Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Classic Kids, or 100 films the kids in your life have to see by 13 or else!

Day 62:  North By Northwest (1959)


This is a great film to introduce kids to the film making of Alfred Hitchcock.  After this movie, Hitch starts to infuse his films with more gore and horror aspects.   North by Northwest however, is pure adventure from start to finish.  Cary Grant is perfectly cast as the unwilling victim of mistaken identity within a spy ring.  Like many of Hitchcock's heroes, Cary (Roger Thornhill) must go on a journey to catch the bad guys, or else risk going to prison himself.  The music by Alfred Newman is so perfect, adding just the right amount of tempo to suck the audience in to the chase.  There are several scenes that stand out, such as the infamous crop-duster segment, and the grand finale on Mt. Rushmore.  Eva Marie Saint and James Mason play two of the spies that Roger becomes entangled.

Media Literacy Questions:  Did you catch Alfred Hitchcock's cameo appearance?  Why is this film considered part of the adventure genre?  Where does Roger start out, and where does He end up?  How does music convey the tension within the scenes?  What do the characters clothing reveal about their personalities?

Themes:  Cold War, Adventure, Trains, Spying, Advertising

1 comment:

  1. David J. Benforado likes this.

    Mark White one of the more awesome scenes ever filmed! Hitchcock was a special kind of cinematography genius!

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