311. The Wrong Man (1956)

Running Time: 105 minutes
Directed By: Alfred Hitchcock
Written By: Angus MacPhail, Maxwell Anderson, from the novel The True Story of Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero by Maxwell Anderson
Main Cast: Henry Fonda, Vera Miles, Anthony Quayle

HITCHCOCKTOBER FEST!: PART VIII

It wasn't until fairly recently (I'd say within the last couple years) that I realized that Alfred Hitchcock and Henry Fonda made a film together. Back then, I wasn't much into old movies, but the names Hitchcock and Fonda certainly struck my fancy. I immediately took a mental note of the film and vowed to see it as soon as I could. Ever since starting the "1001" book, becoming more enamored with Hitchcock and still admiring Fonda's acting chops, my anticipation for this film grew even more and today I finally got the chance to flop down on my bed and check it out. Oh yeah...I wasn't disappointed.

The film is based on a true story, a concept that Hitchcock had never pursued and tells the story of Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero a.k.a. Manny (Fonda). Balestrero's story starts out quite simple as we learn that he's a pretty simple fellow. He is a musician, where he can be found most nights working at the Stork Club as part of their in house band. We also learn that Balestrero is a married man and has two children, all three of which he loves very much. We see a good slice of this love as Manny returns home one night and consoles Rose, his wife (Miles) as she suffers with a toothache. In fact, speaking of the toothache, it is that particular pain in his wife's jaw that causes Manny to visit the insurance offer to inquire about borrowing money against Rose's policy. Upon entering the office, the lady behind the counter seems to become startled and quickly consults with her co-workers. The ladies at the insurance office are quite certain that Manny is the man who previously robbed the office, months prior. The police are phoned and Manny is picked up, taken to the precinct and questioned regarding the robberies, not only the one at the insurance office, but a string of robberies that have been being committed throughout town. All the witnesses point to Manny as the perpetrator and Manny is arraigned and thrown in jail. His bail is put up the following day and now it is up to Manny to prove his innocence. Let's just hope he gets a juror as open minded as Mr. Davis ;)

When I watch a Hitchcock film, I find it fun to compare the villains, in possibly a continued effort to identify the most villainous of them all. In "The Wrong Man" there doesn't seem to be one clear cut villain, but rather a group of them, headed up by the police. But it's just so easy to see how everyone and everything seems to be conspiring to put Manny behind bars. Fonda's Manny was such a likeable character, a character that I think a lot of people can identify with. A man who works for a living and loves his wife and kids. A man who doesn't have a lot of money, but still keeps his head about him and rears through the difficult times. Henry Fonda has always been a favorite actor of mine and how can you not love the guy after watching him in "The Wrong Man". After watching this movie, I truly believe that the word "innocence", in the dictionary, should have a picture of Henry Fonda beside it. Not only for the innocence he portrays here, but also for his fight for innocence in films like "12 Angry Men" and "The Ox-Bow Incident". In fact, this would be a spectacular film to watch in conjunction with "12 Angry Men", in one Fonda plays an innocent man on trial and in the other Fonda plays a juror, a juror who stands alone in believing that the accused could be innocent.

Can I just take a minute to recognize the camerawork in "The Wrong Man"? I think it really stands out above other Hitchcock movies as having some really sweet shots and I'd never think that Hitchcock would have it in him to capture a city, the way he captured New York City in this movie. The shot of Manny and Rose getting out of their taxi and entering a building, with the view of the Brooklyn Bridge behind them nearly took my breath away. I also particularly loved the shot of Manny being ushered into the back of the squad car. He looks out the window, longing for his wife, who's silhouette he can see in their kitchen window. He gazes at that, while he also can't help but notice the profile of the cop who has taken all that away from him, at least for the time being.

I guess if I had to gripe about anything, I'd gripe about the turn for the worse that the character of Rose took. I was so consumed by this movie and then Rose goes a little over the edge and is forced to be committed to a mental institution. I guess you can't complain too much about true stories not appealing to you, as all their doing is simply telling you the facts. It did make the ending a little more heartbreaking, I'll give it that. I guess it shows that Manny's life was effected, not just in being accused of something he didn't do, but in turn directly effected the lives of those around him and that simply by being a good man and doing his daily duties, he was accused and had his life altered forever...or at least for a long time.

RATING: 8.5/10 I can't go the full monty on this one, simply because I enjoyed "The Man Who Knew Too Much" a little bit more. But make no mistake about it, this is a good film. I recommend watching it in a double feature with "12 Angry Men". Next up is "Vertigo".

MOVIES WATCHED: 168
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 833

October 21, 2010 5:43pm