The Man Who Knew Too Much (Widescreen): Amazon.ca: DVD: DVD

Product Description

Amazon.com Essential Video

Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 remake of his own 1934 spy thriller is an exciting event in its own right, with several justifiably famous sequences. James Stewart and Doris Day play American tourists who discover more than they wanted to know about an assassination plot. When their son is kidnapped to keep them quiet, they are caught between concern for him and the terrible secret they hold. When asked about the difference between this version of the story and the one he made 22 years earlier, Hitchcock always said the first was the work of a talented amateur while the second was the act of a seasoned professional. Indeed, several extraordinary moments in this update represent consummate filmmaking, particularly a relentlessly exciting Albert Hall scene, with a blaring symphony, an assassin's gun, and Doris Day's scream. Along with Hitchcock's other films from the mid-1950s to 1960 (including Vertigo, Rear Window, and Psycho), The Man Who Knew Too Much is the work of a master in his prime. --Tom Keogh

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Customer Reviews

44 Reviews

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.4 out of 5 stars (44 customer reviews)

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2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, Mar 18 2001

By

Em (Missouri, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Man Who Knew Too Much (Widescreen) (DVD)

I was very disappointed with this movie, having seen several other Hitchcock movies and enjoying them thoroughly. Doris Day was annoyingly weepy and helpless throughout this movie. The Albert Hall scene especially annoyed me for two main reasons. First, Doris Day standing and weeping for 5+ minutes straight instead of telling someone who could protect the target. The second thing was that while both the music and the shots of the musicians were wonderfully dramatic, they were not in sync. There is a prolonged shot of the timpani player playing what appears to be a dramatic cadential ending, yet the soundtrack has no audible timpani at that point, certainly nothing as marked as what the timpanist is shown playing.

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3.0 out of 5 stars Good Hitch Thriller, but not best, Nov 2 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Man Who Knew Too Much (VHS Tape)

Definatly not his best of the period. Easily rivaled by "To Catch a Thief" and "North By Northwest". However it can't be denied that Jimmy Stewarts staitforward charm is, as always, enjoyable. Watch the original (1934) for a real treat. Peter Lorre as the villian rivals anything seen in this movie.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Que Sera Sera, July 15 2004

By

Joseph H Pierre "Joe Pierre" (Salem, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Man Who Knew Too Much (VHS Tape)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Format: Color
Studio: Universal Studios
Video Release Date: August 3, 1999

Cast:

James Stewart ... Dr. Ben McKenna
Doris Day ... Jo McKenna
Brenda De Banzie ... Lucy Drayton
Bernard Miles ... Edward Drayton
Ralph Truman ... Buchanan
Daniel Gélin ... Louis Bernard
Mogens Wieth ... Ambassador
Alan Mowbray ... Val Parnell
Hillary Brooke ... Jan Peterson
Christopher Olsen ... Hank McKenna
Reggie Nalder ... The assassin
Richard Wattis ... Assistant manager
Noel Willman ... Woburn
Alix Talton ... Helen Parnell
Yves Brainville ... Police inspector
Carolyn Jones ... Cindy Fontaine
Harry Fine ... Edington
Alex Frazer ... Man
Wolf Frees ... Aide to the foreign Prime Minister
Milton Frome ... Guard
Leo Gordon ... Chauffer
Walter Gotell ... Guard
Frank Atkinson ... Taxidermist
Bernard Herrmann ... Himself (conductor)
Alfred Hitchcock ... Man in Morocco marketplace
George Howe ... Ambrose Chappell Sr

Harold Kasket ... Butler
Barry Keegan ... Patterson
Lou Krugman ... Arab
Lloyd Lamble ... General manager of Albert Hall
Donald Lawton ... Desk clerk
Mayne Lynton ... Taxidermist
John Barrard ... Taxidermist
Edward Manouk ... French waiter
Richard Marner ... Aide to the foreign Prime Minister
John Marshall ... Butler
Lewis Martin ... Detective
Louis Mercier ... French policeman
Ralph Neff ... Henchman
Leslie Newport ... Inspector at Albert Hall
John O'Malley ... Uniformed attendant
Liddell Peddieson ... Taxidermist
Arthur Ridley ... Ticket collector
Patrick Aherne ... Handyman
Eric Snowden ... Special Branch officer
Alexi Bobrinskoy ... Foreign Prime Minister
Guy Verney ... Footman
Anthony Warde ... French policewoman
Patrick Whyte ... Special Branch officer
Peter Williams ... Police sergeant
Richard Wordsworth ... Ambrose Chappell Jr
Allen Zeidman ... Assistant manager
Clifford Buckton ... Sir Kenneth Clarke
Peter Camlin ... Headwaiter
Abdelhaq Chraibi ... Arab
Gladys Holland ... Bernard's girlfriend
Barbara Howitt ... Soloist in Albert Hall sequence
Enid Lindsey ... Lady Clarke
Janet Macfarlane ... Lady in audience
Betty Bascomb ... Edna
Elsa Palmer ... Cook
Mahin S. Shahrivar ... Arab woman
Alma Taylor ... Box office woman
Janet Bruce ... Box office woman
Naida Buckingham ... Lady in audience
Barbara Burke ... Assassin's girlfriend
Pauline Farr ... Ambassador's wife
Bess Flowers ... Woman in Hotel Lobby

On vacation in Marrakech, Morocco, Dr. Ben McKenna (James Stewart), his wife Jo (Doris Day) and their son Hank (Chrisopher Olson), meet a secret agent, Louis Bernard (Daniel Gélin) who is killed because he is in possession of a secret: a statesman is about to be assassinated in London. Before he dies, he confides in McKenna some of the details. To keep the doctor quiet, the
bad guys grab his son, Hank, and threaten his life.

This is the story as it unfolds. Hitchcock does his usual fine job of keeping up the tension, and of course Stewart and Day do their usual excellent job of acting. This is a superb thriller, and endlessly entertaining.

Joseph (Joe) Pierre

author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Shows that Doris Day can act
When this film was made, people were confused at the choice of Doris Day as the mother whose son is kidnapped. However, Doris Day is outstanding in this, and very convincing. Read more

Published on July 6 2004 by William

5.0 out of 5 stars Doris Day Shines!
Alfred Hitchcock did a wonderful job on this 1935 remake of The Man Who Know Too Much. Dr. Ben McKenna, played by James Stewart, his wife, Jo (Doris Day), and their son are... Read more