Today theyre joining the second annual alfred hitchcock blogathon to consider what the famous director could have been thinking with torn curtain 1966. Mcneely has impressed us all with his understanding of herrmanns work, and torn curtain is no exception. Torn curtain, american spy film, released in 1966, that was notable for being one of alfred hitchcocks leastsuccessful productions michael armstrong played by paul newman is a famous american physicist who travels to copenhagen with his fiancee, sarah sherman julie andrews, to attend a scientific conference. And imo this film s trite and tiresome plotline really showed it.
Following torn curtains release, hitchcock would go on to direct 3 more feature films before finally retiring due. Breakthrough 1979 richard burton, robert mitchum full movie duration. This is because i can feel every moment of the struggle movements, struggling of paul newman for survival. In horror and suspense, what you dont see can be a lot more frightening than what you do see, since the imagination is a powerful thing. And involvement is the sensation we feel, i think, since we know his identity from the beginning and sometimes cannot help identifying with him. Earlier in the film, she flew to east berlin on the same airplane as armstrong, and mistakenly believed the press were there to greet her. Christopher lloyd the film yap november 5, 2018 dismissed by many as part of hitchcocks regrettable declining years, torn curtain turns out to be a surprisingly tense and intimate spy thriller. Please access detailed information on over 250 individual film color processes via the classification system on this page, display the timeline of historical film colors in chronological order, search via the tag cloud at the end of this page or directly on the search page, or see the contributing archives collections on the header slides. Released in 1966 torn curtain would mark director, alfred hitchcocks 40th year in the film making business.
Just that one line gave perfect closure to this wonderful film. When jesus died on the cross, the curtain that separated the most holy place in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. Following torn curtains release, hitchcock would go on to direct 3 more feature films before finally retiring due to. March from topaz maurice jarre paul francis webster. Prelude torn curtain bernard herrmann previously unreleased 12. Universal executives were keen for torn curtain to be a return to hitchcocks paramountera films, with big name stars and colourful locations. Sadly, this is a case where the score works better in the film than as music to listen to but it wasnt used in the film, and as such is hard to listen to at all. The veil was a long, woven curtain that was purple, scarlet and blue. It is best known for the horrific sequence in which the lead character, assisted by a farmers wife, kills a german police chief with the paraphernalia of a farmhouse. Torn curtain is a film very much of its time, a cold war spy thriller inspired by the defection of two british civil servants, guy burgess and donald maclean, to russia in 1951. It is not one of hitchs top 10, but it is still a very good movie. The two discovered an easy collaboration and worked together for eleven years, until an argument over torn curtain put an end to their partnership.
Torn curtain 1966 timeline of historical film colors. A photo and poster gallery from the film production notes cast and filmmakers biographies and film highlights theatrical trailer and more. The film needed a dramatic counterpoint in order to retain at least the appearance of suspense. Written by brian moore, the film is set in the cold war. Im uncertain when beauty meets abuse torn curtain loves all ridicule tears, tears rolling back the. What hitch did not want was, as he put it, more richard strauss. Spy thriller in which newmans defecting scientist is followed to east berlin by his troubled fianceeassistant. On imdb tv, you can catch hollywood hits and popular tv series at no cost.
Torn curtain is a 1966 american political thriller film directed by alfred hitchcock and starring paul newman and julie andrews. The tensionfraught set pieces arent quite as tensionfraught as hitchcocks masterpieces, but theyre still heaps better than most other directors efforts. Newmans spying has been found out by gromek wolfgang kieling, his burly bodyguard. A cold war spy thriller from master of suspense alfred hitchcock that was considered racy for its time, torn curtain sees us scientist michael armstrong publicly defect to communist east germany. Herrmann wrote the bulk of the score for vertigo, considered by many critics and by herrmann himself to be his finest film score, in a little over a month. Hed been on a losing streak that started with marnie now viewed by many as his best film and continued with a film i always loved as a kid, torn curtain. Torn curtain is a 1966 film about an american scientist who publicly defects to east germany as part of a cloak and dagger mission to find the solution for a formula resin and then tries to figure out a plan to escape back to the west directed by alfred hitchcock. Torn curtain at 3 theaters nytimes the new york times. Torn curtain on bluray 025192182334 from universal.
Adding to the spy mill in 1966 were several espionage television series including the classic spy spoof show get smart, created by the comedic giants mel brooks and buck henry. Of the three key scenes of suspense in the film, only the famous. Torn curtain was one of the rare hitchcock films from his classic era. The torn curtain is the fiftieth film of alfred hitchcocks delightfully deceptive directorial career.
And while neither film pops like his best work, the bedrock of oblique politics ruptured by spectacular displays of tension and violence still seem quite appropriate. An american scientist publicly defects to east germany as part of a cloak and dagger mission to find the solution for a formula resin before planning an escape back to the west. The last of alfred hitchcocks great films, torn curtain is the story of an american nuclear scientist paul newman who defects to east germany to work for the communists. Torn curtain is one of hitchcocks most underrated and under seen films. And imo this films trite and tiresome plotline really showed it. Hes reluctantly joined by his assistant and fiancee sarah, whos unaware that his decision is actually. But torn curtain, irregardless of chemistry issues, does have two alltime movie stars playing the leads but, no, julie andrews doesnt sing. Torn curtain, american spy film, released in 1966, that was notable for being one of alfred hitchcocks leastsuccessful productions.
Select any poster below to play the movie, totally free. Staring julie andrews, paul newman, ludwig donath and lila kedrova. This first part of a series of two posts on the berlin wall and the cinema looks at a few films made between 19611989. The last line of the movie should go down in history. This video contains both bernard herrmanns cue and addisons cue for the killing scene. Jun 28, 2019 torn curtain is an alfred hitchcock film from the late 1960s. The suspense of torn curtain is by nature not as thrilling as that in the average hitchcock film much of it involves sitting still and wondering if the bad guys are getting closer.
