First of all, I love all Hitchcock's movies and I liked "Notorious" very much... but don't you think that most of Hitch films have bad endings (except, maybe, "Rebecca", "Psycho" and "Rear Window")? Unfortunately, I found them rushed and abrupt and what could be an excellent movie becomes just a "very good" film.
shareI was under-whelmed by the ending in Notorious. It got its point across but I agree that it was rushed.
shareWell it certainly worked for me. A bit of an anticlimax, but that in deed was the intention.
Come to think of it, the only ´bad´ endings in Hitch I can think of would be in Suspicion (but that was a studio decision forced on Hitch), Shadow Of A Doubt (would have preferred to leave the film knowing Uncle Charlie´s still out there) and Strangers On A Train (good idea, but the way it ended up looks pretty contrived and underwhelming). Torn Curtain would probably be the worst of ´em all, but then again it´s a bad film anyway so it sort of doesn´t count. Same with Topaz and Marnie.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
Shadow Of A Doubt (would have preferred to leave the film knowing Uncle Charlie´s still out there)
Really? That's interesting. I wasn't aware they would have found such an ending in violation of the code.
shareI actually liked the ending to Strangers on a Train. I was really, really tense during the last 10 minutes, and when it was done, I finally exhaled. Not the best ending ever, but it was what I needed at the time. lol.
I haven't seen Shadow of a Doubt (although you didn't like the ending, was it overall worth watching?).
But Suspicion? Oh my goodness. That was my least favorite Hitchcock ending! I was like, eh, then I read what it was supposed to be, and I got so mad. The studio threw away a perfect ending!
And I agree with you about this ending. I liked it. It wasn't quite what I was expecting, but it worked.
I agree that it was rushed.
I found the scene on the stairs the only exciting scene in the film. Everything else was too generic and emotionless. I still would have preferred Cary Grant showing an ounce of emotion or worry or something other than cool n' calm.
shareThe ending is perfect. It's suspenseful, as well as quietly poignant and quietly powerful, and has a sense of irony that is subtle, through rich.
No, it isn't the action-packed, shoot-em up ending so many movies have today. But Hitchecock understood that wasn't always necessary. He knew that sometimes less is more. There are a lot of movie makers around today who need to learn that lesson.
I never felt the ending of Notorius to be rushed, or underwhelming.
On the contrary, I find it excellent, not only because it is suspenseful and sober (yes! less is more, sometimes) but also because it forces us, like the rest of the movie, to face the ambiguity of all the characters and of our emotional response towards them.
No character in Notorius is only good, or only evil (and isn't this what happens in real life?) and so it is at the end of the movie, when the "heroes" show their cruel side, and we cannot help feeling a touch of sympathy for that bent, pathetic figure walking up the stairs towards an undoubtedly merciless end.
Also, although it's easy to guess what will happen next, this is not an ending which provides all the answers. And I appreciate that, too.
Yes, you are very, very right. Perfect ending. Very subtle, very intense.
shareNo! You don't get it. Why do people here think they know better than the professionals? You're wrong, so wrong. Grant's performance in this reserved which is why the ending is so powerful. That's his character, he's not playing Shakespeare's clown number 2. Seriously, stop trying to imagine the movie differently from what it is. It's the way it is for a reason. If the ending of Notorious seems rushed it's because you've not been paying attention. Christ, the ending practically started when Bergman got poisoned, that's when the tension begins and doesn't let up till the end
shareI don't understand how anyone thinks this ending is rushed. Once we've seen Alex shut out of the cab and his cohorts call him up to "talk," we watch him turn and walk--not quickly--all the way to and up the steps and into the door, knowing all the time what he's about to face; then the door closes behind him. It's perfect.
"The value of an idea has nothing to do with the honesty of the man expressing it."--Oscar Wilde
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**Possible spoiler!**
The false bottles contained earth with uranium ore. In 1946 Germany and we were experimenting toward production of the A-bomb, so that was the big secret Alex was hiding in his cellar.
"The value of an idea has nothing to do with the honesty of the man expressing it."--Oscar Wilde
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It was the MacGuffin, silly!
shareIn one of the dubbed German versions of the film, the obviously *black* stuff, shown in the film, became "white powder" a.k.a. heroin; the nazi conspiracy was still too embarrassing for us Germans, when a cut version of the film was first shown in 1951:
West Germany 21 September 1951, entitled "White Poison" = Weißes Gift
West Germany 11 August 1969 (re-release)
Nothing was wrong with the ending of Notorious in my opinion. The close up of Sebastian with a bleak look on his face knowing what will follow. The camera staying static as he slowly ascends back into his house knowing his fate was potent to watch.
