Things to love about Notorious. It seems to be made in a slightly different style to other Hitchcocks. For example there are plenty of long takes, not just the famous apartment kissing scene, but in the very early meeting between Grant and Bergman. It also does these amazing dives, for example, a perfect crane shot from the upstairs balcony down to the key in Bergman's hand. I've never seen a Hitchcock that's so in close up. Normally good directors reserve their close ups for key moments - this just gives it a feeling of continuing intensity and intimacy. Also love that shot where the mother (Leopoldine Konstantin) appears in very long shot on the stairs and walks right up to the camera.
It's amusing that various producers had a problem with the uranium bomb plot element - things changed when the atomic bombs were dropped in Japan. Also that Hitch predicted South America as a likely destination for Nazis. And that most of the cast are antifascist German emigrants.
Selznick was one who mistrusted the script, and also wanted Joseph Cotten over Grant. He sold the property to RKO, where Hitch was able to specify his own cameraman (Ted Tetzlaff; Gregg Toland shot the second unit Rio stuff.) Ben Hecht and Bergman were both regular visitors to the Hitchcock houses.
Grant and Bergman are both absolutely brilliant.
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