Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

I have seen Shadow of a Doubt several times, and I’m still not sure how old the main character, Charlotte (Charlie) Newton, is. (I’m going to call her Charlotte throughout to avoid any confusion because her uncle is also called Charlie.) I had originally assumed that she was in high school, but this is not stated explicitly. She doesn’t seem to have a job. The only one in the family who clearly does have a job is her father, Joe, and he works in one of the local banks. It’s not even clear that Charlotte and her younger siblings, Ann and Roger, go to school during the events in the film.

The issue about Charlotte’s age is important because Shadow of a Doubt is all about the loss of innocence, specifically the loss of innocence for Charlotte Newton. But maybe her exact age isn’t the most important point because there is no doubt that Charlotte is young and that she is at a disadvantage compared to her Uncle Charlie. She is named for Uncle Charlie, one of her favorite relatives. It’s obvious that Charlotte is young and a bit idealistic; some might even say immature. Her encounters with her Uncle Charlie portrayed in the film put her on an even more unequal footing and thus make her transformation even more dramatic.

Shadow of a Doubt introduces the character of Uncle Charlie first. The narrative starts with him, living in a boardinghouse in New Jersey. Viewers see right away that he is in some sort of trouble and that he is on the run. This kind of introduction would make it seem as though he is the most important character, but I think this is a bit of a trick on Hitchcock’s part to put the initial focus on the villain. The most important character is really Uncle Charlie’s antithesis: his niece Charlotte Newton.

 (This blog post about Shadow of a Doubt contains spoilers.)

When Uncle Charlie arrives for a visit with the Newtons in Santa Rosa, California, he charms everyone. His sister Emma and his niece Charlotte idolize him. Emma romanticizes their shared childhood; Charlotte imagines that being his namesake makes them twins of sorts. She even uses the word twins in a conversation with her Uncle Charlie in the kitchen of the family home:

• Charlotte: “I meant it. Please don’t give me anything.”

• Uncle Charlie: “Nothing?”

• Charlotte: “Oh, I can’t explain it. But you came here and Mother’s so happy. Oh, I’m glad that she named me after you and that she thinks we’re both alike. I think we are, too. I know it. Oh, it would spoil things if you should give me anything.”

• Uncle Charlie: “You’re a strange girl, Charlie. Why would it spoil things?”

• Charlotte: “Because we’re not just an uncle and a niece. It’s something else. I know you. I know that you don’t tell people a lot of things. I don’t either. I have a feeling that inside you somewhere, there’s something nobody knows about.”

• Uncle Charlie: “Something . . . nobody knows?”

• Charlotte: “Something secret and wonderful and I’ll find it out.”

• Uncle Charlie: “It’s not good to find out too much, Charlie.”

• Charlotte: “But we’re sort of like twins. Don’t you see? We have to know.”

In spite of her protestations, Uncle Charlie does bestow a gift on his niece. It’s a ring inscribed with other people’s initials. Charlotte is dismayed at first but then accepts the ring. For anyone other than Charlotte, such a detail would raise red flags.

Uncle Charlie is suspected of being the Merry Widow Murderer, which is why two detectives posing as newspaper reporters are in Santa Rosa. According to the newspaper article that Charlotte finds in the local library, one of the suspects in the case may have fled the Northeast. The last victim was in Gloucester, Massachusetts, a Mrs. Bruce Mathewson. B. M. is one of the set of initials inscribed inside the band of the emerald ring that Uncle Charlie gave to Charlotte.

Charlotte defends her uncle when Detective Jack Graham explains the real reason that he is in Santa Rosa with his partner Detective Fred Saunders. But she’s the one in the family who faces the facts and begins to see her uncle more clearly. She doesn’t discount the evidence that she finds about Uncle Charlie, including the inscription inside the emerald ring. She searches for the truth, at first convinced that Detective Graham is wrong about her uncle, but she begins to see that she and her family are wrong about Uncle Charlie. Uncle Charlie turns on Charlotte when he realizes that she knows about him and his past. He calls her “ordinary,” as if the word is an insult. But Charlotte isn’t ordinary. She is the only one in her family who faces the truth and accepts it.

