Family
Plot (Alfred Hitchcock) 1976
Family
Plot, Alfred
Hitchcock’s final film, ends with the lead character winking directly at the
camera, and that seems fitting closure to the career of one of the most
manipulative masters of moviemaking. Otherwise, this caper comedy is a bit
lightweight, but generally likable enough for us to ignore its flaws. The comedy
is odd, in a way, because much of the humor seems to come from the crudeness of
its characters. That they chew with their mouths open and have to worry about
money (going through what they do for a mere $10,000) seem endearing qualities
to Hitchcock, who revels in their flirtatious sex talk. There is also an
abundance of irony in this tale of a duo that creates a faux-psychic front so
that they can exercise their deft detective skills and a pair of kidnappers that
expend much energy avoiding a large inheritance. It becomes clear that if both
pairs dropped their pretenses, they would have a much simpler time finding an
end to their means (but then the film’s ending shows that had they not been so
quirky they would have gone off with less of a reward).
Still,
there are some real Hitchcockian thrills to be found in this “comedy”. The
kidnappers are dastardly and resourceful, and their elaborate exploits are
genuinely thrilling. Even more rousing though is when the director plays his
action scenes for laughs, like he does in a furious downhill slalom that occurs
after some brake lines are clipped. John Williams’ obvious and overbearing
score never really feels out of place since we’re so aware of the game
that’s being played with us. There’s less of a feel here than in the average
Hitchcock film that the sex and violence is repulsive yet attractive, so we
don’t feel dirty for enjoying ourselves at the expense of some fictional
characters. We’re not being dared to sympathize with thugs or malcontents
here, since the initially lawless protagonists move closer toward justice as the
film goes on. The tone becomes more likable as the picture progresses, and this
conversion might be the main reason for that. The escalating level of danger or
the lack of clumsy exposition in the second hour might also be to blame. In any
case, the charms of the movie are eventually undeniable. Approached as a
standard Hitchcockian thriller, it might come up a bit short, but once you tap
into the film’s gentle satire of its characters and genre, the strengths of Family
Plot become apparent.
***1/2
02-04-02
Jeremy
Heilman