Classic Gothic Romance-Drama: Rebecca

Adapted from the book by Daphne du Maurier, the film Rebecca was the first American film project for Alfred Hitchcock. David O. Selznick, who had previously produced the classic Gone with the Wind, also produced Rebecca. After an exhaustive search for the female lead (ala Gone with the Wind), Joan Fontaine was chosen to co-star with Laurence Olivier. Among those also considered for Fontaine's role were Loretta Young, Olivia de Havilland (Fontaine's real-life sister) and even Vivien Leigh. However, the casting for the part of the timid second wife was perfect in Fontaine (22 years old at the time), who conveyed precisely the vulnerability and naivete that this role required. Fontaine was the narrator of the film and her character remained unnamed throughout.

At the opening of the film, the title character of Rebecca is already dead. The film reveals the secret of the beautiful, mysterious first wife of Maxim de Winter, played by Olivier. De Winter is handsome, wealthy and sophisticated but has suffered the loss of his first wife through somewhat odd circumstances. After her death, he goes on a cruise to the Riviera, where he meets a shy young woman (Fontaine) and falls in love. After a very short romance, they are married.

After the honeymoon, Maxim and the second Mrs. De Winter return to England to live at his huge estate, Manderley. Fontaine's character is still starry-eyed from the glow of her romance and honeymoon and fully expects to take up the responsibilities as mistress of Manderley. However, upon her arrival, she is greeted with indifference as well as contempt by the servants. The staff at the mansion are, for the most part, resentful of her presence and marriage, making it clear that Rebecca was the only "real" mistress of Manderley. Chief housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), does not make an effort to mask her hatred for the new Mrs. De Winter. Danvers is openly contemptuous and relentless in her negative comparisons of the first and second wives of Maxim. Anderson plays the role of Mrs. Danvers with brilliance. Every bodily movement and inflection of her voice drips pure evil. The close-ups of her face are priceless, showing a woman consumed by some unknown force. Mrs. Danvers is able to contain her grief--and madness--until she learns the truth about the Rebecca that she adores. A modernized PBS adaptation of Rebecca, starring Diana Rigg as Danvers, explores a reason for Danver's obsessive devotion to Rebecca, opening the possibility of sexual relationship between the two women. Although such a relationship is subtly implied in the 1940 film, it is somewhat downplayed. Still, Anderson is unmatched as the evil and obsessed Danvers.

Gradually, tortured by Maxim's reluctance to discuss Rebecca and images she has herself conjured, the new Mrs. De Winter comes to believe that it is Rebecca, and not her, that Maxim loves. She nears madness herself and, goaded by Danvers, is even close to suicide. Laurence Olivier is perfect as the brooding and mysterious Maxim. For much of the film, he does not show a great deal of emotion and his character seems very distant. However, as his new wife becomes more and more distressed, he is forced to reveal the nature of his feelings towards his dead wife. Ironically, Maxim is not suffering from undying love for Rebecca. In fact, he loathed her. Reluctantly, Maxim tells his wife of Rebecca's cruelty and unfaithfulness. In shocking detail, he also tells his new wife the truth about how Rebecca died. As both the new Mrs. De Winter and Mrs. Danvers find out the truth, life at Manderley falls apart. This movie has a powerful climax that is a must-see for all Hitchcock fans.

Hitchcock keeps this film taut from beginning to end, revealing the story step-by-step, until it reaches its climax. The cinematography is excellent, making the eerie Manderley mansion a key part of the story line. The dramatic lighting and camera techniques accent the dark theme of the movie, almost making Manderley a character in itself. Rebecca received eleven Academy Award nominations and won for Best Picture and Best Black and White Cinematography (George Barnes). For Selznick, it was the second monumentally successful film in a row. For Hitchcock, it was the beginning of the love affair that American audiences have for Hitchcock films.