The Wrong Man
1956 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Synopsis
True story of an innocent man mistaken for a criminal.
Cast
Henry Fonda Vera Miles Anthony Quayle Harold J. Stone Charles Cooper John Heldabrand Esther Minciotti Doreen Lang Laurinda Barrett Norma Connolly Nehemiah Persoff Lola D'Annunzio Kippy Campbell Robert Essen Richard Robbins Dayton Lummis Peggy Webber Bonnie Franklin Werner Klemperer Harry Dean Stanton
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Part of the Alfred Hitchcock Sound Era Films In Chronological Order project.
SOME SPOILERS IN THIS
If The Wrong Man had been directed by just about anyone other than Alfred Hitchcock, a man with several unquestionable classics under his belt and a number of other fine films, not to mention the films he would go on and direct after this, would it have gotten the level of attention that I believe it obviously deserves after this, my first viewing of it?
In some ways, it pays the price for you (if you are like me) presuming that it will be yet another of Hitchcock's trademark 'innocent man on the run' films. In itself, that is an interesting point. After all,…
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Basically a paranoid thriller about how doing everything "they" tell you to do will not save you if fate/chance/luck/whatever isn't on your side. Also, in its own safe, don't-rock-the-boat kind of way, a movie about racism. One of Hitchcock's most underrated and masterful movies.
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Although technically it was a well made film with a lot of meticulous detail in regards to plot/narrative structure (there really isn't a lot different that this film could have done to have made it any better) it is just a little bit too cold.
Henry Fonda has been sublime in everything I've seen him in, and he is no different here. He plays the character sympathetically and convincingly, and the deeper into the case of mistaken identity that he gets, the more you squirm and feel uncomfortable.
However, and this may sound quite contradictory given what I just said, it's been the case in a few of his films that I've seen, but Hitchcock's characters in general are often…
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
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I would have described this movie as dry before rewatching it. But now, I would say dry is polite. The characters are dull. The few events that do occur are completely devoid of any self-awareness - despite some ludicrous developments. There's no sense of character or place. And there's no suspense. Definitely lesser Hitchcock.
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For me, this is one of Hitchcock's more underrated films. There is so much to admire here. It rises above your typical ''innocent man, falsely accused'' storyline, which Hitchcock loved to do time and time again. This one is different. For one, it's actually based on true events, which frequently kept running through my mind because I sometimes found the story to be implausible -- and as such, it's one of Hitch's most nightmarish works. Also, there are no chases or any sort of action sequences here (which is most unorthodox for Sir Alfred). Rather, the fate of Fonda's character is left up to the justice system, but not really on the actual trial. The film instead focuses on the…
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Not one of Hitchcock's better films, perhaps because he is working from a true story so he is limited in what he can do to try to increase tension. Fonda does a fine job in his role, but that's not enough to lift this film high enough.
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HITCH-A-THON
RATING: 9.5/10
Alfred Hitchcock’s THE WRONG MAN [1956]; “This is Alfred Hitchcock speaking. In the past, I have given you many kinds of suspense pictures. But this time, I would like you to see a different one. The difference lies in the fact that this is a true story, every word of it. And yet it contains elements that are stranger than all the fiction that has gone into many of the thrillers that I've made before.” – Opening introduction by Alfred Hitchcock-Loosely based upon an unbelievable true story, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1956 Film-Noir THE WRONG MAN is one of the great directors’ best overshadowed films. Far from the glamour of his previous films such as TO CATCH A…
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It’s just. Not. That. Good.
Kinda boring, actually.
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The eyes have it.
Eyes lie.
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
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They say that the true test of the auteur is that you can see any scene from any one of a director’s films and instantly know who directed it. Alfred Hitchcock is usually held up as an example of a director whose work this is true of, and indeed it is true of 99% of the guy’s work but I’m not sure that it’s true of The Wrong Man. I don’t mean that as a complaint, on the contrary, I think it’s what makes the film so interesting within Hitchcock’s filmography. Unlike his other films, this is based on a true story about an injustice the criminal justice system and has a pronounced sense of realism. Henry Fonda is really good in the film and it was also interesting to see the rather questionable police tactics that were being used in the 50s.
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Although technically it was a well made film with a lot of meticulous detail in regards to plot/narrative structure (there really isn't a lot different that this film could have done to have made it any better) it is just a little bit too cold.
Henry Fonda has been sublime in everything I've seen him in, and he is no different here. He plays the character sympathetically and convincingly, and the deeper into the case of mistaken identity that he gets, the more you squirm and feel uncomfortable.
However, and this may sound quite contradictory given what I just said, it's been the case in a few of his films that I've seen, but Hitchcock's characters in general are often…
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One of my favorite Hitchcock films, the director employs certain Bressonian flourishes--the repeated focus on hands and feet, intrusive sound--along with affecting subjective shots and numerous shots of travelling (on foot or otherwise) that root the film in the world of the protagonist. Fonda says little in the film beyond his declarations of innocence, but the dark edge to the wife's story and the oppressive use of power create a chilling world where no one is safe.
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Part of the Alfred Hitchcock Sound Era Films In Chronological Order project.
SOME SPOILERS IN THIS
If The Wrong Man had been directed by just about anyone other than Alfred Hitchcock, a man with several unquestionable classics under his belt and a number of other fine films, not to mention the films he would go on and direct after this, would it have gotten the level of attention that I believe it obviously deserves after this, my first viewing of it?
In some ways, it pays the price for you (if you are like me) presuming that it will be yet another of Hitchcock's trademark 'innocent man on the run' films. In itself, that is an interesting point. After all,…