• Latest
African Queen (1951)

Notorious (1946)

January 31, 2023

How to Replace Vital Documents Lost or Damaged by Floods

September 19, 2023

9th-12th Grade Students Invited to Submit to Bennington College Young Writers Awards

September 19, 2023

Ten Key Facts to Know About Federal Disaster Assistance

September 19, 2023
African Queen (1951)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)

September 19, 2023
Just Some Thoughts

The Blessings of Fall

September 19, 2023
African Queen (1951)

Amadeus (1984)

September 12, 2023

Montpelier Food Pantry Now in City Center

September 12, 2023

Green Mountain Youth Symphony Fall 2023 Fundraising Appeal

September 12, 2023

Montpelier Commission for Recovery and Resilience Announced

September 12, 2023

Governor Phil Scott and Mental Health Officials Encourage Residents to Check In On Themselves and Others

September 12, 2023
African Queen (1951)

Meet John Doe (1941)

September 5, 2023
Just Some Thoughts

A Hidden Treasure

September 5, 2023
  • Home
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
Friday, September 22, 2023
The World Online
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News & Features
    • Local News
    • Letters & opinions
    • George Shuman
    • Max’s View
    • Local Sports & Outdoors
    • Births
  • Calendar
    • Art Exhibits
    • Calendar of Events
    • Ongoing Events
  • Obituaries
  • Submit
    • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
    • Submit An Article To The World
    • Submit Letter To The Editor
    • Submit Sports News/Photo
    • Submit Birth Announcement
    • Submit Engagement Announcement
    • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Advertising
    • World Rates and Ad Sizes
    • World Distribution Map
    • World Deadlines
    • Audit and Reader Surveys
    • Advertising Inquiry
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ads
    • View Current Classifieds
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News & Features
    • Local News
    • Letters & opinions
    • George Shuman
    • Max’s View
    • Local Sports & Outdoors
    • Births
  • Calendar
    • Art Exhibits
    • Calendar of Events
    • Ongoing Events
  • Obituaries
  • Submit
    • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
    • Submit An Article To The World
    • Submit Letter To The Editor
    • Submit Sports News/Photo
    • Submit Birth Announcement
    • Submit Engagement Announcement
    • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Advertising
    • World Rates and Ad Sizes
    • World Distribution Map
    • World Deadlines
    • Audit and Reader Surveys
    • Advertising Inquiry
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ads
    • View Current Classifieds
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
The World Online
No Result
View All Result

Notorious (1946)

1.5 Stars

vt-world by vt-world
January 31, 2023
in Max's View
0
African Queen (1951)

I’m suspicious of a filmmaker who makes Nazis the bad guys in his movies.

It feels like a cop-out to introduce bad guys that we already loathe instead of taking the time to create new, interesting characters.

The only thing lazier than a movie with Nazis is one where the Nazis are so bland that we can’t even be bothered to root against them.

Enter the unique cinematic world of Alfred Hitchcock: the most overrated director of Hollywood’s Golden Age.

“Notorious” begins pleasantly enough. Ingrid Bergman plays an intelligent, vivacious young woman named Alicia Huberman. She is apolitical, but her father was a Nazi sympathizer and has recently been imprisoned.

Finally, Alicia is free to move on from the war and enjoy her life, right? Nope. Enter T. R. Devlin (Cary Grant): a federal agent whose job is to pressure Alicia to go under cover for Uncle Sam.

Because Devlin looks like Cary Grant, Alicia agrees to fly down to Rio De Janeiro with him. Just as Alicia begins to fall in love, Devlin drops a bombshell: her mission is to seduce a local businessman – Alex Sebastian – who is in league with the Nazis.

This sets the stage for a dramatic and preposterous love triangle.

There are two fundamental problems with “Notorious.” The first is that Devlin is a horrible person. It is an insane misuse of Cary Grant to have him play such a jerk.

It’s obviously wrong to send an innocent young woman off on such a dangerous and sexually exploitive mission. And on top that, Devlin doesn’t emotionally support Alicia at all. She begs for a sign that Devlin loves her, too, to help motivate her. He just gives her the cold shoulder.

With Devlin’s aid, Alicia goes from charming leading lady in the first act to a miserable, humorless victim.

Meanwhile, Alex Sebastian (Claude Rains) isn’t such a bad guy. Alex falls for the ruse and eagerly invites Alicia into his mansion and into his life. He is a caring, understanding, patient boyfriend.

Even more oddly, Alex and his Nazi buddies don’t seem to be doing anything particularly naughty. It was 1946 and yet I don’t think Alfred Hitchcock understood why people didn’t care for the Nazis.

You can’t just call a character Nazi and expect us to loathe him. He has to do some Nazis things. We hate Nazis because of the warmongering and the organized street violence and the tendency to enslave and mass murder people.

If you have a Nazi who doesn’t do any of those things, he’s basically just a nice boyfriend who is hiding some uranium in his basement.

This uranium is the only thing that makes Alex seem like a villain at all. And Hitchcock doesn’t bother to explain what his plans are. We are forced to guess. Is he going to enrich the uranium in the lab he doesn’t have? Is he then going to build an A-Bomb in the factory he doesn’t own? Is he then going to drop the bomb on Miami flying in on the B-29 that he doesn’t possess?

“Notorious” is an impressive cinematic accomplishment. Alfred Hitchcock managed to make Cary Grant a jerk. He made Claude Rains boring. And he made Nazis unthreatening.

Previous Post

RAD Denounces Threats to Organizing for Safe and Inclusive Schools

Next Post

Cancer-Fighting Advocates Call on Gov. Scott to Protect VT Kids; Increase Tobacco Control Program Funding

Next Post

Cancer-Fighting Advocates Call on Gov. Scott to Protect VT Kids; Increase Tobacco Control Program Funding

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This Week’s Ads

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
The World
403 US Route 302
Barre, VT 05641
Phone: (802) 479-2582

Copyright © 2019 The World Online. All Rights Reserved. Powered by CoolerAds.

No Result
View All Result
  • Art Exhibits
  • Audit and Reader Surveys
  • Births
  • Calendar
  • Contact Us
  • Daily Horoscope
  • Food & Recipe
  • Home
  • Obituaries
  • Ongoing Events
  • Pay Your Bill Here
  • Senior Living Edition
  • Showtimes
  • Submit Birth Announcement
  • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
  • Submit Engagement Announcement
  • Submit Listing to our Local Directory
  • Submit Sports News/Photo
  • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Summer Guide 2023
  • Testimonials
  • The World Coupons
  • Weather Forecast
  • World Deadlines
  • World Distribution Map
  • World Rate Card
  • World Rates and Ad Sizes
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
  • About Us
  • Vermont Lottery
  • Advertising Information
  • The World Staff
  • Advertising Inquiry
  • Submit Letter To The Editor
  • Local Directory
  • Poll Results
  • Local Deals
  • Classifieds
  • Submit An Article To The World
  • Events
  • The World – This Week’s Online Digital Edition
  • The World Auto & Sports

Copyright © 2019 The World Online. All Rights Reserved. Powered by CoolerAds.

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In