If you prefer not to have the ending to Shadow of a Doubt spoiled you have two options – stop reading now or stop reading…NOW. Wallace Ford as Detective Fred Saunders.Macdonald Carey as Detective Jack Graham. ![]() Joseph Cotten as Charles “Uncle Charlie” Oakley.Teresa Wright as “Young Charlie” Newton.It is young Charlie, who has enjoyed a special bond with her uncle all of her life, who comes to recognize his crimes and becomes a hero in the process in a story told with dark humor, gorgeous imagery and singular precision by Sir Alfred Hitchcock. Unfortunately, what Uncle Charlie brings is murder and darkness to the otherwise idyllic small town. Uncle Charlie, as his favorite niece and namesake, Charlie calls him, is a charming man who promises to break the monotony of life in Santa Rosa as young woman sees it. Here’s a brief Shadow of a Doubt refresher:Ĭharles Oakley loses the two men that are following him and suddenly decides to visit his sister Emma and her family in Santa Rosa, CA. What he meant was the actual presence of the number two or a noticeable mention of two or illustration of two throughout Shadow of a Doubt. Naturally that piqued my curiosity so I took another look at the movie, doing a double-take at every mention or illustration of two. The “twos” my friend referred to weren’t part of the duality theme, however. There are many examples of Hitchcock dualities. Then there’s the in-your-face duality prevalent in Vertigo (1958) and Shadow of a Doubt’s own Uncle Charlie playing good guy while in actuality he’s a murdering scoundrel…and so forth. Also, the numerous spies that play a part in many Hitchcock stories are – by definition – employing at least two sides of their personalities. For instance, “the wrong man” theme that permeates many of his films suggests – at the very least – that most people have at their core the possibility of a dark side in addition to the good. I didn’t think much of the number two when mentioned because anyone who enjoys Hitchcock movies knows – or has noticed – the importance of two (or duality) as a theme element. The number two came up in regards to the director’s Shadow of a Doubt, his personal favorite and one of mine as well. Like the more famous Psycho, Shadow of a Doubt has a lasting ability to shatter the illusion of safety within our homes, with Uncle Charlie forever responsible for a sense of unease every time our own "fun uncle" comes to visit.I was having a conversation with another classic movie fan who has a particular admiration for Alfred Hitchcock. One of Hitchcock's first American films, it was a rather personal project (several characters are named after Hitchcock's family members and various details, such as the book Ivanhoe and a childhood bicycle accident, are drawn from his own life) – however, it features many of the elements that would define his film-making style: his obligatory cameo, carefully deployed black humour (two crime-novel-obsessed characters plot various ways to kill each other, blissfully unaware a murderer may be living under their roof) and the way he would shoot and frame staircases to make them relevant story devices. Uncle Charlie turns and looks directly down the camera lens: "Are they?" "But they're alive, they're human beings," she replies. Seen from young Charlie's point of view, the camera slowly creeps in on his face as he describes them as "horrible, fat, fading women". The film's best scene takes place around the dinner table where Uncle Charlie tells the family what he thinks about women, specifically rich widows. Hitchcock keeps proceedings deliberately ambiguous, spoon-feeding us clues: a missing newspaper clipping here, a recurring hummed tune there … Young Charlie's idolisation of her uncle slowly turns to suspicion as she gets the feeling that there might be a secret behind his smile. ![]() Life is pretty quiet but excitement arrives when successful, enigmatic relative Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) comes to stay. The type of place where people leave their front doors unlocked and everyone knows everyone. ![]() Young Charlie (played by Teresa Wright) lives with her "average American family" in the small town of Santa Rosa. Yet it could be argued that it had been hiding there all along, behind closed doors, since Shadow of a Doubt in 1943.
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