Let us be perfectly honest here – we’ve discussed Alfred Hitchcock on nearly two dozen separate occasions, and in every one of those reviews, reference was made to the esteemed director’s impeccable and undeniable genius, even in the case of the rare misfire that comes about when dealing with someone so prolific. Few filmmakers could produce at least one film a year at his peak and still have nearly every one of them be a masterful work that not only defined a range of genres, but did so in a way that was actively engaging and always incredibly interesting, changing the course of both the genre in which it was produced, as well as the direction of cinema as a whole. He’s one of the few filmmakers that not many people would dare argue against being amongst the greatest to ever live – so to think that he was someone whose work was not always appreciated seems bewildering. He has always seemed like a filmmaker whose artistic vision was all the collateral studios needed to bankroll his films, essentially being one of the pioneers of the auteur movement. It is even more bizarre that a film like Notorious was ever considered as potentially unprofitable – the combination of the story (which was written by Ben Hecht, who was a legendary screenwriter in his own right, going back to the earliest days of Hollywood), and the cast, which included the supposedly unwieldy and expensive Cary Grant, was of concern to those invested in the production – but mercifully, over three-quarters of a century later, we can look back and see that Notorious was not only the complete opposite of a failure (financially and critically), but one of the most important films of its era, a work that has transcended temporal and geographical boundaries to become one of the most insightful and well-crafted films ever produced, and one that remains one of the director’s most enduring works.

If these grandiose statements about this film seem hyperbolic, this is certainly not the case, as it is a film that warrants every bit of praise it has received over the decades. Notorious is certainly considered one of Hitchcock’s most significant peaks – he had made a few well-regarded films prior to this (including the highly acclaimed and celebrated Rebecca at the beginning of the decade), but he was still not much more than a director-for-hire, someone who had an established name in the industry, but not to the point where producers allowed him to engage in the laissez-faire method of filmmaking that he’d be allowed in later decades, where he was essentially given free-reign to tell whatever stories he felt were interesting, as well as doing them in his own way. This film was a significant moment in getting the director to that point, since it proved that he could not only take a few risks with subject matter that may not have immediately seemed like the most profitable idea, but use the material in such a way that any belief that this was anything less than a stellar production from the outset seems delusional. There are so many qualities embedded in Notorious that warrant celebration, and watching it (whether for the first time or on repeat viewing) is an unforgettable experience. It is the quintessential Hitchcockian experience – it takes familiar stars, places them in an exotic location and has them interact with a range of other characters, uncovering a deep and bewildering plot along the way. It is not necessarily a film noir, but it is a film that seems to have emerged concurrently, having the same mysterious tone, but filtered through a very different theoretical lens, which is likely the work of Hitchcock, who avoids cliche as much as possible in his endeavour to craft this superb and compelling thriller.

Hitchcock had a real knack for working with actors, and while it has been well-documented that he nearly always managed to get his first choice in terms of stars when he was at his peak (unless there were issues relating to scheduling conflicts, which is often why James Stewart and Cary Grant filled in for one another on films written with the other in mind), Notorious was still very much an instance where he had to battle with the studio to get his way, particularly producer and well-known tyrant David O. Selznick, who had a stranglehold over every aspect of the film, including trying to force Hitchcock to abandon his primary choices of Grant and Ingrid Bergman in favour of contract players. Mercifully, the scale tipped in the favour of the director, who not only managed to get his intended stars, but gave them some of their very best work. There is an argument to be made that neither Grant nor Bergman were ever better than they were here – it’s a contentious idea and one that is not easy to debate (especially considering how much work both of them did, almost all of it being of impeccable quality), but they are certainly brilliant. Grant is suave, but carries an almost sinister complexity that makes his performance as the enigmatic T.R. Devlin so compelling – he’s not wisecracking or charming in the way he normally would be, but instead looks at the character from a far more sobering place. He also frequently steps aside for Bergman, whose story is the foundation for Notorious – it is her perspective that we follow, and her journey that we become invested in. She’s absolutely magnetic on screen, and proves why she is one of the greatest actresses to ever work in the medium, with her blend of complexity and pathos making her a perfect lead for this film. Special mention must go to the wonderful Claude Rains, who plays the villain of the film in such a way that he provokes both sympathy and revulsion from the viewer, a very challenging task that can only come from a great actor, who is in turn under the direction of a filmmaker with a very clear vision of the kind of story he intends to tell, which is one of the many reasons behind this film’s success.

