. I just think episode for episode, AHP is a little better. I love Outer Limits too.

[StarFuryG7]

May 2, 2013 18:47:28 GMT -5 captainbasil said:

I would never want to pick a favorite Hitchcock movie. I love:
Rope
Strangers on a Train
Shadow of a Doubt (thanks for bringing this flick up , I forgot how much I liked it)
Rear Window (It's fantastic.)
I was sick of Psycho for a while because it was always on TV when I was a kid, but it is an almost flawless film and everyone should see it and read the original Robert Bloch novel.

All good films, although "Psycho", while engaging, as well as being a classic, can nevertheless come across as almost a Made-for-TV movie, which is not to take anything away from it, except that in comparison to those other movies, it lacked the broader scope and grandeur.

And I can't really comment on 'Rope," having never seen it. I've seen a few clips from it though, and I know it was a concept film done in one continuous, non-stop take without any edits. Still, I've never seen it.

May 2, 2013 18:47:28 GMT -5 captainbasil said:

As for AH Presents vs Twilight Zone, I don't want to disparage TZ. It's great and my wife is a TZ addict. The first thing I ever bought her when we were dating was a book on the series. I just think episode for episode, AHP is a little better. I love Outer Limits too.

Do you remember what book it was that you bought her? Was it "The Twilight Zone Companion" by Marc Scott Zicree? If not, put it on your list as a stocking stuffer or as a little Valentine's Day gift on the side, or some such thing. She'll love it if she doesn't already have a copy.