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IMDbPro

North by Northwest

  • 1959
  • Approved
  • 2h 16m
IMDb RATING
8.3/10
335K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,801
83
Cary Grant, Alfred Hitchcock, Eva Marie Saint, and Philip Ober in North by Northwest (1959)
Alfred Hitchcock gives a tour of the film in this trailer for the Special Edition DVD and Blu-Ray release.
Play trailer3:25
7 Videos
99+ Photos
ActionAdventureMystery

A New York City advertising executive goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and falls for a woman whose loyalties he begins to doubt.A New York City advertising executive goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and falls for a woman whose loyalties he begins to doubt.A New York City advertising executive goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and falls for a woman whose loyalties he begins to doubt.

  • Director
    • Alfred Hitchcock
  • Writer
    • Ernest Lehman
  • Stars
    • Cary Grant
    • Eva Marie Saint
    • James Mason
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    8.3/10
    335K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    1,801
    83
    • Director
      • Alfred Hitchcock
    • Writer
      • Ernest Lehman
    • Stars
      • Cary Grant
      • Eva Marie Saint
      • James Mason
    • 721User reviews
    • 191Critic reviews
    • 98Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Top rated movie #99
    • Nominated for 3 Oscars
      • 9 wins & 10 nominations total

    Videos7

    North by Northwest
    Trailer 3:25
    Watch North by Northwest
    'North by Northwest' | Anniversary Mashup
    Clip 1:19
    Watch 'North by Northwest' | Anniversary Mashup
    A Guide to the Films of Alfred Hitchcock
    Clip 2:27
    Watch A Guide to the Films of Alfred Hitchcock
    North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Airplane Explosion)
    Clip 2:05
    Watch North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Airplane Explosion)
    North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Scene At The Auction)
    Clip 1:48
    Watch North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Scene At The Auction)
    North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Run For Your Life)
    Clip 2:04
    Watch North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Run For Your Life)
    North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Not Safe To Drive)
    Clip 1:51
    Watch North By Northwest: 50th Anniversay Edition (Not Safe To Drive)

    Photos211

    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant and Eva Marie in North by Northwest (1959)
    Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant, Ken Lynch, and Patrick McVey in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)
    Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Cary Grant
    Cary Grant
    • Roger Thornhill
    Eva Marie Saint
    Eva Marie Saint
    • Eve Kendall
    James Mason
    James Mason
    • Phillip Vandamm
    Jessie Royce Landis
    Jessie Royce Landis
    • Clara Thornhill
    Leo G. Carroll
    Leo G. Carroll
    • The Professor
    Josephine Hutchinson
    Josephine Hutchinson
    • Mrs. Townsend
    Philip Ober
    Philip Ober
    • Lester Townsend
    Martin Landau
    Martin Landau
    • Leonard
    Adam Williams
    Adam Williams
    • Valerian
    Edward Platt
    Edward Platt
    • Victor Larrabee
    Robert Ellenstein
    Robert Ellenstein
    • Licht
    Les Tremayne
    Les Tremayne
    • Auctioneer
    Philip Coolidge
    Philip Coolidge
    • Dr. Cross
    Patrick McVey
    • Sergeant Flamm
    Edward Binns
    Edward Binns
    • Captain Junket
    Ken Lynch
    Ken Lynch
    • Charley
    Stanley Adams
    Stanley Adams
    • Lieutenant Harding
    • (uncredited)
    John Alban
    • Auction Guest
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Alfred Hitchcock
    • Writer
      • Ernest Lehman
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      While filming Vertigo (1958), Sir Alfred Hitchcock described some of the plot of this project to frequent Hitchcock leading man and "Vertigo" star James Stewart, who naturally assumed that Hitchcock meant to cast him in the Roger Thornhill role, and was eager to play it. Actually, Hitchcock wanted Cary Grant to play the role. By the time Hitchcock realized the misunderstanding, Stewart was so anxious to play Thornhill that rejecting him would have caused a great deal of disappointment. So Hitchcock delayed production on this movie until Stewart was already safely committed to filming Otto Preminger's "Anatomy of a Murder (1959)" before "officially" offering him the role in this movie. Stewart had no choice but to turn down the offer, allowing Hitchcock to cast Grant, the actor he had wanted all along.
    • Goofs
      During the scene in the diner at Mount Rushmore, a young extra boy in the background anticipates the surprise gun shot, fired by Eve. The diners are supposed to be unaware this is going to happen but the young extra boy covers his ears way before she draws the gun. The young extra boy must have known there would be a loud bang from the blank-filled pistol from previous takes and therefore covered his ears on the "printed" take.
    • Quotes

