Joseph Cotton and Teresa Wright Play Cat-and-Mouse in Alfred Hitchcock’s Masterful Doubt

 

Standing out among the many light musicals and dramatic war films of the WWII era and hinting at the onslaught of film noirs soon to become a mainstay of Hollywood cinema, 1943’s Shadow of a Doubt offers a unique tale of murder and intrigue set against an idyllic backdrop. Alfred Hitchcock proved the ideal choice for helming the adroit screenplay by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson and Mrs. Hitchcock, Alma Reville (based on a story by Gordon McDonell), drawing viewers in from the film’s outset, wherein the mysterious protagonist is seen avoiding authorities, and slowly building the tension from thereon without ever losing the audience’s rapt state. Wilder and Benson both had major success with stories centered around small-town Americana (via Our Town and Meet Me in St. Louis, respectively), and the look and ambiance of Doubt richly conveys a peaceful, upright community in contrast to the  tale’s dark undertones, with on-location shooting in Santa Moncia perfectly capturing alternately serene and unsettling moods, and Dimtri Tiomkin’s stark, persuasive score (featuring variation of “The Merry Widow Waltz”) frequently reminding viewers all may not be well in suburbia. Involving a typical middle-class family, the Newtons, whose lives witness a steep change of events with the appearance of the beloved Uncle Charlie, Doubt explores the intricate nature of family relationships, and how feelings of love, respect and trust among kin can quickly erode given changing circumstances.

After gaining fame helming British films for over a decade, including such classics as The Man Who Knew Too Much, The 39 Steps and The Lady Vanishes, Alfred Hitchcock moved to Hollywood after signing a contract with ace producer David O. Selznick, and found instant top-tier success with his 1940 debut, the gothic romance Rebecca. After this Best Picture Oscar-winner, Hitchcock would turn out a bevy of classics over the next few decades, often centered around suspenseful themes with comedic elements throw in and featuring glamourous, magnetic stars. With Doubt, Hitchcock appears creatively motivated by the unusual locale the calm Santa Rosa setting provides and does some of his most inspired work in detailing how pervasively evil can enter into a normal, seemingly halcyon environment. His fluid, carefully planned-out camerawork keeps a viewer transfixed as the danger mounts, with specific shots helping to flesh out the characters, sometimes without them saying a word. For example, there’s a great moment wherein Uncle Charlie is going upstairs after an outing with his niece (also named Charlie) and looks back to see her framed in the doorway in long shot, speculatively starring after him. In just a few seconds, the viewer senses a major turning point in their relations due to the craft and economy Hitchcock employs. He also shows great verve in illustrating both of the Charlies’ motives (as well as highlighting the prime work of stars Joseph Cotton and Teresa Wright) with stirring close-up or profile shots which help to reveal the character’s inner thoughts to audiences, as simultaneously the two Charlies become more evasive with each other. Also, in one of his boldest camera set-ups ever, Hitchcock has Cotton look directly into the camera during a pivotal dinner scene, addressing both a character and the viewer in unnerving fashion. Hitchcock’s imposing directorial skills would produce classics that rate among the cinema’s best as he also became one of the most recognizable figures in entertainment, with Shadow of a Doubt remaining one of his most original, dedicated works.

Joseph Cotton has perhaps his greatest role as Doubt’s duplicitous Uncle Charlie. After starting out on stage in the 1930’s, wherein he befriended Orson Welles, becoming a key player in Welles’ Mercury Theater while also scoring a major success in The Philadelphia Story, Cotton’s feature film career started auspiciously with Welles’ 1941 masterpiece, Citizen Kane. Following this landmark endeavor and another choice role in Welles’ follow-up, The Magnificent Ambersons, Cotton eventually obtained a contract with David O. Selznick and quickly became one of the primary male stars of his era, playing a series of sympathetic romantic leads. Fortunately, in 1943 he wasn’t yet established as one of Hollywood’s foremost leading men, allowing him the chance to take on the unheroic, richly complex role of Uncle Charlie. Using his trademark tranquil, subtle demeanor to maximum impact, Cotton adeptly balances the duality of the character throughout the film, showing the charm and seeming benevolence that make this uncle a favorite in the Newton household, while alternately revealing, in short outbursts and observations, the cold-heartedness that drives his inner psyche. With the viewer knowing from the outset there’s much more than meets the eye with Uncle Charlie, it’s fascinating to watch how he ingratiates himself into the family dynamic while concurrently posing a possible risk to them and others, with the assured Cotton’s sly playing helping to uphold the concept that most of the town folk would deem Uncle Charlie’s every action acceptable, when a closer look is warranted.

After Cotton’s outstanding work in Doubt, he would prosper throughout the 1940’s opposite some of Hollywood’s top female stars in such Grade-A productions as Gaslight, Since You Went Away (alongside Jennifer Jones, who also starred with Cotton in Love Letters, Duel in the Sun and Portrait of Jennie) and The Farmer’s Daughter, before finishing the decade with excellent work in another all-timer, Carol Reed’s The Third Man. In the 1950’s Cotton’s output lessened in quality, with 1953’s Niagara opposite Marilyn Monroe providing a rewarding return to darker, “noirish” film territory. Cotton would continue with frequent appearances in film and television until 1981 when illness would sideline Cotton, who passed away at 88 in 1994. His never-better work in Doubt has risen in esteem along with the movie’s status, to the point where the talented Cotton’s Uncle Charlie is today considered one of the signature villains in Hitchcock films, and in classic movies.

