211. Marnie (1964)
But I do want to go to bed, Marnie. I very much want to go to bed.
Title: Marnie
Date Watched: 4/14/2013
Original Ranking Out of 10: N/A
Revised Ranking Out of 10: 5
Synopsis: A man catches a kleptomaniac, marries her, and uncovers her deep dark secrets.
The Good: The reveal at the end is awesome. There are a few good sequences on the way to the end.
The Bad: Just a strange movie, made only stranger by the presence of a young Sean Connery who is difficult to take seriously as anything except James Bond, especially when he's wearing a tux. Also, Tippi Hedron's performance is way over the top and the movie, as a whole, is too overdramatic. Also, the bad pop psychology left a sour taste in my mouth.
Why Do I Own This Movie?: Hitchcock collection.
Should I Still Own This Movie?: Sure. I guess. It's interesting even if it isn't especially good.
What Did I Notice That I Didn't Notice Before?: Hitchcock is really racy here, as if he's trying to outdo himself. In a lot of ways, it seems like he's trying to replicate Psycho, though it's not nearly as effective this time around.
Other Impressions: Here's another Hitchcock movie I'd never watched before and, frankly, I'm not looking forward to the other two in the collection that I also haven't seen (though I remember really enjoying the two I have seen but haven't rewatched yet). There are some strong elements -- I liked the scene where Marnie steals the money -- but it mostly gets bogged down in bad pop psychology, trying to explain why people do strange things using what David Mamet refers to as a "rubber duck."
The rubber duck, you see, is what happened to the bad guy before the beginning of the movie. He wasn't always bad, as he explains in his final monologue, but when he was a kid, somebody stole his rubber duck and that turned him evil. A lot of movies put these elements in them to make the bad guy seem more motivated or sympathetic or something and it's almost always terrible. Marnie is not the exception to the rule.
The most interesting parts of the movie, and probably the reasons why Hitchcock chose to make it, are the raciest elements. The rape scene, for instance, still has an impact, though I think we're still supposed to sympathize with the rapist afterwards (which I hope most modern viewers would find anachronistic) and the reveal at the end is pretty intense. I actually, out loud, said, "What the hell?!"
But the movie also takes too long to get there and didn't give me enough along the way to keep my interest. I'm somewhat conflicted about Marnie because the good moments are as good as anything else Hitch has ever done, but looking back at how I felt through most of it, this is not a good movie.
The List
Title: Marnie
Date Watched: 4/14/2013
Original Ranking Out of 10: N/A
Revised Ranking Out of 10: 5
Synopsis: A man catches a kleptomaniac, marries her, and uncovers her deep dark secrets.
The Good: The reveal at the end is awesome. There are a few good sequences on the way to the end.
The Bad: Just a strange movie, made only stranger by the presence of a young Sean Connery who is difficult to take seriously as anything except James Bond, especially when he's wearing a tux. Also, Tippi Hedron's performance is way over the top and the movie, as a whole, is too overdramatic. Also, the bad pop psychology left a sour taste in my mouth.
Why Do I Own This Movie?: Hitchcock collection.
Should I Still Own This Movie?: Sure. I guess. It's interesting even if it isn't especially good.
What Did I Notice That I Didn't Notice Before?: Hitchcock is really racy here, as if he's trying to outdo himself. In a lot of ways, it seems like he's trying to replicate Psycho, though it's not nearly as effective this time around.
Other Impressions: Here's another Hitchcock movie I'd never watched before and, frankly, I'm not looking forward to the other two in the collection that I also haven't seen (though I remember really enjoying the two I have seen but haven't rewatched yet). There are some strong elements -- I liked the scene where Marnie steals the money -- but it mostly gets bogged down in bad pop psychology, trying to explain why people do strange things using what David Mamet refers to as a "rubber duck."
The rubber duck, you see, is what happened to the bad guy before the beginning of the movie. He wasn't always bad, as he explains in his final monologue, but when he was a kid, somebody stole his rubber duck and that turned him evil. A lot of movies put these elements in them to make the bad guy seem more motivated or sympathetic or something and it's almost always terrible. Marnie is not the exception to the rule.
The most interesting parts of the movie, and probably the reasons why Hitchcock chose to make it, are the raciest elements. The rape scene, for instance, still has an impact, though I think we're still supposed to sympathize with the rapist afterwards (which I hope most modern viewers would find anachronistic) and the reveal at the end is pretty intense. I actually, out loud, said, "What the hell?!"
But the movie also takes too long to get there and didn't give me enough along the way to keep my interest. I'm somewhat conflicted about Marnie because the good moments are as good as anything else Hitch has ever done, but looking back at how I felt through most of it, this is not a good movie.
The List