'Rebecca': Hitchcock's modern gothic
April 25th 2008 20:00
Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson in 'Rebecca'
When asked what their favourite Hitchcock movies are, most people will name Vertigo, Psycho, Rear Window, and even The Birds; but once in a while someone says "Rebecca". Yet Rebecca (1940), based on Daphne DuMaurier's classic novel, has the distinction of being the only Hitchcock-directed film to win a Best Picture Academy Award, and it also marks the first film for which Hitchcock was nominated for Best Director. If the film is relatively underrated today, it may be because of its Gothic themes and depiction of 'unnatural' sexual longing. In this way, it's somewhat similar to another underappreciated Hitchcock movie, Shadow of a Doubt.
The unnamed protagonist, played by Joan Fontaine (who would later play the titular character in Jane Eyre, to which DuMaurier's Rebecca owes a considerable debt--madwoman in the attic and all), is an orphaned girl who acts as a secretary and companion to middle-aged socialite Edythe Van Hopper (Florence Bates). She and Van Hopper are holidaying in Monte Carlo when they meet the dashing widower Maxim DeWinter (Laurence Olivier). As far as Gothic male leads go, DeWinter is pretty true to archetype: he's wealthy, handsome, and charming, but also mysterious and abruptly moody. Despite this, it's not long before he and the girl fall in love and become engaged, much to Van Hopper's chagrin. Van Hopper's sneering criticism of the girl is devastating: "You haven't the faintest idea what it means to be a great lady...You haven't flattered yourself that he's in love with you!" As if it weren't already hard enough to compete with the ideal of Rebecca, the first Mrs. DeWinter.
After their honeymoon, the DeWinters sail back to Manderley, the family's sprawling estate. Manderley is a typical Gothic mansion, replete with ornate furnishings and mysterious rooms. The second Mrs. DeWinter finds out that the west wing is no longer in use, although the rooms with the best views are located there. And of course, what's forbidden becomes all the more enticing. The most remarkable thing about Manderley, however, is the imposing housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson). Anderson makes a striking and statuesque Danvers; her dress and hairstyle underscore her conventionally unfeminine looks. Indeed, her body, stiff as a bolt, is stuffed into her black starched dress as if it were encased in iron.
Danvers, perceiving the second Mrs. DeWinter's naiveté and insecurity, subtly starts to undermine her in her new role as lady of the house. She refers to Rebecca as "Mrs. DeWinter", not as "the late" or "the first" DeWinter, like the other servants do. She also leaves Rebecca's personal effects around the mansion, such as embroidered napkins and monogrammed stationery. It doesn't take much to jar the second Mrs. DeWinter, whose confidence is so shaken that when she receives a call for "Mrs. DeWinter", she blurts out that "Mrs. DeWinter has been dead for over a year."
We know very little of Rebecca, other than that she was beautiful and popular. In contrast, the second Mrs. DeWinter still manages to seem innocent and virginal after months of marriage. She dresses modestly, and usually defers to the servants when called upon to make household decisions. When she dons a glamourous mail-order gown for the first time, it only looks wrong on her. (The costume department does a great job here: the dress is a little ill-fitting, the style is not flattering on Fontaine, and the flowers on the bodice are rather too large. The effect is, in a word, awkward.) This foreshadows the second Mrs. DeWinter's appearance in another dress, which creates a shocking disturbance and brings the conflict with Danvers to a head.
Danvers works like a slow poison, dropping just enough hints to pique the second Mrs. DeWinter's curiosity about Rebecca, while simultaneously verifying her own inadequacies. Finally, Danvers catches Mrs. DeWinter entering Rebecca's boudoir in the west wing, and invites her to take a look around. There's something weird about pawing through a dead woman's clothes, and Anderson and Fontaine play their parts well here. It's clear that Danvers's adoration for Rebecca isn't simply that of a servant for a beloved mistress; it is almost a sexual obsession. As Danvers strokes Rebecca's fur coats and negligees, the second Mrs. DeWinter becomes fearful of, yet fascinated by, the grown-up world of sensuality and sexuality.
On the surface, Rebecca is very much a 'women's film': it has a whirlwind romance, an honest working girl thrust into high society, etc. But this is a Hitchcock movie, after all, and the psychological study of both the protagonist and Danvers is central to the story. (To me, Max DeWinter's sub-plot always seemed tacked-on and less interesting than the conflict between the three, er, two women.) Although Fontaine, Olivier, and the supporting cast are all good, Anderson's role as Mrs. Danvers is the film's most important; it is mainly through her that Rebecca haunts the living. As per the Gothic tradition, ghosts are human-made, rather than supernatural: "Sometimes when I walk along the corridor," Danvers says, "I fancy I hear [Mrs. DeWinter] just behind me...It's not only in this room. It's in all the rooms in the house. I can almost hear it now. Do you think the dead come back and watch the living?" Anderson is manifestly creepy in this film, and her Danvers is truly one of the most formidable villains in film.
Daphne DuMaurier's Works on Film
Daphne DuMaurier's short stories and novels have always found moderate to great success in film adaptations. Her short stories have been made into into the excellent Don't Look Now (1973), directed by Nicholas Roeg and starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie, as well as The Birds (1963). Hitchcock also directed Jamaica Inn (1939), based on DuMaurier's novel.
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I love Rebecca too, amazing performances, terrific story and astonishing atmosphere.
One error though, Hitchcock didn't win for Best Director, only got nominated. Incidentally David O Selznick grabbed all the glory at the ceremony which along with his meddling in the editing of the picture made Hitchcock always shoot only the footage he needed to construct the film one way, his!
Comment by Irene
Women In Cinema
Grammar Matters
I just love this book and the movie. I could go on and on about it--as you say, the mood and the performances are top-notch. I remember hating Danvers immensely while reading the book, and Judith Andrews is perfect as her. Both the character and the actress really steal the movie, IMHO.
Comment by Wayne F
Bucket Movies
One of my favourite quotes from this movie was when Mr. DeWinter tells his new wife he'll "Make violent love to her under the shade of a palm tree" or something to that. And I really like how the main female character was left unnamed - like she was trying to be filled in for the replacement of Rebecca.
Damn good movie and a nice movie review
Comment by katyzzz
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Comment by Irene
Women In Cinema
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Mrs. Danvers is a total bitch! She's one of those villains I love to hate. And I know what you mean about how she seems to float in the movie. Judith Anderson's body language is so graceful in the movie, but in an eerie sort of way.
Good point about the unnamed protagonist. It's like she has no identity; in the shadow of Rebecca, she's just 'wife #2'.
Comment by Irene
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Good choice that your daughter made.
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Comment by Jill Browne
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Comment by Natalie 2
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Comment by Irene
Women In Cinema
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Hi Jill, DuMaurier is one of the best suspense writers out there, no doubt. She and Patricia Highsmith are among my favourites (Highsmith novels also make good movies).
Hi Natalie2, I hadn't heard of that book--but I don't usually care for modern 'sequels or 'alternative' narratives' to great books either. Well, 'Wide Sargasso Sea' is an exception. But since you said it's good, I'll look into 'Rebecca's Tale'.