Certificate PG
Duration 130 mins
Film starts approximately 21.00
DJ from 18.45: STAV BEE
The master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock made his American directorial debut with this adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier’s best-seller, celebrating its 80th anniversary this year, creating a haunting romantic thriller that hooks you right in from its iconic opening line: “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”
Last year the novel was voted the nation’s favourite of the last 225 years. The film’s legendary producer David O. Selznick was adamant that the film not deviate too far from Du Maurier’s original vision and Hitchcock delivered, winning the Oscar for Best Picture of 1940.
The story and the atmosphere stay with you, but it’s the performances that make this film so emotionally charged, with Laurence Olivier as the aristocratic but psychologically scarred widower Maximilian de Winter and Joan Fontaine as the young woman who becomes the second Mrs. de Winter, only to find herself living very much in the shadow of her predecessor, the deceased Rebecca. Most unforgettable of all, however, is Judith Anderson as Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper of the de Winter’s mansion home of Manderley and one of the great screen characters of all time. The film’s black and white photography also won an Oscar, helping to create a cinematic experience that envelopes the audience in mystery and keeps you gripped from the dreamlike beginning right through to the thrilling climax.
