Réalisation:
Alfred HitchcockScénario:
Ernest LehmanPhotographie:
Robert BurksMusique:
Bernard HerrmannActeurs·trices:
Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Jessie Royce Landis, Leo G. Carroll, Josephine Hutchinson, Philip Ober, Martin Landau, Adam Williams (plus)VOD (4)
Résumés(1)
Roger Thornhill est un publicitaire new-yorkais dont l'existence est centrée autour de son travail et de ses sorties avec sa mère. Lors d'un rendez-vous avec des clients au Plaza Hotel, sa vie va brusquement basculer : deux hommes le prennent pour un certain George Kaplan, le kidnappent et le conduisent à leur chef, M. Townsend alias Phillip Vandamm. Après avoir vainement essayé de lui soutirer des informations, ces derniers tentent de le tuer mais ratent leur coup. Thornhill est alors décidé à révéler le complot fomenté contre ce mystérieux Kaplan. Mais lorsqu'il retrouve le vrai M. Townsend, travaillant au siège des Nations Unies, celui-ci est poignardé sous les yeux de Thornhill, lequel devient le principal suspect de ce crime. Il s'enfuit bientôt de New York, aidée par une jeune femme nommée Eve Kendall, apparemment tombée sous le charme du publicitaire. Mais le jeu de séduction auquel elle se livre se révèle moins innocent qu'il n'y paraît... (Carlotta Films)
(plus)Critiques (7)
La réalisation la plus américaine, la plus colorée, la plus longue, la plus aventureuse et en tout cas la plus grandiose dans tous les aspects du traitement de l'histoire d'amour de Hitchcock, un homme accusé à tort en fuite. Cary Grant est l'acteur le plus sympathique de son époque, Eva Marie Saint est belle et fragile, et tout est si magnifiquement filmé et monté que c'en est presque fascinant. La superbe direction artistique, récompensée par un Oscar, joue le même rôle que dans Psychose ou Sueurs froides, ce qui est déjà remarquable pour un film d'aventure détendu. Un film parfait.
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The best Hitchcock I’ve seen so far! It only took ten minutes for me to be overcome by that feeling I get whenever I’m watching something exceptional, the joy that after so many films I can still come across one capable of thrilling me like a child. North by Northwest did that from the get go, and I followed the events on the screen almost without breathing until the end. 100%
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A brilliant thriller with the protagonist’s wonderfully elaborated paranoia, the logic of a conspiracy thriller worked out to the last detail, and last but not least, a nice dose of black-humored trivialization, through which Hitchcock ironically winks at the viewer every now and then. It’s formally impeccable (the cinematography belongs in textbooks!), the acting is spot on (Cary Grant delivering cool lines with icy calm and Eva Marie Saint as the femme fatale is absolutely amazing), and on top of that, the tension builds up to the fabulous ending on Mount Rushmore. A flawless film that reflects the image of one thing only - pure genius!
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Alfred Hitchcock as usual constructs the atmosphere perfectly, but even so, I was disappointed this time around. Roger's paranoia in the introduction meets all expectations (and clearly inspired David Fincher in The Game), but the premature climax comes with the cult scene of the crop-dusting plane. Afterwards, it just kinda weaves and weaves its webs until it finally reaches a characteristically suspenseful finale, which – after two hours of intrigue – simply isn't compelling enough.
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All of Alfred Hitchcock's films, including his most famous ones, naturally need to be judged in the context of the era in which they were made, because the ravages of time have logically left their mark on them. Nevertheless, in my opinion, many of them are a cinematic treat and contemporary filmmakers rarely come close to matching their quality. His films are usually a safe bet for me. Therefore, I was even more disappointed with this particular one because, in my eyes, it just didn't work at all and I had a hard time even finishing it. The incredibly naive and predictable script is to blame, and it is as if it had been written 20 years earlier. The direction is still reliable and the cast is stellar, but that doesn't change the fact that in the scenes that were supposed to be suspenseful, I could barely hold back laughter. Hitchcock certainly didn't intend to write a parody, just a slightly lighter thriller. He ended up making more of those later on. Overall impression: 40%.
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You don’t often see such an elaborate and still entertaining film, in which there is suspense, humor, romance, action and who know what else, without it getting in the way. Hitchcock doesn't wait for anything, he gets things right at the beginning and, with the help of the actors and Herrmann's predatory music, does whatever he wants with us for more than two hours. And we don't mind one bit.
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Some of the scenes almost radiate naivety, the script twists logic beyond recognition, and the technical execution of certain shots looks ridiculous from today’s perspective. On the other hand, even today, the film is still entertaining and witty, Cary Grant is brilliant as the unfortunate Roger Tornhill and the whole film is extremely watchable.
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Annonces