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MOVIES / ON DVD / STAGE FRIGHT
Stage Fright

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Stage Fright (1950)

88%
75%
75%
N/A
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88 %
Reviews Counted: 16 Fresh: 14  Rotten:2 Average Rating: 7/10

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins

Synopsis: STAGE FRIGHT, based on Selwyn Jepson's novel, was adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock's wife and frequent collaborator, Alma Reville. Hitchcock uses London itself as the stage for this story of an acting student forced to solve a murder. Young Eve Gil (Jane Wyman) is studying drama at... STAGE FRIGHT, based on Selwyn Jepson's novel, was adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock's wife and frequent collaborator, Alma Reville. Hitchcock uses London itself as the stage for this story of an acting student forced to solve a murder. Young Eve Gil (Jane Wyman) is studying drama at the Royal Academy when she runs into an old friend, John Cooper (Richard Todd), who explains that he has been implicated in a murder he didn't commit. Cooper's affair with stage icon Charlotte Inwood (Marlene Dietrich) has made him a suspect in the death of Inwood's husband. Hitchcock used an actress as the protagonist in his 1930 film MURDER, but here, as a student forced by circumstance to truly learn the acting craft through real-life deception, the character of Eve can also be compared to Hitchcock's other accidental heroes, such as Cary Grant's Roger Thornhill in NORTH BY NORTHWEST. Eve must pose in many guises to get to the truth, and her nimble, multifaceted performance is commendable. But as the smoldering older diva, Marlene Dietrich's supporting role takes center stage. [More]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Jane Wyman, Marlene Dietrich, Michael Wilding, Richard Todd, Sybil Thorndike

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Producer: Alfred Hitchcock
Composer: Leighton Lucas
Screenwriter: Alma Reville

DVD Info

Release:

Jul 9, 2004

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Full Frame - 1.37

Audio:

  • Mono 1.0 English

Additional Release Material:

  • Documentary - 1. HITCHCOCK AND STAGE FRIGHT

Reviews

 
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1 - 16 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Ratings Image
N/A

A fairly routine thriller, noted chiefly for its cheating flashback, though with much more to enjoy than its detractors -- including Hitchcock -- make out.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/24/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
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N/A

Fun rather than thrilling, this duplicitous tale certainly isn't Stranger On A Train, but Hitchcock's weak films are still better than most.

Full Review | comment Comment
05/24/03
Laura Bushell
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
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4/4

The standard British murder mystery is raised to a higher plateau by Hitchcock in Stage Fright, but still falters in comparison to the best of the master's works.

Full Review | comment Comment
02/04/08
TV Guide's Movie Guide
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N/A

Wyman is delightful as embryo actress but the choice femme spot goes to Dietrich.

Full Review | comment Comment
02/04/08
Variety Staff
Variety
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N/A

The issues aren't satisfactorily resolved, but Hitchcock seems to be exploring the ways in which various falsehoods -- the falsehoods of acting, storytelling, and art in general -- can lead to the truth

Full Review | comment Comment
02/04/08
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
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2/5

One is strongly suspicious, after watching this helter-skelter film, that Mr. Hitchcock was much less interested in his over-all story than in individual scenes.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/28/06
Bosley Crowther
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
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3/5

No review available.

comment Comment
07/02/05
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Ratings Image
3/5

No review available.

comment Comment
04/01/05
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion
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2.5/4

Blame it on the subject matter: Stage Fright, especially for postwar Hitchcock, is all elbows.

Full Review | comment Comment
03/15/05
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central
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3/5

Good Dietrich vehicle with the famous "false flashback"

comment Comment
12/17/04
Daniel Eagan
Film Journal International
Ratings Image
3/4

Even a lesser Hitchcock film is as good as a great film by nearly anyone else.

Full Review | comment Comment
09/20/04
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
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3/5

No review available.

comment Comment
09/16/04
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
Ratings Image
3/5

the central ridiculousness comes off as hokey at best, insulting at worst

Full Review | comment Comment
09/13/04
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com
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4/5

Often overlooked Hitchcock that's better than some of his more famous works.

comment Comment
11/24/03
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
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4/5

No review available.

comment Comment
09/05/03
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal
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B+

Stage Fright is hardly frightening.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
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