To Catch a Thief, based on the novel by David
Dodge
Alfred Hitchcock is the director,
Cary Grant and Grace Kelly the stars of this motion picture- with this magic
formula, it is only to be expected that To Catch a Thief is a remarkable film.
It was included on the New York
Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made list, on this page:
Alfred Hitchcock was celebrated as
the ultimate filmmaker, the man who created masterpieces under any circumstances;
only a number of professionals, including William Goldman, who has won the
Academy Award for Best Screenplay twice, dismissed this view.
In his phenomenal book, Adventures
in the Screen Trade, William Goldman writes about the mistaken concept of “auteur
theory” which held that outstanding directors- like Alfred Hitchcock- are the authors,
creators of their films and they are to be honored.
The inconsideration for the rest of
the crew is not just rude, it is also absolutely wrong and Goldman and others
insist on the merits of the actors, producers, writers and other members of the
team involved in making a film- as examples, we have the extraordinary contribution
of Special Effects for Jaws and the music composed by Vangelis for Chariots of
Fire.
In to Catch a Thief, Cary Grant
plays John Robie, a former thief who lives now in the South of France, on the
Riviera and although he claims he is retired and tries to be a model citizen,
he is suspected after some precious jewelry are stolen, in the manner of the “Cat”,
as his nickname was.
The only way the hero imagines to
clean his name is by Catching the Thief in the act, and thus prove his innocence-
although everybody seems to be sure he is the culprit, police and former
comrades.
John Robie is a complex character,
for in spite of the fact that he had been involved in illegal activities, after
he has arrived in Europe with his parents, as a child with a travelling circus,
seeing his abilities as an acrobat to take from those who had plenty; he is also
a good man.
The protagonist has fought in the
Resistance, when so many French decided to side with the Nazis and their villainous,
collaborationist Vichy regime, but even this honorable, commendable chapter in
his life is controversial, if we consider that his former colleagues are keen
to see him dead.
True, if we watch the exceptional
The Sorrow and the Pity, a four-hour long documentary about France during World
War II, we learn that there have been animosities within the French Resistance,
where some factions would not want the communists to be admitted in their ranks
and had to make a common front only when prompted by the British.
The hero gets in touch with H.H.
Hughson, who is an insurance agent, working for the agency that has to compensate
the rich victims of burglary, once their expensive, but insured jewels are
stolen.
This agent provides John Robbie with
the list of the most important precious jewelry and at the top of the list we
have Jessie Stevens and her daughter Frances, played by Grace Kelly- who would
later become the Princess of Monaco- who possess a collection of expensive
ornaments.
The inventive protagonist attracts
the attention of the women at the roulette, where he pretends to have slipped a
10,000 francs chip into the bra of a woman at the table, who pretends nothing
happened for a while and then gives the man some chips from her stack, making
Jessie laugh.
John Robbie pretends to be someone
else, a magnate of the lumber industry and his image is so perfect that the
mother thinks he would be such a splendid, interesting prospect for her gorgeous
daughter…but she will have him checked.
There are some interesting scenes,
including one in the sea, where the hero is talking to the daughter of one of
his former comrades, a woman who wants him to escape with her and travel to
South America, when the competitor, Frances Stevens swims to this conference
and a harsh exchange ensues between the two rivals, infatuated with the same
man.
Another episode has the rich, young
and beautiful American woman driving at dangerous speed, trying to get rid of
the car chasing them, with policemen inside, making one think of the tragic end
of the would be Princess of Monaco, who will have died while driving, years
later.
There is enough action, drama,
romance and amusement to make this feature noteworthy, although we can again
refer to William Goldman and his appreciation that, after reaching a zenith,
Alfred Hitchcock has created lesser films, perhaps in large part because of their
craze, the insistence of so many critics that he is the genius who is alone to
celebrate for the films he –only – directs.
There are twists in the plot,
including an initial capture of a criminal that is actually not the Thief, and
then revelations and moments that remind one of the incredible ending of North
by Northwest, acclaimed in Adventures in the Screen Trade and elsewhere.
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