North by Northwest ***

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Written by Ernest Lehman.
Released in 1959.
With Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason, Jessie Royce Landis, Martin Landau and Edward Platt.
Seen in theater



This is a film that everyone knows about so what is there to say? It's a fun, well made romp through America. There are lots of famous scenes or set pieces. Remember the attack of the airplane in the middle of no where - Highway 41 about a hour and a half out of Chicago. Then there's the chase scene on Mount Rushmore. There's a scene in the United Nations also. All good fun.

So, an advertising exec gets kidnapped because he is mistaken for a government agent by some foreign spies. No one believes him after narrowly escaping with his life, and he is accused of a murder. So he sets out to vindicate himself on his own. And he runs into trouble as well as the beautiful Eve Kendall, who may or may not be trouble also. Telling any more that this would be spoiling the end of the movie, but there's lots of twists and turns. Too many twists and turns for my 8 year old, but Penelope, my 11 year old said she could follow it.

This film is just too light to consider it as a 4 star movie (a masterpiece), maybe a masterpiece of fun. Even Rear Window tries to have messages or food for thought though it too is a basic thriller also.