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Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious is best understood by examining it against the rest of Hitchcock's body of work. The ways in which the film is at once expected and full of surprises result of its historical context and from decisions made by Hitchcock and his team. It is full of classic Hitchcock suspense, yet this suspense (and the film's success in general) is achieved through means that are not all necessarily typical of Hitchcock. Additionally, the film fits loosely into many genres, but perfectly into none.
Truffaut, FrancL'ois. . Hitchcock / by FrancL'ois Truffaut ; with the collaboration of Helen G. Scott. Rev. ed. 0671526014 series New York : Simon and Schuster, c1984.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1998.A3 H573 1984
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1998.A3 H573 1984
In Chapter 8 of this famous interview, Truffaut and Hitchcock focus their discussion on Notorious. Their conversation covers everything from the filmmaking process behind Notorious, the movie itself with the meaning and symbolism contained in the film, and its relevance after its release, both in Hitchcock's life and to international film audiences.
This chapter is crucial to understanding the movie for several reasons. First, Hitchcock talks firsthand about the process he and Ben Hecht went through in making the film, mentioning the story that the film is loosely based on, and then going through the trial and error process to find the perfect MacGuffin (i.e., the the reason for the plot's action) and having the whole project sold to RKO after failing to convince producers of its potential for success. Hitchcock also discusses the historical relevance of the uranium used as the MacGuffin and its connections to the secret experiements taking place in New Mexico that eventually resulted in the creation of the atom bomb. In many respects, Hitchcock's real-life experiences creating the film were filled with some of the themes that made the film so compelling - government secrets (the Manhattan Project) and spying (Hitchcock claimed he was followed by the FBI as a result of his inquiries about uranium).
Truffaut's opinions presented in the interview and Hitchcock's reactions are also of great importance in understanding how the film fits into Hitchcock's body of work. Truffaut describes Notorious as "the very quintessence of Hitchcock," and Hitchcock does not disagree. Yet the two also discuss how the film is at the same time atypical, having much less violence than most spy movies, villains who the audience can sympathize with on a certain level, and a very unexpected marriage proposal between the spy and the object of her espionage.