Rebecca (1940)

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

Daphne Du Maurier (celebrated novel)
Robert E. Sherwood (screen play) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 April 1940 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

The shadow of this woman darkened their love.

Plot:

When a naive young woman marries a rich widower and settles in his gigantic mansion, she finds the memory of the first wife maintaining a grip on her husband and the servants.

Plot Keywords:

Housekeeper | Love | Death | Widower | Cornwall

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Laurence Olivier	...	'Maxim' de Winter
Joan Fontaine	...	Mrs. de Winter
George Sanders	...	Jack Favell
Judith Anderson	...	Mrs. Danvers
Nigel Bruce	...	Major Giles Lacy
Reginald Denny	...	Frank Crawley
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Colonel Julyan
Gladys Cooper	...	Beatrice Lacy
Florence Bates	...	Mrs. Van Hopper
Melville Cooper	...	Coroner
Leo G. Carroll	...	Dr. Baker
Leonard Carey	...	Ben
Lumsden Hare	...	Tabbs
Edward Fielding	...	Frith
Philip Winter	...	Robert
Forrester Harvey	...	Chalcroft
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Billy Bevan	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Egon Brecher	...	Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited)
Gino Corrado	...	Hotel Manager (uncredited)
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Man Outside Phone Booth (uncredited)
Leyland Hodgson	...	Mullen (uncredited)
Alphonse Martell	...	Hotel Headwaiter (uncredited)
William H. O'Brien	...	Hotel Waiter (uncredited)
Ronald R. Rondell	...	Hotel Dining Room Guest (uncredited)

Directed by
Alfred Hitchcock

Writing credits
Daphne Du Maurier		(celebrated novel)
Robert E. Sherwood		(screen play) and
Joan Harrison		(screen play)
Philip MacDonald		(adaptation) and
Michael Hogan		(adaptation)

Produced by
David O. Selznick	....	producer

Original Music by
Franz Waxman

Cinematography by
George Barnes		(photographed by)

Film Editing by
W. Donn Hayes		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Lyle R. Wheeler		(as Lyle Wheeler)

Makeup Department
Monte Westmore	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Edmond F. Bernoudy	....	assistant director (as Edmond Bernoudy)
D. Ross Lederman	....	second unit director (uncredited)
Eric Stacey	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Howard Bristol	....	interior decorator
Joseph B. Platt	....	interiors designer
Dorothea Holt	....	illustrator (uncredited)

Sound Department
Jack Noyes	....	recorder
Arthur Johns	....	sound (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Jack Cosgrove	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Albert Simpson	....	matte artist (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Arthur E. Arling	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Vincent J. Farrar	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Lloyd Knechtel	....	director of photography: second unit (uncredited)
Fred Parrish	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Irving Rosenberg	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Archie Stout	....	director of photography: second unit (uncredited)
John F. Warren	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Harry L. Wolf	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Eugene Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Hal C. Kern	....	supervising film editor
James E. Newcom	....	associate film editor

Music Department
Louis Forbes	....	music associate (as Lou Forbes)
Robert Russell Bennett	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Hugo Friedhofer	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Paul Marquardt	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Joseph Nussbaum	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leonid Raab	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Barbara Keon	....	scenario assistant
W.A. Bagley	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Russell Birdwell	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Katherine Brown	....	story editor (uncredited)
Adele Cannon	....	script clerk (uncredited)
Val Lewton	....	story editor (uncredited)
Marcella Rabwin	....	executive assistant to producer (uncredited)
Lydia Schiller	....	continuity supervisor (uncredited)
David O. Selznick	....	presenter (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Selznick International Pictures (as A Selznick International Picture) (as Selznick International presents its picturization of Daphne Du Maurier's celebrated novel also)

