Saboteur – 1942 Hitchcock

Unmistakably Hitchcockian—another one of his mistaken-identity thrillers— similar to The 39 Steps, North By Northwest
Minor Hitchcock or a B-side if you will
Most notable for the set piece finale—instead of the Golden Gate bridge or Mount Rushmore we use the Statue of Liberty—a great sequence

Pace- we’re off and running with espionage act in 5 minutes. Robert Cummings (not strong) is chasing a man (Norman Lloyd) and getting chased by the police at the same time, we run into an adorable Pricilla Lane, a blind good Samaritan (like Bride of Frankenstein), a troupe from a circus
It’s a WWII film— “we’re a democracy. We’ll vote” and then calls the man a “fascist” for saying “no vote”. There’s some political speechmaking
Starts with the eerie smoke emanating from the textured door backdrop.

I wouldn’t call it a meditation—but Hitchcock, in many of his works, is obsessed with fate and chance—the wrong man narrative, the chance meeting of a Kim Novak look-alike, the way Janet Leigh is knocked off in Psycho
Like the sequence in the abandoned town Soda City
Nice long 360 tracking shot of Cummings and Lane dancing—there’s clear reverse-processing as the backdrop though- not great
The shootout in front of the movie screen is fantastic filmmaking

And again, the Stature of Liberty set piece—silent, truly masterful editing and framing—Hitchcock has the fabric on the suit (he’s holding him by the sleeve) slowing tear