Review of Suspicion (1941) by James B — 14 May 2009

A light hearted treatment of a heavy subject, this is a character study of how a woman's insecurities almost destroy her. Straight off the bat, we're misled; opening with Cary Grant's voice in a darkened train compartment leads us to believe him to be the protagonist, however, also in the compartment is Lina McLaidlaw, sitting prissy and easy to miss, and it's through her perspective that we view this film - a very important point.

Lina goes from living a very secure life to one filled with doubt and uncertainty, yet she has herself to blame for all the suspicions in her mind against her husband: she buys him the murder novels, she spells out the word 'murderer' and it's she who presses Johnny on the perfect murder.

Meanwhile, Hitchcock manipulates our perception of Johnny through his directorial choices, making the most innocent situation appear pregnant with peril. Franz Waxman's score is full of variety ranging from gleeful waltzes to claustrophobic motifs.

Joan Fontaine completely encapsulates a woman torn between love vs. fear and morality vs. loyalty in a performance well worthy of her Oscar. Cary Grant is dynamic, unpredictable and mysterious, and beneath his charm seems to lurk a glimmer of cunning and treachery: is he who he appears to be? We're never really sure.

The most lovable character is by far Beaky played by Nigel Bruce (aka: Watson from Sherlock Holmes), whose innocence and good nature lightens the mood and offers a welcome distraction from the constant tension.

Incidentally, Hitchcock had planned for a darker alternative ending in which Johnny is a murderer, and even though this may have been a more dramatic climax, it would have completely changed the premise of the film into something other than a character study in which Lina is her own worst enemy.