Rebecca is the film version of the book of the same name by Daphne Du Maurier. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, this movie was full of suspense. Joan Fontaine stars as a young bride to Laurence Olivier's Maxim de Winter. No matter what she does, Joan can not live up to his first wife's legacy, the beautiful Rebecca de Winter.
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| Fontaine and Olivier |
As in the book (which I've never read, but I hope to one day), Joan Fontaine's character is never given a name. This helps add to the feeling that she is almost an after thought, even in her own story. From the start everything seems to overwhelm her: Her overly large wedding bouquet; Manderley, Maxim's mansion; Rebecca's legacy, which is everywhere she turns.
Mrs. Danvers (played by Judith Anderson), the housekeeper, did not help matters. She worshiped Rebecca. Maybe a little bit too much. At every turn, she seems to be pulling the rug out from Fontaine. I can't say anything more without spoilers.
Every time Olivier opened his mouth, all I could hear was Cary Elwes. (Yes, technically it is Elwes who sounds like Olivier. shush.) Olivier was brilliant, obviously.
To me, this was different than most Hitchcock films I've seen. I'm not sure I can pinpoint why. Maybe because I've watched more of his 1950s work. It just didn't seem to have as much of the Hitchcock trademark as I would expect.
Favorite Quote:
2nd Mrs. de Winter: You know, I, I wish there could be an invention that bottled up a memory like perfume and it never faded, never got stale. Then, whenever I wanted to, I could uncork the bottle and, and live the memory all over again.
