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The Trouble With Harry | Year: 1955 Classification: Mystery / Suspense Directed: - Alfred Hitchcock Actors/Actresses: - Edmund Gwenn - John Forsythe - Shirley MacLaine Disappointing Experiment Hitchcock wanted to do something different this time around, but THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY is uneven and tedious at times. Shirley MacLaine is terrific in her screen debut, Edmund Gwenn is great, as usual, and even Jerry Mathers (no, NOT as the Beaver) gives a good performance. But, at 100 minutes, it's overlong and the endless unearthing and burying of poor Harry grates after a while. However, it's a beautiful film, with superb color and a great score by the always wonderful Bernard Herrmann. I'm the 11-year old Below THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY is a morbid [dark] comedy, full of witty dialogue and offbeat performances. It is a masterpiece of dreary atmosphere(set in a beautiful fall country setting)and wonderful realization. It is endearing and feel-good, morbid and dark, and funny yet subtle, too. Alfred Hitchcock does good with this film. Edmund Gwenn is perfect, John Forsythe is intelligent, Mildred Natwick is endearing, Shirley Maclaine is wonderfully offbeat, Jerry Mathers is cute, and Mildred Dunnock is marvelously bland. The soundtrack is very whimsical and sets the mood perfectly. I recommend it to everyone. Also, if you can get hold of the novel of the same name by J. Trevor Story, it is excellent also with many funny additions. Hitchcock's very "off center" black comedy In the classic "Twilight Zone" episode "Five Characters in Search of an Exit," viewers are introduced to just that: a ballerina, an Army officer, a clown, a tramp, and a bagpipe player seeking to escape from a cylindrical prison. At the end of the show, it is revealed that they are actually dolls that want "out"" from their round "home". While the four major characters in "The Trouble with Harry" are not dolls, they are definitely trying to "escape" from a prison of sorts, a prison of guilt over Harry's death of which they feel responsible. In a series of coincidences/mishaps stars Edmund Gwenn (a former ship captain), John Forsythe (a painter), Shirley MacLaine (single parent), and Mildred Natwick (a spinster) either "kill", "bury", or "resurrect" the dearly departed. But, Harry proves to be an illusive corpse. None of the eccentric characters shows much remorse because Harry wasn't a very likeable person; in fact, there is a lot of witty repartee between them as they discuss that to do with him. While this is far from one of "The Master's" best, it benefits from delightfully droll performances, a light-hearted Bernard Herrmann score, and post card-like images of New England, the film's setting. Rounding out the cast are a pre-"Beaver" Jerry Mathers as MacLaine's son, Mildred Dunnock as a local shopkeeper, and Royal Dano as the shopkeeper's police deputy son. Dano had a long career as a character actor and can be heard as the voice of Abraham Lincoln at the Disney theme parks' "Hall of Presidents". Buy The Trouble With Harry at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on The Trouble With Harry Search with the Priority Search Engine on The Trouble With Harry This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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