Alfred Hitchcock's "Marnie"

I have seen most films by Alfred Hitchcock but always passed on Marnie because I felt it wasn’t an essential piece of work by the great filmmaker. As usual, and on a regular basis, I was wrong. Of all the kink-related and twisted films by Hitchcock, it seems Marnie is more disturbed and troubling, speaking character-wise than any of his other films. This is saying a lot when thinking of Strangers on a Train, Psycho, Vertigo, and so forth, but I was surprised by the intensity of both Marnie (Tippi Hedren) and Mark Rutland (Sean Connery). Marnie is a con artist/thief with a troubling issue, and even more interesting to me is Mark, who studies Zoology as a hobby and runs his father’s business. Wealthy, well-breed, with kink touches that makes him attracted to Marnie.

The plotting and pace of the narration keep one glued to the vision in front of them, but even that does not attract me to a film. I’m fascinated with the characterizations of the principal figures, and I become interested in how Mark gets himself emotionally and, even more critically, intellectually involved with Marnie and her various issues/problems. Then there is Mark’s sister-in-law, who has a severe crush or feelings for Mark that is sexual, romantic, or… obsessive. We don’t know why, but Mark’s wife passed away, and it seems the sister-in-law lives with Mark and his father.

Probably the most disturbing aspect of Marnie is Mark blackmailing her into marrying him. I think casting Sean Connery in this role is a masterful touch. In his James Bond character, Connery always has a touch of sadistic behavior, but here he narrows down into a psychotic monster posing as a ‘normal’ approach to a romance. So, in a nutshell, sick plus sick equals more sick. The film Marnie is not a noun but a verb in that it has a life of its own, and there is nothing settled here, just a journey into insanity.