Teresa Wright was in the midst of one of the best runs in movies ever for an ingenue, gaining Oscar nominations for her first three films (her debut in 1941’s The Little Foxes, followed by the 1942 one-two punch of Pride of the Yankees and the even-bigger commercial and critical success, Mrs. Miniver, which gained Wright the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award), clearly placing the gifted rising star in company with the best and brightest leading ladies on screen by the time of Doubt. The flourish would continue with her perceptive, dexterous role as “Little Charlie,” who serves as a moral counterpoint to the uncle she first adores, before having to deeply ponder just how wonderful he really is. Wright has the trickly job of demonstrating from the outset Charlie’s innocence, but also her mature, cynical mindset regarding the rut she views her family in. Wright’s straightforward work in sublimely illustrating the multi-facets of this Charlie makes the smart, inquisitive heroine easy for audiences to identify with and root for as Charlie uncovers clues to her uncle’s past, then has to deal with her “twin” directly, with the apprehension mounting in Hitchcockian style as one fears for her safety. Also, in a manner similar to Cotton, Wright’s performance upholds an intelligent, natural playing style, lending a modern air to their vivid scenes, even with the film depicting a definite era of long ago, as Cotton and Wright’s beautifully in-synch acting still meshes in a strikingly believable fashion.  

Following Doubt, Wright would obtain possibly her career peak with highly praised work as one of the stars of the decade’s biggest commercial hit, 1946’s The Best Years of Our Lives, which also scored heavily at the Oscars. Wright’s period of incredible achievement took an abrupt downward turn shortly after this memorable interval, as her apparently golden contract with Samuel Goldwyn was terminated and Wright focused on raising her family, while still making time for film and television (with, appropriately, a couple episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour in the 1960’s), including fine playing opposite Marlon Brando in his 1950 debut, The Men, Somewhere in Time and, in a satisfying farewell to the screen, a nice role in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1997 drama The Rainmaker.

Macdonald Carey, in his second year of movies after debuting in Star Spangled Rhythm, belies his inexperience on film by convincingly maintaining a calm, pleasant demeanor and a nice earnestness as Jack Graham, a detective who comes to Santa Rosa in pursuit of Uncle Charlie and finds himself enamored by the other Charlie. Carey’s charming chemistry with Wright has viewers rooting for their burgeoning romantic in the mist of conflict, and there’s a great moment in a garage wherein the young couple discuss their attraction and possibly future in smart, open terms not normally found in romances. As his sidekick, Wallace Ford adds to the proceedings with some nicely played, lighter interactions with the Newtons.

Patricia Collinge, who scored alongside Wright in Foxes (also gaining an Oscar nod), brings some of the same fragileness and sensitivity to her role as Emma, the household’s matriarch. Deeply devoted to her family and emotionally tied to her brother partially due to their problematic upbringing, Collinge does a great job illustrating Emma’s befuddlement as a series of curious events suggest tragedy is imminent for the Newtons. As Mr. Newton, Henry Travers brings a likable unperturbed quality to his role, and alongside Hume Cronyn (playing the nebbish next-door neighbor, Herbert) provides most of the movie’s lighter moments, as Mr. Newton and Herbert constantly discuss the various methods each would use to kill the other. Travers was coming off Oscar-nominated work in Miniver just prior to Doubt, while Cronyn parlayed his impactful film debut into a great career onscreen as a leading character actor (in addition to major stage work, often alongside wife Jessica Tandy), including an Oscar nod of his own for 1944’s The Seventh Cross, the same year he reunited with Hitchcock for Lifeboat.

Edna May Wonacott, playing Ann, the precocious, wise younger sister of Charlie, was discovered just prior to filming and lends a distinctive no-nonsense air to her acting that allows Ann to avoid any signs of the cuteness normally associated with child actors of the period, which could easily make the character unbelievable. Finally, Janet Shaw has a stunning bit as Louis, the near-somnambulistic waitress both Charlie’s encounter in a dive; based on her highly eccentric turn in Doubt, one wishes Shaw’s career had gained momentum, instead of only creating the wealth of bit roles her filmography details.

A success upon release, Doubt would gain Wright acclaim from the National Board of Review as one of the year’s top performances, while McDonell gathered the film’s sole Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Original Story (one wishes Hitchcock, Wright and especially Cotton, who never gained recognition from the Academy, could have placed in their respective categories). The movie’s reputation would continue to grow as a significant film in the Hitchcock cannon, with the classic included in the 1991 roster done by the Library of Congress for the National Film Registry, and new generations discovering Doubt by means of various media platforms (including a recent 4K disc).  And finally, in addition to its enthralling story, ace performances and sublime direction, Doubt is assured to continue to attract the curiosity of film buffs due to the fact that no less than Alfred Hitchcock stated it was the favorite of all his films.