      [Thornhill is wearing sunglasses to hide his identity]

      Ticket Seller: Something wrong with your eyes?

      Roger Thornhill: Yes, they're sensitive to questions.

    • Crazy credits
      Right after his credit as director during the opening credits, Alfred Hitchcock is running toward the door of the city bus just as it slams shut on him!
    • Alternate versions
      The print originally had an acknowledgement for the cooperation of the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. But they requested it be removed after MGM violated the agreement that no violence would take place near the Mt. Rushmore monument. Some prints, however, were released with the acknowledgement still in.
    • Connections
      Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Le contrôle de l'univers (1999)
    • Soundtracks
      It's a Most Unusual Day
      (1948)

      (uncredited)

      Music by Jimmy McHugh

      Lyrics by Harold Adamson

      Played as background music at the Plaza Hotel

    User reviews721

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    I finally get how great it is: Hitch infuses his wrong-man caper with ironic movie language and reality-be-damned escapism and suspense.
    Its Hitch's most briskly entertaining movie, and one of his most comic, adventure-caper type movies, largely thanks to the persona of Cary Grant. But its also one of his most suspenseful - in the fact that Grant is being recognised as someone else, and that he may be put in jail for someone else's crime.

    I've finally come to realise just how great North by Northwest is. The reason you should love Hitchcock is he put entertainment upfront. Hitchcock was not interested in whether this or that would happen in real life: he was interested in what would make the most entertaining scene for the movie. North by Northwest is a peak in this regard. The dialogue and situations intentionally throw reality to the wind - the double-entendre dialogue in the love scenes is not supposed to be the way people talk!

    If you said to Hitchcock "as if he'd keep driving" or "as if she'd do that" - he would just laugh at you and say you've missed the point. This is 100% movieland, and once you get used to the fact, and that this is not a fault in the film, but done intentionally, you'll love it. Its expressionistic - everything happens in movie language: the people laughing at Grant in the elevator, the way he keeps driving drunk near the beginning, the way he grabs the knife and everyone stares at him after someone's been stabbed.

    It flirts with the idea of identity. I thought it was interesting how Grant first is dismissing, then incredulous that people should be calling him by another name; then, as the tries to find out who this guy is, he enters the hotel room of this new identity, then he puts the suit on, and finally he identifies himself as George Kaplan.

    A succession of fantastic, memorable scenes, a great leading man in Grant, and one of Hermann's essential Hitch scores make for a movie i can put on at any time.

    10/10
    helpful•196
    77
    • Ben_Cheshire
    • Jul 24, 2004

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    FAQ14

    • What is 'North by Northwest' about?
    • Is 'North by Northwest' based on a book?
    • What is the title "North by Northwest" supposed to mean?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 18, 1959 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest
    • Filming locations
      • Garces Highway 1/10th mile East from Corcoran Road and Kern National Wildlife Preserve, Kern County, California, USA(cropduster attack)
    • Production company
      • Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $3,101,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $66,728
    • Gross worldwide
      • $144,767
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 16 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby SR
      • Dolby Digital
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1
      • 1.50 : 1(VistaVision, original & negative ratio)

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