Review: Rebecca

Naive, somewhat bumbling young Joan Fontaine falls for somewhat prickly British nobleman Maxim de Winter (Lord Laurence Olivier), and quickly moves in with and marries him. She spends the rest of the film living (in the family estate dubbed Manderley) hopelessly in the constant shadow of the former Mrs. de Winter, who recently died a tragic death that Mr. de Winter can’t quite get over. Meanwhile, leering about, with a constant disapproving sneer is housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (an imperious Dame Judith Anderson), who was exceptionally devoted to the late Mrs. de Winter, instantly takes a disliking to the newer model, and appears to be harbouring many a secret. These secrets of the past are certain to be uncovered, especially once Rebecca’s favourite cousin George Sanders turns up, a possible blackmailer who cynically loathes Mr. de Winter, whom he suspects of having played a part in the death of the first Mrs. de Winter. Florence Bates is constantly irritating as Fontaine’s condescending, demanding socialite former employer.

 

Handsomely mounted 1940 Alfred Hitchcock (“Strangers on a Train”, “Shadow of a Doubt”, “Vertigo”) Gothic melodrama, his first American film for uber-producer David O. Selznick, and arguably his most overrated film. It won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1940, the year of “The Grapes of Wrath”! Sadly, it would be Hitch’s only win in the Best Picture category.

 

Even if the story were fascinating and dramatically satisfying (which it isn’t, 1951’s “My Cousin Rachel” is the vastly superior du Maurier film), the film still has the chief problems of central casting and characters. Olivier and Fontaine struggle in vain, portraying two of the least interesting, least sympathetic romantic leads in any Hitchcock film. She’s playing a character incapable of finding her arse with her own hand (A better example of this is Fontaine’s superior turn as “Jane Eyre”, an excellent film), and he’s a cold fish playing a cold fish in a completely detached, if technically proficient performance. I loved Olivier in “The Entertainer”, but in most everything else I’ve found him to be all actor-y tricks and aloofness, with no heart or soul beyond the artifice. A much better variation on his character can, you guessed it, be found in Orson Welles’ definitive portrayal of Rochester in “Jane Eyre”. Or, if you must stick with Olivier, try his genuinely good performance in “Wuthering Heights”). Robert Donat, in my opinion the greatest actor of all-time, was considered for the role by Hitch at one point, and would’ve been a far more appropriate choice (Donat always had an innate warmth and decency to him, which might’ve helped make the character at least charming and attractive, in between the necessary moments of sullenness).

 

Aussie-born Dame Judith Anderson plays her most infamous and celebrated character, unfortunately a two-dimensional portrayal of a two-dimensional character (i.e. She’s sinister and presumably gay), probably neutered by censors of the time. Surprisingly to me, all three were Oscar-nominated for their underwhelming work. On a brighter note, noted scene-stealer George Sanders takes off with the whole film, seemingly effortlessly as he often did.

 

The film looks fantastic, with Oscar-nominated interior decorating by Art Director Lyle Wheeler (“Gone With the Wind”, “All About Eve”, “The Diary of Anne Frank”), and superb Oscar-winning B&W cinematography by George Barnes (Hitch’s underrated “Spellbound”, as well as “The Greatest Show on Earth”). The score by Franz Waxman (“Suspicion”, another Hitchcock dud with Fontaine, and surprise of all surprises, “My Cousin Rachel”), however, is a total yawn. Waxman is clearly no Bernard Herrmann.

 

Two dullards in the lead, one overplayed ham in support, and characters not worth investing in. This one didn’t do much for me, Hitchcock has made far superior films. Replace Olivier with Robert Donat and replace Fontaine with her more talented sister Olivia de Havilland and maybe this thing would’ve ingratiated itself to me a bit more. Even then, doom-and-gloom Gothic romance has been done much better elsewhere (“Jane Eyre”, “My Cousin Rachel”)

 

Rating: C