Notorious

• Title:  Notorious
• Director:  Alfred Hitchcock
• Date:  1946
• Studio:  RKO
• Genre:  Drama, Film Noir
• Cast:  Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains
• Format:  Standard, Black and White
• DVD format:  R1, NTSC, (Criterion Collection, single disc)

"Waving the flag with one hand and picking pockets with the other, that's your patriotism."  -- Alicia


"I've always been scared of women, but I get over it." -- Devlin

In Hitchcock's Notorious, Ingrid Bergman plays Alicia, whose father's been tried for treason, found guilty and jailed.  We later learned that he "died in his cell", which is only marginally better than "shot while trying to escape".  Bergman is indifferent to her father's death, knowing he was a traitor (or as he put it in a recorded conversation - loyal to German and his own pocket) - but seems apolitical.  She is, however, a hopeless alcoholic, even driving drunk.  She meets Devlin at one of her parties, and quickly discovers he's an American agent.  He brings her to his bosses to use as an agent.  Reluctantly, she agrees and the two fly off to Rio.  It's interesting to note that Alicia's friends had also wanted her to take a vacation, but suggested Cuba!!!  Anyway, once in Rio, Alicia and Devlin discover what the job is that Devlin's un-named agency wants her to do.  She's to become romantically involved with Claude Rains' character, a man she knew as a young girl, and someone who seems to be supporting some shady scientists, though to what end is unknown - that is what Alicia is to find out.  Devlin isn't happy about Alicia's assignment, because the two have fallen for each other. Alicia, however, agrees.  She quickly forms an attachment to Rains -- and even marries him.  Devlin, meanwhle, becomes her handler - but gets more and more angry to see the woman he loves with another man.

Despite it's fantastic cast - Notorious is a very, very slow moving film.  Yes, the tension does build up, especially when Rains' mother discovers Alicia is an agent and begins to poison her coffee, but the pacing is so slow as to be irritating instead of suspenseful.  I actually found Rains to be the most fun - it's nice to see him in a juicy "bad guy" role as opposed the to lighter characters he normally plays.  Bergman is excellent as the newly minted tough-as-nail agent, but her easy submission into taking the poisoned coffee (and not realizing there might be a reason she feels so sick) undercuts her strong woman personna.  Grant, of course, rescues her at the end, but the film still has a strange ending (they leave the house, but we don't know, for sure, if Grant got to her in time for the poisoning to be reversed).  All in all - I think Notorious is a good example of a film that would work better as a TV series.  I'd have loved to see a pair of secret agents - one male, one female, who gradually fall for each other - and eventually marry.  It could be especially interesting if the woman still must "honeytrap" other spies as part of her job.  A TV series, however, could gradually work the relationship of  "Alicia" and "Devlin" -- making it more realistic, as well as dealing with the difficulties of a couple in such a dangerous profession.

But, getting back to the film, Grant is fantastic in Notorious - giving a subtle performance, and projecting a core of steel and violence.  I loved that.

Overall, though Notorious has it's good points and an excellent cast, it's like a novel by a great writer who needs an editor and without one writes books which are overly long.  The film really needed to be tightened up, the pacing improved, and the ending needs to be more concrete and less confusing.  Still, I would recommend it.

Recommendation:  See it.
Rating:  3.5 out of 5 Stars
Next Film:  The Philadelphia Story