Charlotte returns the emerald ring to Uncle Charlie one evening when she runs out of the house and he goes after her. When he catches up with her, he tells her his outlook on life: that it’s sordid no matter where you look, and because it is so sordid, it really doesn’t matter what he has done and what he plans to do. By explaining what he thinks about people and about his extremely pessimistic take on life, he places a great burden on Charlotte, someone who is so young, someone he should be able to care for and protect.

When they return to the family home, Uncle Charlie and Charlotte have another conversation, this one on the front walk outside. Uncle Charlie continues to impose his wishes on his niece:

• Uncle Charlie: “Charlie, will you help me?”

• Charlotte: “Help you?”

• Uncle Charlie: “The same blood flows through our veins, Charlie. A week ago, I was at the end of my rope. Oh, I’m so tired, Charlie. There’s an end to the running a man can do. You’ll never know what it’s like to be so tired. I was going to . . . Well, then I got the idea of coming out here. It’s my last chance, Charlie. Give it to me. Graham and the other fellow, they don’t know. There’s a man in the east. They suspect him, too. And if they get him, I’ll . . . Charlie, give me this last chance.”

• Charlotte: “Take your chance. Go!”

• Uncle Charlie: “I’ll go, Charlie. I’ll go. Just give me a few days. Think of your mother. It’ll kill your mother.”

• Charlotte: “Yes, it would kill my mother. Take your few days. See that you get away from here.”

• Uncle Charlie: “You realize what it’ll mean if they get me? The electric chair. Charlie, you’ve got to help me. I count on you. You said yourself we’re not ordinary uncle and niece, no matter what I’ve done.”

• Charlotte: “You go in [the family home]. I’ll be in in a minute.”

Once Charlotte realizes what her uncle is capable of, and he begs her not to say anything, he gives her an unusual argument, and it works. It works because he is repeating Charlotte’s own words. He tells his niece that they are so much alike that they are like twins. And even though Charlotte is horrified by what her uncle has done, she sees some similarities in their personalities.

The scene at the dinner table in the Newton family home when Uncle Charlie talks disparagingly about money, wealth, and widows is quite shocking. It’s also a bit surprising that he would reveal so much at the dinner table in front of his sister’s whole family. In spite of its shock value, I don’t find it to be all that important to the story. The narrative would still be complete without it. The most important scenes are those that include the conversations, one on one, between Uncle Charlie and Charlotte.

One of the most important of their conversations occurs when Uncle Charlie and Charlotte are talking on the porch at night. In that scene, Charlotte tells her uncle first that she will kill him first, before he has a chance to hurt anyone in the family. This conversation occurs after he stages her first “accident” by cutting through one of the stairs on the set of backstairs on the house. After she nearly tumbles to the bottom of the stairs, Charlotte confronts him directly, asking, “When are you leaving, Uncle Charlie?” He decides that he’d rather stay in Santa Rosa, that he doesn’t want to leave the safety of his family, and Charlotte tells him, “. . . I’m warning you. Go away, or I’ll kill you myself. See? That’s the way I feel about you.” It’s a remarkable transformation for someone so young. It’s almost hard to believe, but it’s Charlotte’s response to all the pressure that Uncle Charlie has put on her himself.

The entire film balances on that fulcrum: the struggle between the two Charlies. The film starts with Uncle Charlie, who will do anything to save himself, and ends with Charlotte, who becomes more and more of a force for Uncle Charlie to reckon with. She doesn’t tell anyone what she knows about Uncle Charlie or what she would do to protect her family until the end of the film. Only at the end, during Uncle Charlie’s funeral (which is a celebrated procession), does she and her new boyfriend, Detective Jack Graham, start to talk about the real Uncle Charlie behind his charming façade.

The featurette included on the DVD that I watched, “‘Beyond Doubt’: The Making of Hitchcock’s Favorite Film,” is worth a look. Shadow of a Doubt was Hitchcock’s favorite of his films, and I can see why. It’s one of my favorites, too.

