Notorious (1946)

Popularity:

Up 9% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writer:

Ben Hecht (written by)
(more)

Release Date:

6 September 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Notorious woman of affairs... Adventurous man of the world!

Plot:

A woman is asked to spy on a group of Nazi friends in South America. How far will she have to go to ingratiate herself with them?

Plot Keywords:

Spy | Wine | German | Wine Cellar | Nazi

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Cary Grant	...	Devlin
Ingrid Bergman	...	Alicia Huberman
Claude Rains	...	Alexander Sebastian
Louis Calhern	...	Paul Prescott
Leopoldine Konstantin	...	Mme. Sebastian (as Madame Konstantin)
Reinhold Schünzel	...	'Dr. Anderson' (as Reinhold Schunzel)
Moroni Olsen	...	Walter Beardsley
Ivan Triesault	...	Eric Mathis
Alexis Minotis	...	Joseph (as Alex Minotis)
Wally Brown	...	Mr. Hopkins
Charles Mendl	...	Commodore (as Sir Charles Mendl)
Ricardo Costa	...	Dr. Barbosa
E.A. Krumschmidt	...	Hupka (as Eberhard Krumschmidt)
Fay Baker	...	Ethel
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bernice Barrett	...	File Clerk (uncredited)
Bea Benaderet	...	File Clerk (uncredited)
Candido Bonsato	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Charles D. Brown	...	Judge (uncredited)
Eddie Bruce	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Paul Bryar	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Aileen Carlyle	...	Woman at Party (uncredited)
Beulah Christian	...	Woman (uncredited)
Richard Clarke	...	Man (uncredited)
Tom Coleman	...	Court Stenographer (uncredited)
Alfredo DeSa	...	Ribero (uncredited)
Ben Erway	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Party Guest (uncredited)
Almeda Fowler	...	Woman (uncredited)
Gavin Gordon	...	Ernest Weylin (uncredited)
William Gordon	...	Adams (uncredited)
Virginia Gregg	...	File Clerk (uncredited)
Harry Hayden	...	Defense Counsel (uncredited)
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Man Drinking Champagne at Party (uncredited)
Art Howard	...	Party Guest (uncredited)
Warren Jackson	...	District Attorney (uncredited)
Ted Kelly	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Donald Kerr	...	Reporter (uncredited)
James Logan	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Leota Lorraine	...	Woman (uncredited)
George Lynn	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Frank Marlowe	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Thomas Martin	...	Butler (uncredited)
Francis McDonald	...	Man (uncredited)
Frank McLure	...	Man Walking Through Door Leaving Courtroom (uncredited)
Tina Menard	...	Maid (uncredited)
Howard M. Mitchell	...	Bailiff (uncredited)
Bert Moorhouse	...	Diner Extra / Party Guest (uncredited)
Antonio Moreno	...	Senor Ortiza (uncredited)
Sandra Morgan	...	Woman (uncredited)
Howard Negley	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Ramon Nomar	...	Dr. Silva - Brazilian Official (uncredited)
Fred Nurney	...	John Huberman (uncredited)
Garry Owen	...	Motorcycle Policeman (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre	...	Party Guest (uncredited)
Louis Serrano	...	Brazilian Official (uncredited)
Patricia Smart	...	Mrs. Jackson (uncredited)
Dink Trout	...	Court Clerk (uncredited)
Lenore Ulric	...	Horsewoman with Sebastian (uncredited)
Emmett Vogan	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Friedrich von Ledebur	...	Knerr (uncredited)
Peter von Zerneck	...	Wilhelm Rossner (uncredited)
John Vosper	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Alan Ward	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Lillian West	...	Woman (uncredited)
Frank Wilcox	...	FBI Agent (uncredited)
Elizabeth Wilson	...	Woman at Party (uncredited)
Herbert Wyndham	...	Mr. Cook (uncredited)

Directed by
Alfred Hitchcock

Writing credits
Ben Hecht		(written by)
John Taintor Foote		story "The Song of the Dragon" (uncredited)
Alfred Hitchcock		screenplay contributor (uncredited)
Clifford Odets		dialogue: love scenes (uncredited)

Produced by
Alfred Hitchcock	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Roy Webb

Cinematography by
Ted Tetzlaff		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Theron Warth

Art Direction by
Carroll Clark
Albert S. D'Agostino

Set Decoration by
Claude E. Carpenter		(set decorations) (as Claude Carpenter)
Darrell Silvera		(set decorations)

