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North by Northwest

Released Jul 17, 1959 2h 16m Mystery & Thriller TRAILER for List
97% Tomatometer 116 Reviews 94% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
This classic suspense film finds New York City ad executive Roger O. Thornhill (Cary Grant) pursued by ruthless spy Phillip Vandamm (James Mason) after Thornhill is mistaken for a government agent. Hunted relentlessly by Vandamm's associates, the harried Thornhill ends up on a cross-country journey, meeting the beautiful and mysterious Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) along the way. Soon Vandamm's henchmen close in on Thornhill, resulting in a number of iconic action sequences.
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North by Northwest

North by Northwest

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Critics Consensus

Gripping, suspenseful, and visually iconic, this late-period Hitchcock classic laid the groundwork for countless action thrillers to follow.

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Critics Reviews

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Wendy Ide Times (UK) The plotting is tightly wound and the thrills are executed with devilish panache. Aug 29, 2022 Full Review Pauline Kael New Yorker Though not as cleverly original as Strangers on a Train, or as cleverly sexy as Notorious, this is one of Hitchcock’s most entertaining American thrillers. Jul 6, 2022 Full Review Barbara L. Wilson Philadelphia Inquirer Alfred Hitchcock's new thriller, North by Northwest, is one of those no holds barred films. For better than two hours, he lets the Technicolor melodrama ramble across the VistaVision screen while gleefully setting traps for his hero. Jun 9, 2021 Full Review Zach Youngs InSession Film In spite of a few flaws, North by Northwest remains an unqualified triumph. It’s got some of the best humor, dark and otherwise, in any Hitchcock film and it never lags for a second of its run time. Rated: A Jul 25, 2024 Full Review Roger Moore Movie Nation An effortless two hours and sixteen minutes of classic set-pieces, unlikely traps and amusingly off-the-cuff escapes, all starring the handsomest tan ever to step onto a film set. Rated: 4/4 Feb 11, 2024 Full Review Dennis Harvey 48 Hills A splashy adventure...a precursor for the kind of jet-setting, debonair intrigue that would become ubiquitous... Sep 22, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Marco A My favorite Hitchcock movie and one of my all time favorites overall. Just pure fun and enjoyment, perfect balance of thrills/adventure/comedy/romance with great dialogues. A film that had the style of Bond before Bond, but that would have been one of the top Bond films all time as well. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/23/21 Full Review Fer S I loved the fast pacing. The cinematography is excellent and ending has great suspense. The plot however gets absurd plenty of times. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/08/24 Full Review Ted B 4.5 stars; Along with "The Man Who Knew Too Much," "North by Northwest" are by far the best spy thriller movies that Alfred Hitchcock made. In fact, I would put them on a list with the best movies that Mr. Hitchcock made. So many twists and turns lead to the final outcome. This movie keeps you guessing because it is so very well constructed. Cary Grant plays the debonair, wealthy playboy who, as an innocent bystander, gets wrapped up in a high-level spy ring. Eva Marie Saint plays his love interest and does a great job of keeping you in the dark as to whose side she is on. James Mason and Martin Landau give good performances as the evil adversaries. Yes, I know that the plot is somewhat of a stretch, but it doesn't matter. This movie is loaded with gripping suspense. That's what you go to the movies for—to be thrilled! There is a light touch of comedy and romance to round out the story. This film has two iconic scenes that are always shown when discussing top 100 films: the crop duster chase scene and the escape scene down the faces of the Mount Rushmore Monument. This film has it all. How can you not be entertained? Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 08/19/24 Full Review Alec B Unbelievably entertaining. This is Hitchcock at his most crowd pleasing but the movie is still masterfully constructed. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/09/24 Full Review Steven S First things first…there is one scene where we see the Northwest Airlines area of Midway Airport. (Reference 1). The direction of Mount Rushmore from Chicago is sort of northwesterly. So a more exact title would be Northwest By Northwest (airlines). I’ve never read this exactitude of the film title? I mean, we see the Northwest Airlines scene clear as day…wtf?!? Next, the film is perfect from the Saul Bass title dynamic credits, to the constancy of uptone Ernest Lehman string music, to Cary Grant’s perfect grey suit, to the iconic scenes that define NYC (take your pick: GCT, the UN, the Plaza Hotel approached by taxi through Grand Army Plaza), to the cropduster—gas tanker kaboom, to Eva Maria Saint’s red dress in the auction house, to the cool Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired house, to Mount Rushmore itself…it’s breathtaking from start to end. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/05/24 Full Review babarizam D Its a great movie and I love Carry Grant. I think Moderen Cinema should learn something from such classic Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/16/24 Full Review Read all reviews
North by Northwest

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Cast & Crew

Telefon 44% 47% Telefon Gaslight 89% 90% Gaslight Red Corner 27% 48% Red Corner Conspirator 0% 41% Conspirator Stigmata 22% 63% Stigmata Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis This classic suspense film finds New York City ad executive Roger O. Thornhill (Cary Grant) pursued by ruthless spy Phillip Vandamm (James Mason) after Thornhill is mistaken for a government agent. Hunted relentlessly by Vandamm's associates, the harried Thornhill ends up on a cross-country journey, meeting the beautiful and mysterious Eve Kendall (Eva Marie Saint) along the way. Soon Vandamm's henchmen close in on Thornhill, resulting in a number of iconic action sequences.
Director
Alfred Hitchcock
Producer
Alfred Hitchcock
Screenwriter
Ernest Lehman
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jul 17, 1959, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
May 19, 2024
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 17, 2009
Runtime
2h 16m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.66:1)
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