As we’ve said already, Notorious is a film that works equally as well for first-time viewers as it does for those who are choosing to return for another whistle-stop tour through this tale of intrigue and espionage. It is one of the director’s most gleefully complex works, and every subsequent viewing reveals more clues, enriching the experience so much that it feels as if we are witnessing this story for the very first time. The film starting production in the final months of 1945 is not a trivial fact – there is a genuine sense of Hitchcock and Hecht looking back at the Second World War throughout the film. The war itself isn’t directly referenced, but the presence of the sinister figures that perpetrated many of the crimes against humanity are central to this story, making it one of the most socially-charged films the director would ever make (and probably his most bleak until The Wrong Man, another film that takes a more cynical approach to a bold subject, and was seen as potentially unprofitable for the studio) – and considering Hitchcock’s films contain villains that run the gamut from Nazi scientists to cross-dressing serial killers with a penchant for ornithology, we can certainly see how Notorious was an influence, not only on how the director’s work would develop in subsequent decades, but in regards to the entire genre of the psychological thriller as a whole. You can trace nearly every entry into the genre from recent decades to this film – whether formally or in terms of just capturing the spirit of this kind of elusive and complex game of cat-and-mouse. It may not be the most influential in terms of iconography, but there is a sincere amount of impact this film made in developing a genre that was still very much in its infancy at the time it was produced.

Yet, despite the elaborate (and some may even suggest outright convoluted) plot, Notorious is a film that works because it knows how to take this enormous amount of content and compress it down into a manageable format, one where the viewer is suitably invested in the story, but not scrambling to connect clues at the risk of our understanding being impacted by the overly complex narrative structure. It’s one of Hitchcock’s most atmospheric films – interestingly, while many of his later thrillers had an element of comedy to them (even if it was playing on the director’s pitch-black sense of humour), Notorious is played almost entirely straight – there are a few brief moments of levity, but its a more subdued film, one that is driven by the audience’s ability to move with the flow of the film – and the stoic, almost objective tone is one of the primary reasons behind the film’s incredible success. This is one of the most potent exemplifications of the qualities that would go on to Hitchcock earning the grandiose title of the Master of Suspense, because every scene of this film is defined less by the exact plot details from which it is composed, but rather a certain atmosphere that leaves the audience engaged and mystified, which is exactly where the film is most effective – had Notorious been more forthright in offering solutions earlier, it is highly unlikely that it would have been even vaguely as effective, since the story itself (while captivating) is not bespoke enough to stand on its own, and required a very managed control of tone and temper to be considered successful – and considering the extent to which it has become a defining work of the Golden Age of Hollywood, it’s foolish to think it didn’t achieve this in an abundance.

Many films that earn the status as being vitally important works of cinema often run the risk of being seen as overblown in their reputation. As is often the case, Hitchcock’s films almost entirely avoid this problem, since each one of them warrants such effusive acclaim. These are timeless films, complex and fascinating works that remain resonant to the present moment in ways that many others from the era simply cannot. Notorious is one of the most notable examples – it is undeniably rooted in a particular moment in time, but it is never weighed down from it. We don’t look at the film and believe that it is going to be anything short of thrilling, which is precisely why it has remained so relevant, since it may have its roots in a very specific period in history, but the themes being explored (and the manner in which it is done) is far more interesting, especially since it has elements that relate to our present lives, with discussions are paranoia, international relations and cultural intrigue being concepts that are not exclusive to any specific period. Praising Hitchcock’s films for being brilliant is almost redundant, especially since very few would be daring to suggest that they are anything short of exceptional – but there is something so special about Notorious, a film that is both experimental and definitive of an entire genre, shaping it in ways that had never been done before – and each moment simmers with the passion of a director who is truly invested in telling this story. For as much as he may be seen as defining the establishment, Hitchcock was always a intent on telling stories on his own terms, and Notorious is certainly not an exception, especially in how detailed some of these ideas tend to be, all of which are woven together to create this influential, potent and thrilling masterpiece of classical filmmaking.