A shy lady's companion, staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer, meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter (Sir Laurence Olivier). A shy ladies companion is staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer when she meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter. I love the inside of Mandalay and Sir Laurence Olivier played a wonderful mysterious and sullen Maximillian De Winter opposite his new wife, a beautiful and naive young Joan Fontaine who is never even given a name here, probably deliberately and in keeping with how mousy and "second hand" she feels about herself in relation to the first and late Mrs. De Winter, who is actually Rebecca from the title.Of course there is also George Sanders, playing the type of character he is best known for--sarcastic, snobby, self-assured, pompous, witty and verbose. It's also his first Hollywood film. The film stars Laurence Olivier as the brooding, aristocratic widower Maxim de Winter and Joan Fontaine as the young woman who becomes his second wife, with Judith Anderson, George Sanders and Gladys Cooper in supporting roles. But soon you learn that Rebecca was never the perfect wife Danvers and others make her out to be. "[11] Harrison's Reports declared: "A powerful psychological drama for adults. Rewrites and reshooting were called for after a rough cut was previewed on December 26, 1939.[4]. The film is a gothic tale shot in black-and-white. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. By A.H. WEILER. She and Maxim fall in love, get married and return to Manderley, his large country estate in Cornwall. The 1940 classic Alfred Hitchcock movie. Plot summary: A shy ladies companion is staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer when she meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter. A seemingly timid but secretly ruthless ingénue insinuates herself into the lives of an aging Broadway star and her circle of theater friends. Hitchcock's cameo appearance, a signature feature of his films, takes place near the end; he is seen walking, back turned to the audience, outside a phone box just after Jack Favell completes a call. The only thing known about her in the film is that she came to Manderley when Rebecca was a bride. The site's consensus describes it as "a masterpiece of haunting atmosphere, Gothic thrills, and gripping suspense". Visit the official website of Alfred Hitchcock to learn more about the director, his films, and his legacy as the Master of Suspense. An insurance representative lets himself be talked by a seductive housewife into a murder/insurance fraud scheme that arouses the suspicion of an insurance investigator. An inexperienced young woman meets aristocratic widower Maxim de Winter at the French Riviera and soon becomes the second Mrs. de Winter. It was re-released in Britain in 1945 and made $460,000. Joan Fontaine plays the unnamed narrator, a young woman who works as a companion to the well-to-do Mrs. Van Hopper (Florence Bates). Was this review helpful to you? During a heated argument, she fell, struck her head, and died. In 1940, Hitchcock, one of the most celebrated directors of all-time, adapted Rebecca to the big screen. Why didn't Maxim fire Mrs Danvers after Rebecca died. Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock KBE (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. "[9] Variety called it "an artistic success" but warned it was "too tragic and deeply psychological to hit the fancy of wide audience appeal. Rebecca was one of three films Hitchcock adapted from stories by Daphne du Maurier, and much the most successful. Col Needham . BY WAY OF REPORT: Presented by the Royal Air Force It was Hitchcock's first American project, and his first film under contract with producer David O. Selznick. Danvers advises her to copy the dress that one of Maxim's ancestors is seen wearing in a portrait. The second Mrs. de Winter (Joan Fontaine) clashes with the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers (Dame Judith Anderson), and discovers that Rebecca still has a strange hold on everyone at Manderley. 52:50. The narrative opens in Monte Carlo in a luxury hotel in that rarefied society inhabited only by the ultra-rich. Criterion's new 4-K digital restoration has a (slightly) better picture. Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rebecca” is a Criterion Classic. [20], According to Kinematograph Weekly it was the most popular film of 1940 in Britain.[21]. Check out what we'll be watching in 2021. The screening was introduced by Christopher Nolan. Despite being based on the same novel, Netflix’s latest thriller “Rebecca” is not a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s Oscar-award winning film from 1940. The housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, is domineering and cold, and is obsessed with the beauty, intelligence and sophistication of the first Mrs. de Winter, the … Looking to watch Rebecca (1940)? The production credits on the film were as follows: Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times called it "an altogether brilliant film, haunting, suspenseful, handsome and handsomely played. When she claimed she was pregnant by her cousin and lover, Jack Favell, she taunted Maxim that the estate might pass to someone other than Maxim's line. At last, Joan Harrison was guaranteed to make Rebecca. The Breen Office, Hollywood's censorship board, specifically prohibited any outright hint of a lesbian infatuation or relationship between Mrs. Danvers and Rebecca,[5]:70 though the film clearly does dwell on Danvers' obsessive memories of her late mistress. Rebecca, Gothic suspense novel by Daphne du Maurier, published in 1938. Maxim is still troubled by the death of his wife, Rebecca, in a boating accident the year before. Certificate: Passed A shy young heiress marries a charming gentleman, and soon begins to suspect he is planning to murder her. "[10] Film Daily wrote: "Here is a picture that has the mark of quality in every department - production, direction, acting, writing and photography - and should have special appeal to femme fans. Rebecca Romance becomes psychodrama in the elegantly crafted Rebecca, Alfred Hitchcock’s first foray into Hollywood filmmaking. Since yesterday, Aug. 11, restored 2K digital copies of the Best Picture Academy Award winner starring Oscar nominees Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine are being presented in 12 Brazilian cities. The ending is a surprise in more way than one, and yet Mrs. Danvers gets the last word in her own way. Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier in Rebecca Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier in Rebecca (1940), directed by Alfred Hitchcock. New York Times March 3, 1946: X3. In Alfred Hitchcock: The Hollywood years: Rebecca to Dial M for Murder. A great movie by Alfred Hitchcock and David O. Selznick. Did the novel reveal the second Mrs de Winter's name? He hits the nail on the head as Rebecca's "cousin" - so he calls himself. Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in the shadow of his former wife, Rebecca, who died … It won two awards; Best Picture, and Best Cinematography, becoming the only film directed by Hitchcock to win the former award. Rebecca (1940) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Criterion's new 4-K digital restoration has a (slightly) better picture. Hitchcock adapted three of Daphne du Maurier's novels, with two of them becoming icons of western cinema. Mrs. de Winter confronts Danvers about this, but Danvers tells her she can never take Rebecca's place and almost persuades her to jump to her death from the second story window in Rebecca's room. Du Maurier struggled … Apart from being a tad bit long, this is a well made film. [15], Rebecca was the opening film at the 1st Berlin International Film Festival in 1951. How far will she have to go to ingratiate herself with them? While Selznick was preoccupied by Gone with the Wind (1939), Hitchcock was able to replace the smoky "R" with the burning of a monogrammed négligée case lying atop a bed pillow. Alfred Hitchcock 3/4 : Rebecca. The screenplay by Robert E. Sherwood and Joan Harrison, and adaptation by Philip MacDonald and Michael Hogan, were based on the 1938 novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier. However, further investigation reveals that she was not pregnant but terminally ill due to cancer, so the suicide verdict stands. A shy lady's companion, staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer, meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter (Sir Laurence Olivier). Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. Rebecca won two Academy Awards and was nominated for nine more:[22] It is the only film since 1936 (when awards for actors in supporting roles were first introduced) that, despite winning Best Picture, received no Academy Award for acting, directing or writing. Crime, Certificate: Passed Hitchcock later said that Selznick wanted the smoke from the burning Manderley to spell out a huge "R", which Hitchcock thought lacked subtlety. A former tennis player tries to arrange his wife's murder after learning of her affair. Eventually, her constant reminders of Rebecca's glamour and sophistication convince the new Mrs. de Winter that Maxim is still in love with his first wife, which could explain his irrational outbursts of anger. The movie was directed by Alfred Hitchcock and, given that Rebecca is set on the coast of Cornwall in southwest England, it is a small irony that the movie was the film that first brought Hitchcock to California. View production, box office, & company info. Earlier films like Sightseers and Free Fire suggested Ben Wheatley might have the mordant wit to tackle a work forever associated with sardonic genre maestro Alfred Hitchcock. A former police detective juggles wrestling with his personal demons and becoming obsessed with a hauntingly beautiful woman. Her reputation and recollections of her, however, are a constant presence in the lives of Maxim, his new wife and the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers. The crisis causes the second Mrs. de Winter to shed her naïve ways as they both plan how to prove Maxim's innocence. [2] However, at least one plot detail was altered to comply with the Hollywood Production Code, which said that the murder of a spouse had to be punished. The Hollywood Reporter reported in 1944 that Edwina Levin MacDonald sued Selznick, Daphne du Maurier, United Artists and Doubleday for plagiarism. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. A New York City advertising executive goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies. I watched both blu-rays on my five year-old 40" JVC TV. Rebecca Netflix (Credit: Netflix / YouTube) Is the 1940 film any better? Max is still troubled by the death of his first wife, Rebecca, in a boating accident the year before. To conceal the truth, Maxim took the body out in a boat, which he then scuttled and identified another body as Rebecca's. "[17] A restored nitrate print of Rebecca was shown at the Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood in 2019. by admin 2 years ago 65 Views. At that moment, however, the alarm is raised because a sunken boat has been found with Rebecca's body in it. A self-conscious woman juggles adjusting to her new role as an aristocrat's wife and avoiding being intimidated by his first wife's spectral presence. All escape except Danvers, who dies when the ceiling collapses on her. Rebecca was twice honored by the AFI in their AFI 100 Years... series. I watched both blu-rays on my five year-old 40" JVC TV. The screenplay by Robert E. Sherwood and Joan Harrison, and adaptation by Philip MacDonald and Michael Hogan, were based on the 1938 novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier. This was Alfred Hitchcock's first American-made film. Maxim takes his new bride back to Manderley, his grand mansion by the sea in south-western England, dominated by its housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, a chilly individual who had been a close confidante of the first Mrs. De Winter—Rebecca—with whom she is clearly still obsessed. , she fell, struck her head, and gripping suspense '' as well Looking watch. 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