Movie – Torn Curtain

Torn Curtain (1966) – An American scientist (Paul Newman) fakes a defection to East Germany in order to obtain a scientific secret.  His financee (Julie Andrews) follows him and gets caught up in the mission without her knowledge.

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock               Starring – Paul Newman, Julie Andrews

Here’s something you won’t hear me say often about a Hitchcock movie.  This one is seriously disappointing.  The script is plodding and predictable.  The soundtrack, which was the source of major conflict for Hitchcock, is astoundingly awful.  It’s chirpy and intrusive, completely inappropriate to a spy thriller.  Paul man looks like he’s just walking through his role.  Given that he’s at the center of the film, that’s bad.  There’s a lot of dialogue that’s in German with no subtitles, which just becomes annoying.  Even Hitchcock’s signature cameo is clunky.

I love spy movies and I’m a huge Hitchcock fan.  While the direction shows all the usual Hitchcock visual flair, there’s nothing  that even Hitch can do with this turkey of a script.  Newman’s character supposedly has worked up this complicated scheme where he sneaks into East Germany without the help or knowledge of the American intelligence community.  His “contacts” in Washington, D.C. have apparently agreed to this harebrained idea.  The screenplay never manages to really bring it home.

Why I Liked It : It’s always fun to watch Hitchcock do his thing.  Julie Andrews is at her loveliest, especially in a party scene early on.  Alfred Hitchcock is known for his affection for beautiful blonde leading actresses.  Andrews is stunning in a white dress.  Plus pay attention to the theater in the climactic scene.  It’s the original set for Lon Chaney’s 1925 “Phantom of the Opera”.  The set was a permanent part of the Universal Studio sound stage (it was still there in 2014), and the director had it brought back to the original condition).

Why You Will Like It : It’s still Hitchcock, so it’s well directed.  The supporting cast, virtually none of whom are American actors, turn in some nice performances.  Watch for the Countess near the end.

This movie was one of the top grossing films of the year.

Rating – ** Not Impressed.