Makeup Department
Mel Berns	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William Dorfman	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Terry Kellum	....	sound
John E. Tribby	....	sound
Clem Portman	....	sound re-recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Paul Eagler	....	special effects
Vernon L. Walker	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Chris Crowell	....	digital compositor (restored version) (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Robert Capa	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Gregg Toland	....	director of photography: second unit (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Edith Head	....	gowns designer: Miss Ingrid Bergman's
Eugene Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department
C. Bakaleinikoff	....	musical director
Gil Grau	....	orchestral arrangements

Other crew
Barbara Keon	....	production assistant
David O. Selznick	....	Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious by arrangement with
Dorothy Barton	....	stand-in (uncredited)
Betty Brooks	....	stand-in: Ingrid Bergman (uncredited)
Dan Cassell	....	stand-in: Cary Grant (uncredited)
J. Dodds	....	stand-in (uncredited)
Sam Lufkin	....	stand-in (uncredited)
Bill Porter	....	publicity writer (uncredited)
Ruth Roberts	....	dialogue director (uncredited)
Leo Snell	....	stand-in (uncredited)

Production Companies

• RKO Radio Pictures (presents) (as RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.) (as An R K O Radio Picture also)
• Vanguard Films (uncredited)

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1946) (USA) (theatrical)
• Meteor Film Productions (1947) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (as Meteor Film)
• RKO Radio Pictures Argentina (1947) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Radio Filmes (1947) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• RKO Radio Pictures (1948) (France) (theatrical)
• Selznick Releasing Organization (1954) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release) (as A Selznick Release)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1973) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• Actueel Film (1976) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (re-release)
• ABC Video Enterprises (1981) (USA) (video)
• Magnetic Video (1981) (USA) (video) (LaserDisc)
• CBS/Fox (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Key Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Videosonic (1997) (Greece) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Emerald (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Emerald (2006) (Argentina) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2008) (Canada) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• New Star (2012) (Greece) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Kino International (theatrical)
• Continental Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Continental Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Rai Movie (2016) (Italy) (TV)
• Star Video (1983) (Australia) (video)

Also Known As:

"Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious" - UK (complete title), USA (complete title)

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | Portuguese

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Germany:16 | Iceland:L | Netherlands:18 (original rating) (1947) | Norway:16 (1947) | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (tv rating) | UK:U (re-release) (re-rating) (2000) (2008) (2012) | UK:U (video rating) (1986) (1992) (1996) (2000) | USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #11261)

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

Leopoldine Konstantin played the mother of Claude Rains but in real life she was only 4 years older than Rains.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In the scene when Alicia and Sebastian were having coffee (1:20), there is a hair at the bottom of the screen - the gate wasn't checked.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[Title card]:Miami, Florida, Three-Twenty P.M., April the Twenty-Fourth, Nineteen Hundred and Forty-Six...
[reporters and photographers converse amongst themselves outside the courtroom]
Judge:Is there any legal reason why sentence should not be pronounced?
District Attorney:No, your honor.
John Huberman:Yes, I have something to say. You can put me away, but you can't put away what's going to happen to you, and to this whole country next time. Next time we are going...
Defense Counsel:[whispering] I wouldn't say any more. We'll need that for the appeal.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Black Book (2006)

Soundtrack:

Carnaval, Op. 9, Scènes mignonnes sur quatre notes: 'Chopin'

Grant + Bergman + Hitchcock = Chemistry

In Alfred Hitchcock's 1946 film, `Notorious', Cary Grant plays T.R. Devlin, an American agent who employs the assistance of Alicia Huberman, (Ingrid Bergman) a German expatriate whose father has just been convicted as a German spy. Devlin brings Alicia to Brazil in hopes to arrange a meeting with Alex Sebastian (the fantastic Claude Rains); another German spy who just happens to have a history with Alicia insofar that he was in love with her. The plan is to get them together so that she can spy on Sebastian and his colleagues so that the Americans can get a leg up on their mutual espionage. Of course, love develops between Devlin and Alicia, which complicates their operation and of course, their lives.

`Notorious', despite adhering to the chaste Hayes Code of the time has some of the steamiest scenes between two actors that I can recall during that era. While the scenes never get beyond the standard close-ups of their kisses, the chemistry is a heavy physical presence. The acting in `Notorious' is top-notch; Grant and Bergman were at their best during this era. Claude Rains, who is a personal favorite of mine, is absolutely fabulous in this film. He gives his character, who should be hateful, a humanistic quality that makes him an even more complicated figure. Screenwriter Ben Hecht and Hitchcock team up for some pretty intense moments in `Notorious', and compliment each others styles and talents wonderfully. There are not many nail-biting moments in `Notorious', but the script is excellent. Coupled with the superior acting and direction, `Notorious' is certainly a Hitchcock film that should not be missed.

--Shelly