F.F.S. HITCHCOCK: "REBECCA"

I have been eagerly awaiting, as I hope many of you have as well, the first screening of the very first Freedom Film Series program. As we already know, the theme for the first Freedom Film Series is Alfred Hitchcock and we will be spending one night a week for four weeks watching four of his best films. The first film that I have chosen to show in the Hitchcock program will be Rebecca. The film was originally released in 1940 starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine and it was the first movie that Alfred Hitchcock made in Hollywood (after making the move from Great Britain to the U.S.).

Rebecca is not one of Hitchcock's more well-known films, but was, nevertheless, quite successful and critically acclaimed. In 1941, it was nominated for a total of 11 Oscars and came away with the Best Cinematography, Black and White and Best Picture awards. This would be Hitchcock's only Best Picture win out of the many times his films earned that nomination. Three of its Oscar nominations were in the acting categories. Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier were both nominated for Lead Acting awards and Judith Anderson earned a Supporting Actress nomination. Hitchcock was also nominated for Best Director, but had to settle for the Best Picture award instead.

The movie is an adaptation of a Daphne Du Maurier novel of the same name and is an eerie Gothic, suspense tale. Without giving too much of the plot away, the story centers around a young, naive, lower class girl (Joan Fontaine) who meets a young, rich widower, Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier) and they immediately fall in love and marry. Soon after moving into the large estate of her new husband, the, now, Second Mrs. de Winter finds that the atmosphere she is met with is anything but hospitable. The housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), is the primary source of this unwelcoming spirit. Mrs. Danvers was, and seemingly remains to be, devoted to the First Mrs. de Winter and disdains the new-comer. As the movie progresses, we learn that the death of the First Mrs. de Winter is shrouded in mystery and Joan Fontaine spends most of her time trying to figure out what has really happened and why the house is so haunted by the memory of her predecessor.

Rebecca is an extremely atmospheric film that successfully evokes creepy chills from the audience. Hitchcock's choice to shoot the film in black and white is one the biggest contributing factors to the Gothic feel and aura and, according to Hitchcock, was the only way that the mood of the book could be translated into film. The movie is filled with great performances, a suspenseful story, a chilling musical score, and is beautifully shot. In other words, it is classic Hitchcock. And, of course, there is the classic Hitchcock cameo near the end of the movie. But you'll have to actually come to the screening to see for yourself.

The movie will be shown on July 23 at 6:00pm in the Freedom Regional Library Community Room and it is free of charge. Come on out for a good movie and a good time!!























Until next time....