TO BE OR NOT TO BE

As discussed in class, the film TO BE OR NOT TO BE was not received well at the time of its release because it treated serious subject matter in a humorous way. What are your thoughts about the negative response to the film? Can you make any connections to our current times, in terms of films that take on serious or sensitive concerns--and how they are received?

The 39 Steps

Hitchcock is credited with inventing the "MacGuffin" in film. He explains that the MacGuffin is "the device, the gimmick, if you will, or the papers the spies are after... The only thing that really matters is that in the picture the plans, documents, or secrets must seem to be of vital importance to the characters. To me, the narrator, they are of no importance whatsoever." In other words, the film is really about "something else" and the MacGuffin is just a sleight of hand to carry the audience along.

If in this film, the "39 steps" formula is merely a MacGuffin, then what is the film really about--in thematic or narrative terms.

Also, any requests for Hitchcock clips for Thursday's class?