Distributors

• United Artists (1940) (USA) (theatrical) (released by)
• United Artists Corporation (1940) (UK) (theatrical)
• Sonoro Filme (1941) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• Ciné Vog Films (1945) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Films Galatée (1947) (France) (theatrical)
• Meteor Film Productions (1947) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (as Meteor Film)
• Nederland NV (1947) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• S.R.O. (1947) (France) (theatrical)
• Eagle-Lion Films (1949) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1956) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1967) (worldwide) (all media)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1978) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• Guild Home Video (1986) (UK) (video)
• CBS / Fox Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Key Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• ABC Video Enterprises (1992) (USA) (VHS) (licensed to CBS/Fox)
• Braveworld (1992) (UK) (video)
• British Film Institute (BFI) (1996) (UK) (theatrical)
• Total Home Entertainment (1996) (UK) (VHS)
• Videosonic Arts (1996) (Greece) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Pearson Television International (2000) (UK) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Aventi (2005) (France) (DVD)
• British Film Institute (BFI) (2006) (UK) (theatrical)
• Emerald (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• T&K Telefilm (2007) (Japan) (theatrical)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2008) (Canada) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• Athos Films (????) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• ABC Distribution Co. (????) (USA) (TV) (as ABC Distribution Company)
• Buena Vista International (????) (worldwide) (DVD)
• Capital Cities/ABC Video Enterprises Inc. (????) (USA) (TV)
• Epoca (????) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Fox Video (?????) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

USA:Not Rated | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | South Korea:15 | Sweden:15 | Peru:14 | Germany:16 | West Germany:16 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-release) (re-rating) (1996) (2006) (2012) | Spain:13 | Iceland:L | USA:Approved (certificate #5969) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating) | Netherlands:18 (original rating) (1947) | UK:PG (video rating) (1986) (1992) (1996) (2000) | UK:PG (tv rating) | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade)

Filming Locations:

Big Sur, California, USA

Company:

Selznick International Pictures

Trivia:

This was the first film Alfred Hitchcock made with David O. Selznick. Hitchcock worked with screenwriter Robert E. Sherwood and Hitchcock's assistant Joan Harrison in the scripting process. But he was dissatisfied almost from the beginning of the shoot with Selznick's controlling - some called it obsessive - manner of "producing".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Camera dollying back from Mrs. de Winter sitting on a chair brushes some flowers on a table.

Quotes:

Maxim de Winter:Please promise me never to wear black satin or pearls... or to be 36 years old.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Vito (2011)

Soundtrack:

Love's Old Sweet Song (Just a Song at Twilight)

If you want to be totally enthralled for two hours just watch 'Rebecca'!

Hitchcock felt 'Rebecca', his first Hollywood film, was a compromise, but as a viewer I just can't fault it. It's a masterpiece in my opinion, full of suspense, mystery and brooding atmosphere. It's also one of the most romantic movies I've ever seen. I've watched it several times over the years, and even now that I know all the plot twists and turns (quite shocking on your first viewing), it never fails to hook me in. One of the reasons it really works is the flawless casting. I'm not much of an Olivier fan but he's superb as de Winter, with just the right mixture of charm and coldness. And Joan Fontaine is just perfect as de Winter's new bride. I can't spot an unconvincing moment in her performance and can't imagine any other actress in the role. Hitchcock subsequently used her in 'Suspicion' with Cary Grant. She was also excellent in that but 'Rebecca' is a much stronger movie. The supporting cast also includes some brilliant performances, especially Judith Anderson ('Laura') as the extremely creepy Mrs. Danvers, George Sanders who plays Rebecca's slimy cousin, and Nigel Bruce in a typical role as de Winter's bumbling brother-in-law Major Lacy. Sanders subsequently worked again with Hitchcock in 'Foreign Correspondent', and Bruce played Cary Grant's lovable pal "Beaky" in 'Suspicion'. I sometimes think that Hitchcock's 1940s movies are overlooked by many because they are regarded as being too "old fashioned", but for me movies like 'Suspicion', 'Saboteur', 'Lifeboat' and 'Spellbound' are some of the most entertaining movies Hitchcock ever made, and 'Rebecca' is the best of the lot. If you want to be totally enthralled for two hours just watch 'Rebecca'!