"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not".
I agree the ending with Alex/Claude Rains going slowly up the steps is quite powerful. I always can't help a little disappointment in not seeing exactly what happens to him, but I'm sure it would have been too gruesome for those days and the Hays Office.
I have to disagree with those who said Grant (Devlin) was "nice" in this one. I found him rather rough - punching Ingrid/Alicia, calling out her character many times when she was begging him to give her a chance. I guess that was the character of Devlin, though. I mean, one would expect a spy to be rough and emotionless most of the time, anyway. The key to survival and getting the job done.
I've always liked this movie because of the story and its terrific cast. As much as I love Claude Rains, I always have a bit of a chuckle when he's locked out of the car in the end.
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As far as the ending being "rushed", well they were, literally, in a rush to get out of there! I thought it was perfect...the whole bedroom scene when he tells her he "was a fatheaded guy, full of pain", the dialouge on the stairs with Alex and his mother, the Nazi's staring at them from below, Cary locking the car door on Alex, "I wish to speak with you, Alex" and that long walk of Alex's back home.
sharePerhaps the weakest ending for any of the major "Hitch" films? I think so. I mean the ending of 'Torn Curtain' is really bad but that movie is perhaps Hithcock's worst film.
My fav ones are the endings of Psycho, Vertigo, Rear Window, Rebecca, and Shadow of a Doubt. From his earlier works, The Lodger has the best ending IMO
I think Notorious is one of my favourite endings to any film I've seen. Funny how people take things different ways.
shareAs an incurable Hitchcocker, I have always been thrilled by the ending of Notorious, so I heartily agree with both of the sentences in Danespina's comment. However, I have always thought the last few seconds of the ending could have been a little more intense, played a little more to the dramatic hilt--a little more "Alex, ve vould have a vord vith you." from the Nazi agent, a little more, "But you can't leave me here, they'll kill me!" from Sebastien,and a tad more, "You've made your bed, Sebastien, now lie in it." from Devlin, and then comes the "Alex, could you come in please," line. And maybe the camera could have lingered just a little longer on the weak smile on Alicia's face.
All those things would have taken a few more seconds, of course, which might be why some think the ending was "rushed."
Although 'Vertigo' had some good scenes, and Barbara Bel Geddes was great, the way the movie ended was ridiculous. Abrupt & weird.
But I liked the ending to 'Notorious'--Hitch usually had a clever way of ending his films.
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No Mc-Sleepy, I don't agree with you at all. I thought the ending was great. For me the ending starts when the butler lets Cary into the house. All the threads of the story come together at that moment. The Nazis are there, Ingrid is upstairs dying or possibly already dead, Alex is there with the Nazis and all he needs to hide, Cary is there not knowing exactly what is going on. Then Cary bursts into the bedroom, then the scene between Cary and the sick Bergman which for me stretched out into torture...GET OUTTTA THERE!!!! Then that long, slow, walk down the stairs with all the characters there and Hitchcock is just dragging it out, prolonging the suspense. Will Ingrid die right there in Cary's arms? Will the mom do something rash? Will Alex play along or not? Will Cary's bluff job work? Will the clueless Nazis suddenly wake up? Hitchcock draws it out to great effect and finally all is resolved with the lock of the car door. But you still don't know if Ingrid will be saved.
For me it was exciting and satisfying.
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You said everything I wanted to say. The ending was brilliant. The excruciating tension began the moment Devlin drove up to the house, and it didn't end until the untold menace and finality of that door closing. The final sequence bumped the movie up from an 8/10 to a 9/10, for me. Goes to show how different people's expectations are, I suppose.
Movies I've seen in 2010: http://www.flixster.com/movie-list/2010-movies-6
I just finished the end of the movie and I'd have to agree with you. Abrupt doesn't even encapsulate the disbelief I had when the ending came. Casablanca had great closure and tied up all the loose ends beautifully but this one just slams the door in your face. A pity since I had been enjoying it all the way up to the end.
shareI agree with the poster who said "less is more." The ending is fantastic!
"I don't know where I am. I can't breathe."
—Henry Winkler
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I think the issue here is that some think there wasn't a real climax, as Grant simply drove off with the ill Bergman to leave Raines to his meet his fate. Most Hitchcock films had an onscreen payoff; this and say The Birds really did not. I don't think the lack of onscreen retribution for the villian dampened this film; we know with a reasonable certainty what will happen to him. I was quite satisfied.
I still think the ending to Strangers on a Train is the most disappointing. I think it would be rated near, if not at the top, of Hitchcock's films if it weren't for the rediculous out of control merry-go-round climax. What a wonderfull piece of suspense marred by a horrible plot device.