An early black comedy

Alfred Hitchcock was known for his thrillers, but his obvious ambition was to be a comedian. From his witty openings to his tv show to his tongue in cheek cameos, Hitchcock seemed to have good sense of humor. In The Trouble with Harry, Hitch uses his standard suspenseful style as a backdrop to black comedy. The story twists and turns as the characters keep finding reasons to dig up the same body. The premise stretches credibility, but it is undeniably amusing and the influence on modern black comedies is obvious. In fact, two recent movies that have sprung from a similar premise, Eight heads in a Duffle Bag and Weekend at Bernie's are nothing but ripoffs compared to Harry. The pacing is a little slow at times, but the acting is quite good especially Shirley MacLaine in her first role. Overall, an interesting curveball from Hitchcock.