Torn curtain begins by establishing a sense of romance between its two central. Nov 16, 2012 worldfamous scientist michael armstrong paul newman and his fianceeassistant, sarah sherman julie andrews, travel to copenhagen for a physics conference. Mcneely has impressed us all with his understanding of. It took me a long time to put the music and the scenes together. W hen jesus died on the cross, the temple curtain also known as the temple veil was torn. Torn curtain is alfred hitchcocks 50th film, and while it doesnt rank with his greatest like psycho, vertigo, rear window etc. So to most movie goers of the day torn curtain was just another film capitalizing on the spy vs.
While they are attending the ballet and waiting for the pickup, they are reported to the police because they were spotted by the lead russian ballerina tamara toumanova, who bears a bit of a grudge. Hitchs casting of newman as the cold and manipulative armstrong works to a degree, though newman has had better efforts elsewhere. Unfortunately, this solid, flashy thriller became the directors second consecutive boxoffice dud despite the pedigree of its director and the casting of megastars paul newman and julie andrews. The radiogram torn curtain bernard herrmann previously unreleased 14.
In the spring of 1965, hitchcock met with cary grant but the actor was already committed to filming walk, dont run in tokyo and was planning to retire afterwards. Torn curtain was one of the rare hitchcock films from his classic era which did not feature a score by bernard herrman. There is nothing to grab me, and keep me wanting to listen. Following torn curtain s release, hitchcock would go on to direct 3 more feature films before finally retiring due to his failing health. Torn curtain 1999 stream and watch online moviefone. But hitchcock was incapable of making an uninteresting film, even when burdened with unsympathetic stars like julie andrews and paul newman, and torn curtain has its moments, most notably in a. In this good friday message, alistair begg reminds us that this event dramatically illustrated the truth that unfolded at the same time. Alfred hitchcocks torn curtain dvd washington county. In between the first and second halves of this hopeless project there is a lengthy sequence set on a farm that stands with the best of hitchcocks work. I am posting this video for non profit and research purposes only.
Torn curtain itself is directed in the haphazard manner of a director who really doesnt give a damn, with some scenes gorgeously constructed and plotted in classic hitchcock fashion, while others feature astoundingly horrible rearprojection shots and pedestrian editing. Rewatching torn curtain, its very easy to see what about the film made it both perfect viewing for a kid home sick from school and anathema to critics in love with vertigo. Torn curtain, american spy film, released in 1966, that was notable for being one of alfred hitchcock s leastsuccessful productions. What was the significance of the veil being torn and why was it torn from the top down. As we are accustomed to always expect the best from alfred hitchcock, torn curtain may disappoint some viewers, its also true that there is something that doesnt work in the film. For torn curtain, which opened yesterday at the demille, the 34th street east and the coronet. One of the best hitchcock films, not overacted or totally implausable, enjoyed it. Paul newman and julie andrews fail to sizzle as a couple. Hitchcock makes you feel trapped in cold war era east berlin. Frenzy, which allegedly has a loose connection with a real criminal case, involves us in the exploits of a murderer known as the necktie killer barry foster. Following the failure of marnie, alfred hitchcock returned to suspenseful form with torn curtain. Herrmann thought torn curtain was a dangerously weak film, and one that needed a strong orchestral score to make it effective. Torn curtain is one of hitchcocks most underrated and underseen films. The ship torn curtain bernard herrmann previously unreleased.
Alfred hitchcocks espionage thriller torn curtain 1966 is a riveting spy caper that sees double agent michael armstrong paul newman having to escape from east berlin during the cold war era alongside his devoted fiancee sarah julie andrews. Paul newman plays an american scientist who defects to a cold war country, but he fails to tell his fiancee, played by julie andrews. Even nonspy films touched on espionage from time to time. Torn curtain bluray disc columbus metropolitan library. Torn curtain was a dreadful picture, hopelessly boring and static with a flat script and lifeless performances from its principal players. Or maybe simply because our heroes are not really in danger. Torn curtain by alfred hitchcock alfred hitchcock, paul.
Brian wilkins and mike gutierrez have written wonderful guest posts here at cary grant wont eat youbrian, on fighting in sword and sandals films, and mike, on his ideal casting for hitchcock remakes. She follows him tho he tells her many times to go home, but has to follow her heart. Enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing torn curtain near you. Torn curtain 1999 american physicist michael armstrong paul newman shocks his friends and family by defecting to east germany to work with the soviets during the height of the cold war. It is about an american scientist who appears to defect behind the iron curtain to east germany. Hitchcocks 50th movie, torn curtain, is considered by many experts to be a major disappointment, but i didnt see it that way.
Released in 1966 torn curtain would mark director, alfred hitchcocks 40th year in the filmmaking business. Jesus onceforall sacrifice accomplished what the old testament priesthood could never achieve. Hermann assured hitch he knew exactly what was requiredand then ignored him completely. An original documentary on the making of torn curtain, featuring rare production photographs scenes scored by composeer bernard herrmann production photographs. Reviews for these films torn curtain and topaz said that hitch seemed tired and his plotting slack. Torn curtain 1966 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Torn curtain is a lightweight espionage thriller that has some tense, memorable moments but as a whole seems to flounder. Torn curtain is certainly hitchcock back at his trademark formula, a suspense thriller that keeps you on your toes but not enough to push you off it. Comments are turned off advertisement autoplay when autoplay is enabled, a suggested video will automatically play next.
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