Suspicion (1941)

"Oh, I beg your pardon. Was that your leg?", 16 June 2006

Suspicion could have been one of Alfred Hitchcock's best films. Up to the final few minutes of the film, it's wonderful. I even enjoyed (or at least didn't mind) the long-winded verbal exchanges that some viewers seem to dislike. I'm a fan of intelligent, well-written dialogue and that's what I found for most of Suspicion's runtime. Hitchcock masterfully uses these scenes to build doubt in the viewers mind. Cary Grant is perfectly cast as the playboy husband with more than a few secrets to hide. Could there really be a killer hiding behind that handsome, jovial, carefree exterior? As for Joan Fontaine, I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record by praising performance after performance, but she is amazing. She plays the bookish, timid old-maid so believably. Her character is one who is easy to sympathize with and fret over as you begin to fear for her life. It's very nicely done.

It's a shame that Hitchcock was saddled with this ending. It feels rushed, tacked-on, and sloppy. It successfully puts a damper on everything that comes before it. It's something of a cruel joke. I was reminded of the famous shower scene from the television show Dallas when we as viewers are told to forget about everything we had seen. It didn't happen. Doing a little reading since I finished watching Suspicion, I've read the description of the ending Hitchcock originally intended to shoot and use. And I'm in agreement with most everyone else – the original ending would have been great. It's too bad the studio and Grant's people felt the need to have it changed.

7/10