Suspicion
Another movie released in 1941 was Suspicion, directed by Alfred Hitchcock who wanted Grant to play a murderer.
Hitchcock knew the audience would not expect him in such a role and, therefore, the effect would be huge. But the studio refused the plot with Cary as a cold and evil person. Therefore, the ending was changed. Still, Grant's character was ambiguous and Suspicion was RKO's biggest commercial success of 1941 and received several Academy Award nominations, but not for Cary Grant. Joan Fontaine won the Best Actress Oscar.
http://www.cosmopolis.ch/english/cosmo14/carygrant.htm
Remake
Dimension Films and RKO Pictures are working together to remake Alfred Hitchcock's 1941 movie Suspicion. The original film starred Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine and was based on the novel Before the Fact by Francis Iles. It's about a shy young woman who marries a man after a quick romance but begins to suspect that he plans to kill for her money.
http://www.tnmc.org/gnews/suspicion.shtml
Well, the original script was altered for Cary.
Watching the original, lots of notes and letters.
she writes him a letter after she finds out he had lied to her about his job. In it she says she is leaving him.
But then he shows up with a telegram saying her father died. As the will is read, he is apparently very disappointed that she didn't receive more than she did.
Isobel Segdbush Murder on the Footbridge, fictional author, in the movie lives near her. Author says same business with Johhyny and his business partner. Richard Palmer said got him after. Her brother is post-mortem analyst. Johnny borrowed the book about Richard Palmer murders a cople of weeks ago. by George Houghton. She finds it and inside is a letter. Wowee knew handwriting would come into this. well doesn't look like murderer's handwriting, the t's are not completely crossed and dash to the right of the t-bar.
Author having dinner with them. If you're going to kill somebody do it simply, Johnny says. He'd use the most obvious method, like poison, arsenic.
The author's brother says even four years later there is evidence of arsenic.
The tiniest head of your head can be identified.
Doctor says an interesting corpse turned up the other day.
Johnny asks whether there is an untraceable poison.
Author can detect a murderer. Says Johnny couldn't commit a murder if you tried for 100 years.
He says, no he can't.
so, does his handwriting give him away?
We'll see...
Well, she doesn't want him anywhere near her now, makes him sleep in another room. Faints. When she wakes up, he's there, and so is the author.
Why is this author so friendly with Johnny. Anyway, the author says Johnny plied the name of the poison out of her.
a substance in daily use everywhere but it's undetectable after death, says the author.
Hey, we'd all like to know the name of that one.
gotta read the original book though cause obviously, Johnny is not gonna poison her.
Before the Fact by Francis Iles
"SUSPICION is so grimly powerful that its Hollywood-style happy ending has infuriated audiences for years.
http://yorty.sonoma.edu/filmfrog/reviews/s/suspicion.html
Ok the milk was on the side table, but she didn't drink it. Instead, the next day she is going to visit her mother, he drives, she's obviously frightened when he speeds along the curvy highway. She really thinks he is going to kill her.
Poor woman, she really does have reason to doubt this guy.
she asks what was he doing asking about poison. He says he was going to kill himself. He coldn't repay the debts he owed, took money, he's despicable. He was in Liverpool when Beaky was in Paris.
Very interesting. She believes him, sure does.
Does his handwriting show he is depressed, might commit suicide?
Let's see.
well, at least she believes him in the end.
Do we?
Rethinking Grant's acting, he probably should have gotten an award for this since the film was based on Iles book which had him as a murderer, he had to be doubly convincing as someone who was thinking of murdering, himself. And really, if he had wanted to kill Beaky, well he could have.
Now for who was with Beaky in Paris and who did give him too much brandy?
Loose thread ending there.
Encyclopedia: Poisons in crime fiction
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/poison
Re-constructing the final moments of Suspicion
http://members.aol.com/vistavsion/suspicion.html
excellent summary and comments about ending
http://www.qwipster.net/suspicion.htm
You can get hooked on researching this
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=suspicion+hitchcock+script+original&btnG=Google+Search
Great find
http://www.labyrinth.net.au/~muffin/suspicion_c..html
Official title-page of the Alfred Hitchcock Scholars/'MacGuffin' website, edited by Ken Mogg
http://www.labyrinth.net.au/~muffin/
Posted by dirtline
at 1:39 PM EST
Updated: Friday, 12 December 2003 2:19 PM EST
