The Man Who Knew Too Much: Why did Alfred Hitchcock decide to remake his own film?
The version rebroadcast this evening on France 5 is that of 1956 with Doris Day and James Stewart.
The fifth channel programs within its Friday evening cinema slot The Man Who Knew Too Much, a thrillerAlfred Hitchcock who was in competition on the Croisette in 1956, but who won nothing: that year, it was The World of Silence, by Jean-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle, which won the Palme d’Or. The story is that of a couple, played by Doris Day and James Stewart, who are unwillingly involved in an international conspiracy from which they cannot extricate themselves without risking the life of their child.
From its opening “mortal” in Morocco to its tense scene at the opera through the double interpretation of “Que Sera, Sera” by the singer turned actress, The Man Who Knew Too Much is full of cult scenes. As usual, the filmmaker makes a cameo: at the 25th minute, he appears in the market scene observing acrobats… and turns his back to the camera!
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A devilishly effective suspense film, which directly takes up the main plot, and the title, of an early work by Hitchcock. The first version of The man who knew too much dates from December 1934 (the filmmaker was then 35 years old) and is worn by Leslie Banks, Edna Best and Peter Lorre (already famous for his role as a killer in M the Accursedthe actor had just fled Hitler’s Germany to settle in England).
At the time, the director had already been making films for around ten years, but was only beginning to direct speaking works. Its first is Blackmail, created in 1929 from a play by Charles Bennett. The two men get along so well that the director suggests that the writer work on several screenplays in parallel. In particular, he imagines a story of international conspiracy following the kidnapping of an infant, which, after a few transformations, becomes the plot of The man who knew too much.
The title is taken from a collection of short stories by GK Chesterton, which Hitchcock liked and who could use it because he had acquired the rights to several stories from the book, but his film ultimately has nothing to do with this work by 1922. The famous opera scene, with its thundering cymbal which must drown out the sound of a gunshot, was inspired by a 1920s cartoon by HM Bateman entitled The One-Note Manrecounting the daily life of a musician tasked with playing only one note during a symphony concert.
The man who knew too much received a great reception, both critically and publicly, so much so that in the mid-1950s, when his producers at Paramount asked him for a project idea as part of a several-film contract, he mentioned this remake project , which has been on his mind for some time now. Twenty years after the success of the original, his career took off thanks to the success of 39 stepsof Rebecthat or Chained and he is now filming bigger productions away from London, in Hollywood.
He proposed to James Stewart, whom he had already filmed in The rope And Window onto courtyardand to Doris Day, whom he appreciated in Storm Warning, the main roles: the casting of the latter will require some negotiations because for the production, she is above all a singer, and not an actress. Hitchcock will also use this talent by asking him to perform the piece twice “Que Sera, Sera”. A good idea, in hindsight, the team winning the Oscar for best song for this film.
The screenplay is by John Michael Hayes (Courtyard window, La Main au collar), who is instructed not to watch the original version and to write his plot only based on the instructions given by the filmmaker. Several key scenes are therefore largely modified, notably the end, but the musical choice during the opera scene remains the same: in 1934, Hitchcock hired Arthur Benjamin to punctuate his Royal Albert Hall sequence, and when he hired Bernard Herrman to compose the soundtrack for his remake, the artist decided to keep this original creation entitled “Storm Clouds Cantata” and only extend it so that the suspense scene gains intensity. It ultimately lasts 12 minutes and is particularly effective.
In 1967, during their long film-loving conversation, François Truffaut pointed out to Alfred Hitchcock that The man who knew too much from 1956 is “greater than that” to its original version. “Let’s say the first film was the work of a talented amateur and the second was made by a professional,” replies its creator, amused.
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