January 12, 1943, release date  •  Directed by Alfred Hitchcock  •  Screenplay by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson, Alma Reville  •  Based on a story by Gordon McDonell  •  Music by Dimitri Tiomkin, Franz Lehár  •  Edited by Milton Carruth  •  Cinematography by Joseph A. Valentine

Teresa Wright as Charlotte (Charlie) Newton  •  Joseph Cotten as Charles (Uncle Charlie) Oakley  •  Henry Travers as Joseph Newton, young Charlie’s father  •  Patricia Collinge as Emma Newton, young Charlie’s mother and Uncle Charlie’s sister  •  Macdonald Carey as Detective Jack Graham  •  Wallace Ford as Detective Fred Saunders  •  Hume Cronyn as Herbie Hawkins  •  Edna May Wonacott as Ann Newton  •  Charles Bates as Roger Newton  •  Irving Bacon as the station master  •  Clarence Muse as the Pullman porter  •  Janet Shaw as Louise  •  Estelle Jewell as Catherine

Distributed by Universal Pictures  •  Produced by Skirball Productions

Notorious (1946)

August 15, 1946 (New York City premiere), September 6, 1946 (United States), release dates

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Screenplay by Ben Hecht

Music by Roy Webb

Edited by Theron Warth

Cinematography by Ted Tetzlaff

Cary Grant as T. R. Devlin

Ingrid Bergman as Alicia Huberman

Claude Rains as Alexander Sebastian

Madame Leopoldine Konstantin as Madame Anna Sebastian

Louis Calhern as Captain Paul Prescott, U.S. Secret Service officer

Moroni Olsen as Walter Beardsley, U.S. Secret Service officer

Ricardo Costa as Dr. Julio Barbosa

Reinhold Schünzel as Dr. Anderson, a Nazi conspirator

Ivan Triesault as Eric Mathis, a Nazi conspirator

Eberhard Krumschmidt as Emil Hupka, a Nazi conspirator

Alexis Minotis (billed as Alex Minotis) as Joseph, Sebastian's butler

Wally Brown as Mr. Hopkins

Sir Charles Mendl as Commodore

Fay Baker as Ethel

Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures Inc.

Produced by RKO Radio Pictures Inc.

Writing about Notorious is a rather daunting task, especially because it can go in so many categories, and I may be the only one who calls it film noir. It’s a classic film; an espionage film; and, of course, a Hitchcock film. Many have already written about it, and even more have already seen it. My copy of the DVD came with two commentaries from two film historians: Rick Jewell and Drew Casper. Notorious is also a very romantic story for a film noir, and I think personal commitment in romance may be its most important theme.

(This blog post about Notorious contains all the spoilers. But honestly, everyone has seen it at least once, right?)

Notorious starts in Miami, Florida, on April 24, 1946, in a federal courthouse. Someone named John Huberman is found guilty of treason and sentenced to prison for twenty years. His daughter Alicia leaves the courtroom hounded by reporters and followed by a detective. It isn’t long before Alicia hosts a party; she already has a reputation for drinking and her relationships with men. That is why Devlin shows up at the party, but he doesn’t have partying in mind. He has a recorded conversation of Alicia threatening to turn in her father when he tries to convince her to join him in helping Nazi officials. Devlin talks about I.G. Farben Industries, which is in Brazil and has been there since before World War II. Devlin and his department are cooperating with the Brazilian government to smoke them out. In spite of her anger toward all cops at every level and the fact that Devlin is a federal agent, Alicia softens toward him. He convinces her to join him in Brazil.

Alex Sebastian, one of the Nazi collaborators working in Brazil, was once in love with Alicia. She’s perfect for the assignment, according to Devlin’s boss Paul Prescott, because she can use her influence and her experience with men to infiltrate Sebastian’s group of spies. Before Devlin and Alicia learn about her undercover assignment, they fall in love. At a meeting between Devlin, Prescott, and one other agent, Devlin is crushed to learn what they have in mind for Alicia, but he doesn’t protest very strongly because this espionage work is still his job. Prescott begins to suspect something between Devlin and Alicia when Devlin leaves behind the bottle of champagne he was supposed to bring to Alicia’s for dinner. The close-up shot of Devlin’s bottle of champagne foreshadows the Nazis’ wine bottle cover-up that Alicia discovers later in the film.

