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Double Take

Play trailer Poster for Double Take 2009 1h 20m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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76% Tomatometer 29 Reviews 49% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Exploring the link between Cold War paranoia and the entertainment industry, which both depended on instilling a sense of fear, this documentary examines the efforts of acclaimed director and "master of suspense" Alfred Hitchcock, and how he marketed dread to a captivated audience. Hitchcock is shown in publicity appearances and portrayed by a lookalike (Ron Burrage) and an impersonator (Mark Perry), and his masterly skills of manipulation are revealed.
Double Take

What to Know

Critics Consensus

It's neither as profound nor as enlightening as it wants to be, but this stylishly edited Hitchcock homage brims with its subject's singular spirit.

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Critics Reviews

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Jonathan Romney Sight & Sound 07/06/2018
Double Take is deadly serious in its scrutiny of politics, anxiety and the media, but it's also a witty entertainment that responds to Hitchcock with much of the master's own lightness and mischief. Go to Full Review
Chris Chang Film Comment Magazine 11/13/2013
Double Take is a cunning hybrid-call it a psycho-doc. Playful yet tempered with paranoia, curiously the whole thing nevertheless seems more nostalgic than cautionary. Go to Full Review
A.O. Scott New York Times 06/04/2010
3/5
Hitchcock was a master of mischief and misdirection, and no film so thoroughly infused with his spirit could be dull or predictable. Go to Full Review
Amie Simon Three Imaginary Girls 03/08/2019
There are times when the "plot" seems disjointed - not all of the clips run smoothly, but in the end it all works. Go to Full Review
Sean Axmaker Turner Classic Movies Online 03/25/2011
... more entertaining than enlightening. Go to Full Review
Mike Scott Times-Picayune 07/23/2010
2.5/4
The message is muddy, but that doesn't feel as important as the delivery method, which ends up redeeming this as a film experiment that succeeds for its sense of derring-do if nothing else. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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andrew k 11/19/2013 A mixture of statements about the Red Scare of the 50s spilling into the early 60s, the distraction of consumerism and the rise of television beginning to cannibalize cinema. All of which are topped by a quiet encounter between the Hitchcock of 1962 and an interesting companion as they calmly talk over coffee and tea. An enjoyable piece for any admirer of the man's work. See more 02/17/2013 The juxtaposition of images of the cold war with images of Alfred Hitchcock. A confused composition makes this film look particularly goofy in drawing up its conclusion. Furthermore, it feels inadequately self-important. Nevertheless, the initial concept is quite intriguing although the project and its ambition never feels fully realised. See more 06/04/2012 An art house film of the highest order. The movie brilliantly alternates Hitchcock with footage from the cold war to show how fear and paranoia drove the arms race. See more 04/10/2012 Hitchcock in the context of the Cold War--of course! And capitalist fearmongering and warmongering, and television. But rather too enigmatic when it should have been provocative. See more 01/15/2012 This cut and paste mockumentary about Alfred Hitchcock and Cold War zietgiest might be a bit too pretentious and silly for some, but film snobs like me might be amused to see Hitchcockian mischief fill the screen once again See more 12/17/2011 A clever if impossibly-ambitious concept, using many 1960s clips to illustrate some rather odd coincidences between the life of Alfred Hitchcock, one of his London lookalikes, his films and the Cold War. As a bunch of assorted disparate clips, it's never really boring, but as a whole, it doesn't really work. Mildly educational and fairly watchable. See more Read all reviews
Double Take

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Movie Info

Synopsis Exploring the link between Cold War paranoia and the entertainment industry, which both depended on instilling a sense of fear, this documentary examines the efforts of acclaimed director and "master of suspense" Alfred Hitchcock, and how he marketed dread to a captivated audience. Hitchcock is shown in publicity appearances and portrayed by a lookalike (Ron Burrage) and an impersonator (Mark Perry), and his masterly skills of manipulation are revealed.
Director
Johan Grimonprez
Producer
Emmy Oost
Screenwriter
Johan Grimonprez, Tom McCarthy
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 1, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$20.2K
Runtime
1h 20m