Wyman's the Whole Show Here

Not that anyone really cares, but this is #13 on my Hitchcock best-to-worst list, which makes it slightly above average. Being situated between "Saboteur" and "The Lady Vanishes" this is a pretty good, but unremarkable Hitchcock effort.

The film's strongest asset is that it stars one of my favourite actresses, Jane Wyman. Wyman is, crucially, entirely winning in the lead role of an actress who tries to clear the name of her lover (Richard Todd), accused of murder by impersonating people to find out information. Number one on her list of suspects is Marlene Dietrich as a stage star and mistress of Todd who may have framed him.

Michael Wilding is essentially useless as the lead investigator in the case who slowly starts to fall for Wyman. However the supporting cast also features the well-respected Sybil Thorndike, Joyce Grenfell and Alistair Sim in memorable roles. The latter two are particular scene-stealers, the daffy Grenfell has a bit part as a possibly overly-pushy woman trying to sell a cake, and Sim is hilarious as Wyman's father, constantly bickering with mother Thorndike.

Dietrich is also at her best here, playing the b*tchy stage star she was pretty much born to play. However, it is Jane Wyman, on screen more than anyone else, who is given the most difficult task (playing various characters yet gaining our sympathy as the heroine) and pulls it off flawlessly.

Hitch employs a bit of a gimmick for the film's ending, one that is fairly common these days, but must've been fairly new at the time. Some say the ending doesn't quite come off but for me the only two drawbacks of the film are an appallingly slow pace (it's not a long film but it does seem awfully long) and some problems with the Todd character. Without giving anything away, I'd suggest the film either needed more or less Todd. You'll see what I mean when you see the film. The character just doesn't come off in this film.