After the meeting with his boss and the fellow agent, Devlin goes straight to Alicia’s. She is already making dinner and expecting the attention of Devlin, her lover; instead, she gets Devlin, the professional agent, bringing her the details of her undercover assignment. Here is part of their conversation:

• Alicia: “Mata Hari. She makes love for the papers.”

• Devlin: “There are no papers. You land him [Alex Sebastian]. Find out what’s going on inside his house, what the group around him is up to, and report to us.”

• Alicia: “I suppose you knew about this pretty little job of mine all the time.”

• Devlin: “No, I only just found out about it.”

• Alicia: “Did you say anything? [Devlin did.] I mean, that maybe I wasn’t the girl for such shenanigans.”

• Devlin: “I figured that was up to you, if you’d care to back out.”

• Alicia: “I suppose you told them Alicia Huberman will have this Sebastian eating out of her hand in a couple of weeks. She’s good at that. Always was.”

• Devlin: “I didn’t say anything.” [He protested a little.]

• Alicia: “Not a word for that little lovesick lady you left an hour ago?”

• Devlin: “I told you, that’s the assignment.”

• Alicia: “Well, now, don’t get sore, Dev. I’m only fishing for a little birdcall from my dream man. One little remark, such as ‘How dare you gentlemen suggest that Alicia Huberman, the new Miss Huberman, be submitted to so ugly a fate.’ ”

• Devlin: “That’s not funny.”

• Alicia: “Do you want me to take the job?”

• Devlin: “You’re answering for yourself.”

• Alicia: “I’m asking you.”

• Devlin: “It’s up to you.”

Once Alicia makes contact with Alex Sebastian, the undercover work begins. Sebastian remembers her and is happy to have her back in his life. Later in the film, Alicia goes to the racetrack with Alex Sebastian, where she meets Devlin to deliver her report. It isn’t long before their feelings for one another overtake the updates on their assignment. The following from their conversation at the racetrack could be a continuation of their conversation in Alicia’s apartment:

• Alicia: “You can add Sebastian’s name to my list of playmates.”

• Devlin: “Pretty fast work.”

• Alicia: “That’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”

• Devlin: “Skip it.”

• Alicia: [more loudly] “Are you betting on this race?”

• Devlin: “No.”

• Alicia: [more loudly] “Alex says Number 10 is sure to win. He knows the owner.”

• Devlin: “Thanks for the tip.”

• Alicia: [more loudly] “Alex says they’ve been holding him back—”

• Devlin: “I can’t help recalling some of your remarks about being a new woman. Daisies and buttercups, wasn’t it?”

• Alicia: “You idiot. What are you sore about? You knew very well what I was doing.”

• Devlin: “Did I?”

• Alicia: “You could have stopped me. Just one word, but no, you wouldn’t, you threw me at him.”

• Devlin: “I threw you at nobody.”

• Alicia: “Didn’t you tell me to go ahead?” [He didn’t.]

• Devlin: “A man doesn’t tell a woman what to do, she tells herself. You almost had me believing that hokey-pokey miracle of yours that a woman like you could ever change her spots.”

• Alicia: “You’re rotten.”

• Devlin: “That’s why I didn’t try to stop you. The answer had to come from you.”

• Alicia: “I see. Some kind of love test.”

• Devlin: “That’s right.”

The theme of duty versus love could be better described as love of country (patriotism) versus love for another person (romantic love). Someone like Devlin working for the U.S. government probably has a lot more than the average citizen tied up with love of country. He is cold-hearted at first, but he redeems himself by the end of the film. The heated conversations between Alicia and Devlin encapsulate the inner turmoil both feel and demonstrate the conflict between patriotism and romantic commitment. Even though both are enmeshed in dangerous international intrigue, their romantic entanglements are much easier to relate to, and the film’s focus on the two of them makes their story an enduring one.

