North by Northwest

This review will consist of 2 parts. 1st part being the fantastic movie that is North by Northwest, and the 2nd part will be about the Theatre in which I watched it today. 1959 Alfred Hitchcock masterpiece North by Northwest is a film I had never seen, but when the opportunity to watch it on the big screen arose, I could not miss out. I knew very little about this film, but I did remember the iconic scene in which Cary Grant was evading a biplane shooting at him in the corn field. It was better than I could have imagined. It really is a brilliant thriller based on a misunderstanding. Roger Thornhill (Grant) is an Ad man. That's what he does, but when he is kidnapped and taken to a strangers home to be interrogated, he does not know what to think. They keep calling him George Kaplan. He has been mistaken for Kaplan, who is a government agent. After denying that name oh so many times, the baddies make him imbibe a 750 of bourbon, then put him in a car hoping he will die on his way home. Since he didn't die, he has to explain to police why he was driving drunk, and this is where it turns into a bit of a comedy. Cary Grant is hilarious by the way. Perfect timing and attitude behind his sarcasms. Loved it. Now he is on a mission to clear his name, and find the real Kaplan to help with that. Without giving away to much, Thornhill is now wanted for DUI and for murder. He is being set up. The spies want him dead, the police want him in custody, and he wants to get some tail in the middle of all this. The amount of sexual references in this 1959 film shocked me. They are witty, blatant, and dirty. Considering that most are exchanged with the beautifully gorgeous Eva Marie Saint, I did not mind. We really get to see how clever Thornhill can be, when sober anyway. He must stay alive, but how can he clear his name. This is why I would categorize this classic as a thriller. Hitchcock really was a mad genius. He shot what he wanted and made sure it was perfect. In the editing room, he only cut out 8 feet of film. 8 feet of film is equivalent to about 5 seconds. He got it right the first time, and it was perfect.

This is what it looks like today

      

    Now onto the theatre. The Franklin Theatre (Franklin, TN) was opened in 1937. In the past 5 years, it has been vacant, and the city was very close to condemning it, and tearing it down. Pity. The residents of Franklin would not allow that to happen. Through 3 years of fund raising campaigns, over 8 million dollars was raised, and the restoration began. They restored the theatre to 1937 specs, with current sound and lighting technology of course. I can truly say it is the most beautiful theater I have ever been to, plus they sell beer by the pint and wine by the glass. A very classy place that shows old films every Sunday for only $5 a ticket. This was the first time I have been inside that theater in over 11 years (when I actually worked there), and I have to say, I loved the transformation. I also loved seeing such a classic for my very first time in a theater that very well could have showed it in 1959 upon it's original release. 

NBM rates North by Northwest - A Work of Cinematic Art

I also rate The Franklin Theatre A Work of Art