It is the experience of a woman who was asked to spy on a group of Nazi friends in South America. It seems that this woman faces all challenges and excitement, suspense and romance blend elegantly in one of the most intense missions indeed.
It's the accuracy, efficiency and control of Hitchcock's direction that most impress. They enable him to dovetail the film's thriller format and romantic story to dizzying, expressive and unique effect.
This dark romantic thriller isn't as thematically complex or technically audacious as some of Alfred Hitchcock's later classics. But it's still hard to beat for pure, polished entertainment.
Production and directorial skill of Alfred Hitchcock combine with a suspenseful story and excellent performances to make Notorious force entertainment.
It would be far too harsh to label Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious an all-out bomb, but it's equally difficult to refer to the movie as a wholeheartedly effective (and affecting) success.
The virtuoso sequences -- the long kiss, the crane shot into the door key -- are justly famous, yet the film's real brilliance is in its subtle and detailed portrayal of infinitely perverse relationships.