Drew Casper claims that Alex Sebastian is a sympathetic character because Alicia, his wife, is taller than he is (that’s a reason?) and he falls head over heels in love with her. But he never shows any care for Alicia. I never got the impression that Alex loves Alicia more than Devlin does, for example. And Alicia’s feelings for Devlin, and his for her, never waver. When Alex finds out that Alicia is an American agent, he turns on her—and quickly. He is interested only in saving himself. He and his mother resort to poisoning Alicia and watching her die a slow and painful death. He shows no remorse about it; he just wants to get rid of her before his Nazi collaborators discover that he has been duped. When Alicia collapses after realizing that Alex and his mother are poisoning her, it’s Dr. Anderson and Joseph, the butler, who help her upstairs. Alex doesn’t even offer her an arm.

For much of the film, Alicia and Devlin bicker. He seems cruel in his devotion to his work, but Devlin finally redeems himself by taking Alicia out of Alex's house and saving her life. When Devlin carries Alicia downstairs, down the same staircase that the doctor and the butler helped her climb, Alex still doesn’t help her and/or Devlin, even when his mother tells him that he must help to make it look like everyone is working together. Alex obeys meekly when his Nazi collaborators ask him to return to the house. It’s hard to believe that he is a Nazi spy and collaborator because he doesn’t fight for Alicia or himself. Alicia seemed more like a conquest and a trophy for Alex.

As I mentioned, my copy of the DVD came with two audio commentaries; both include a lot of information and are worth a listen. I enjoyed Rick Jewell’s a bit more because he describes the events and context surrounding the making of Notorious, including RKO studio history and background on studio heads. He also discusses the genre of the espionage film, which I found fascinating because so many films noir are also espionage films. Because both commentaries provide so much information, I’ll concentrate on one point from each that I found the most fascinating. For Rick Jewell, it’s the genre of espionage films and its history. For Drew Casper, it’s the moral ambiguity portrayed by all the main characters. 

DVD commentary by film professor Rick Jewell:

The genre of espionage films has a long history. They usually emphasize a long list of themes: adventure, suspense, politics, duty, trust, loyalty, professionalism, romance, patriotism, intelligence, war or the possibility of war, among others. War or the possibility of war is perhaps the biggest overarching theme. Espionage films were originally more interested in female spies, especially in the early twentieth century. Examples include Spies (1928), Dishonored (1931), and Mata Hari (1931). The Germans became established as the bad guys during World War I, a trend that lasted through the Cold War era. For Hitchcock, espionage films and suspense thrillers are very similar. He directed several espionage films in Great Britain before coming to the United States.

Notorious deepens the traditional themes of the espionage genre. It handles ethical issues, including the question of whether the ends justify the means. Alicia is not trained for her assignment, but her U.S. handlers want her to prostitute herself and are rather cavalier about her welfare; after all, she already has a bad reputation for drinking and sleeping with men. Values are compromised for the sake of the U.S. government, for the ideal of democracy. Her handlers are as compromised as the Nazi conspirators. Notorious changes the genre by acknowledging espionage as a dirty business: Espionage is, at best, a morally ambiguous profession.

DVD commentary by film professor Drew Casper:

All the main characters, including the U.S. agents, are morally ambiguous and possess both positive and negative traits. Alicia Huberman drinks too much, falls very much in love with Devlin, and is poisoned later in the film. Alicia is a person is out of control. She finds it very difficult to trust others. Devlin doesn’t trust women. He’s not as self-possessed as he tries to portray. He is willing to use Alicia for duty to country, although I think Casper is right about the combination of duty and lack of trust that causes Devlin to hold back at the start of his romance with Alicia. Paul Prescott, Devlin’s boss, is very cavalier about Alicia’s well-being. He is shown eating crackers in bed and warning Devlin against going to the Sebastian household. Devlin maintains that Alicia must be in some kind of trouble because she hasn’t made contact with him for five days. Prescott thinks she must be having fun in her party life with Sebastian. J. Edgar Hoover, head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at the time, objected to the way that the agents were portrayed in the film, but Hitchcock didn’t change anything about the agents in Notorious.