Review of Marnie (1964) by Cecilia C — 13 Mar 2009

If you read my annotation on The Birds, you know Tippi Hedren is not my favorite actress. But, compared to her lackluster performance in The Birds, she shines here. It?s the script in Marnie that I have trouble with.

When this one came out in 1964, it didn?t do as well as expected and was not raved by the critics. As with Vertigo, both the public opinion but mostly the critical opinion, time has been kind with Marnie.

Some critics now hail it as one (with Vertigo) of Hitchcock?s masterpieces. I would not go that far. Yes, Hedren is better, but she?s still not good enough to carry a film. The plus here is that unlike The Birds? Rod Taylor (who is just so-so), Sean Connery provides a stronger counterpart for Hedren?s weak-ish acting.

But, a masterpiece? Have these critics seen Notorious or Shadow of a Doubt? As I said, Marnie?s biggest issue, in my humble opinion, is the script. The screenplay here is lagging considerably, especially in the middle.

The film starts off well and moves along at a good pace. Then, somewhere around the time Connery begins helping Hedren with her many problems, the story almost comes to a halt. Hitchcock saves it with a tense ending, but I admit I do expect more from The Master than just a good beginning and ending.

So, you might be asking, why do I keep writing reviews for films that I?m not in love with? Well, first of all, I like them. They are great movies. They are just not up to Hitchcock?s usual HIGH standards.