North By Northwest - 35mm Print

(Alfred Hitchcock, US 1959, 136 min., 35mm)

Hitchcock’s final word on the chase film is also one of the most entertaining classics of all time. Classic sequence follows classic sequence, all smoothly piloted by Ernest Lehman’s clever, tightly dialogued script: the abduction at the Plaza, the train ride, the crop duster, the auction, the escape over Lincoln’s nose at Mount Rushmore. Bernard Herrmann’s score is magnificent. Eva Marie Saint is terrific in the one sexy glamour role of her distinguished career, and James Mason and Martin Landau are both excellent. But it’s Cary Grant’s picture start to finish, and you wouldn’t want it any other way.