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mrsdanvers
Reviews
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
Hitchcock's Ugly Americans
Might be a little spoiler-y...
Did Hitchcock purposefully make Stewart's and Day's characters (not to mention their irritating little boy) so gauche and brash and annoying? Not that I'm complaining; it adds to the texture of the work by setting up a wonderful parallel between the clueless, loud Americans who depend on their initiative (climbing out of a church on a bell rope, singing to reach an imprisoned child) rather than the help of others, and the quiet, savvy British couple pitted against them (note the scene in the restaurant where the people who turn out to be evil are gracious, helpful and unobtrusive, while Stewart especially seems to offend everyone). The parallel is further emphasized when Day's agony of indecision during the Albert Hall sequence is followed by Brenda de Banzie's anguish while Day sings "Que sara, sara" at the embassy, another woman desperately trying to figure out how to save a life during a musical performance. (Incidentally, for my money de Banzie's character is far and away the nicest person in the film.)
The Merchant of Venice (1973)
Portia's show
Olivier's Shylock is a wonderful characterization, painful to watch (as it should be) at times, but the show belongs to Joan Plowright as Portia. She is the consummate lady, at times abstracted or petulant (did her wise old father perhaps spoil her a bit?) but always magnetic. Jeremy "Freddy Eynsford-Hill" Brett is a sweet young Bassanio (how did he grow up to be Sherlock Holmes?) and Anna Carteret a smooth, smiling Nerissa, and Miller does interesting things with Jessica and Lorenzo in Act Five. My one quibble is with Anthony Nicholls as Antonio. He and Shylock go around like white-haired doppelgangers in black top hats and cloaks, which is a nice touch, but he himself is just *there*. We don't know what Bassanio sees in him, what he sees in Bassanio, why he hates Shylock so much, why Shylock would bother to hate him, if he's at all distressed at the prospect of forfeiting his bond or concerned about his ships. The suitors mug rather and the singing ladies in the final casket scene are somewhat painful, but it's a creditable job overall.