Product Description

Late in Claude Rains's distinguished career, a reverent film journalist wrote that Rains "was as much a cinematic institution as the medium itself." Given his childhood speech impediments and his origins in a destitute London neighborhood, the ascent of Claude Rains (1889--1967) to the stage and screen is remarkable. Rains's difficulties in his formative years provided reserves of gravitas and sensitivity, from which he drew inspiration for acclaimed performances in The Invisible Man (1933), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Casablanca (1942), Notorious (1946), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), and other classic films. In Claude Rains: An Actor's Voice, noted Hollywood historian David J. Skal draws on more than thirty hours of newly released Rains interviews to create the first full-length biography of the actor who was nominated multiple times for an Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor. Skal's portrait of the gifted actor also benefits from the insights of Jessica Rains, who provides firsthand accounts of the enigmatic man behind her father's refined screen presence and genteel public persona. As Skal shows, numerous contradictions informed the life and career of Claude Rains. He possessed an air of nobility and became an emblem of sophistication, but he never shed the insecurities that traced back to his upbringing in an abusive and poverty-stricken family. Though deeply self-conscious about his short stature, Rains drew notorious ardor from female fans and was married six times. His public displays of dry wit and good humor masked inner demons that drove Rains to alcoholism and its devastating consequences. Skal's layered depiction of Claude Rains reveals a complex, almost inscrutable man whose nuanced characterizations were, in no small way, based on the more shadowy parts of his psyche. With unprecedented access to episodes from Rains's private life, Skal tells the full story of the consummate character actor of his generation. Claude Rains: An Actor's Voice, gives voice to the struggles and innermost concerns that influenced Rains's performances and helped him become a universally respected Hollywood legend.

Customer Reviews (13)

Interesting But Incomplete On A Personal Level
As a huge Claude Rains fan, I liked this book because it fleshed out the actor's professional career and background with an amazing amount of detail. It satisfied my need to know the basics about someone who was reclusive to the point that he might have been compared to a famous early movie role 'THE INVISIBLE MAN'. Rains was not essentially a film actor despite the fact that he spent about 20 years doing nothing but film acting. He was remarkably hammy at times, but also understated. Rains was nothing if not a contradiction both personally and professionally. He escaped to the life of a gentleman farmer in Pennsylvania when he wasn't working, tacked up six wives and five divorces, fathered one daughter and possibly an illegitimate son which was vaguely alluded to, and picked up a drinking habit that may have contributed to his death.
While this book supplies a great many facts and input from his collegues(and even his daughter), it becomes rapidly apparent that no one completely knew Claude Rains. When I finally reached the book's inevitable conclusion, it was amply apparent that I wasn't going to get a clear picture of what Rains was like when he wasn't performing and kicked back. Regardless, I this book offered a lot of information and I was glad that David Skal gave this wonderful actor his due.

Claude Rains
Over the years I have seen Claude Rains in many movies and I have always enjoyed his acting. I thought he might be an unusual individual, which is what compelled me to purchase this book. I had no idea that he was British born and trained on the English stage. He was a fascinating character, and a flawed person, like all of us. I gained a new respect for him as a person and as an actor by reading this biography. Thanks

Claude Rains An Actor's Voice
wonderful book about one of my favorite actors, the likes of which we will probably never see again.

Claude Rains a great character actor is ill served by this superficial and overpriced biography
"This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship." The line was uttered by Rick Blaine to Louis the French police captain in the unforgettable closing scene of "Casablanca." Bogie to Rains in one of the immortal closing lines in all film history. Claude Rains was one of the greatest character actors in film history. In this new biography by David J. Skal (with assistance from Rains' only child-daughter Jessica) the life of the complicated man who made such roles come alive as "The Invisible Man"
Louis in Casablanca; Dr Jaquot in Dark Victory and a British diplomat in "Lawrence of Arabia" is presented to a new generation who may not be familiar with his work unless they are fans of Turner Classic Movies or have seen a film classic such as Casablanca at a revival movie theatre.
Rains was born in 1889 (the same year as Hitler and Chaplin!) in Clapham a lower class suburb of London. His father beat him and his mother had mental health issues. Rains became involved in theatre at an early age working for Herbert Beerbohm Tree's company as a call boy, stage manager and assistant director. Rains served in World War I and returned to the British stage. Though short (5 ft. 6 inches) he became a star of British cinema seguing with ease into film. Rains had a beautiful baritone voice and a commanding stage presence. Rains was a professional with a near photographic memory who was always on time and knew his part.
In Hollywood the dapper Rains would win four Oscar nominations for best supporting actor though he never won the coveted award. Late in life he won a Tony on Broadway. Rains was very effective in the Hitchock masterpiece "Notorious" with Bergman and Grant. Ironically his first screen appearance was his star turn in H.G. Wells' "The Invisible Man" in which he was heard but not seen. Many of Rains best roles were in support of Bette Davis in such gems as "Mr. Skeffington" and "Deception." He was alsomemorable as the fey King John in "Robin Hood." He was also excellent as the corrupt Senator in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
Rains taught at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts where his roster of students included Charles Laughton and John Gielgud.
Rains was a great actor but his private life was messy. Rains married six times; his first wife was the actress Isabel Jeans. He was a serial cheater having many mistresses well into old age. He had one daughter Jessica by his fourth wife a younger woman who left him after a decade of marriage. Rains enjoyed his farm in New York and later in rural New Hampshire. The naturalized American citizen Claude Rains died in 1967 leaving behind a legacy
of great film roles.
I could not admire Rains as a man. He was a serial cheater on his wives; aloof and egocentric. He was often a grouch and difficult to live with. Rains loved the bottle andbecame an alcoholic. He could be insulting and crude to his family and friends. He could, though, in honesty be a loyal colleague with a wealth of film acting knowledge which he shared with others. He was complex, mecurial and a great actor.
David J. Skal has written a superficial life of Rains. The best part of the book is the filmography of Rains movies and the list of his stage, radio and TV work included in the appendix. Basically this book is just a succinct and shallow review of his various roles on stage and screen. Some attention is given to his private life but this is minimal. The book has boo-boos showing the neeed for an editorial hand: e.g. He says Alben Barkley was a Republican while he was really a Democrat who served as Senator from Kentucky and VEEP under Harry Truman.
The book is overpriced; you can learn as much about Rains by perusing the Wikipedia article on the internet or reading reviews on this book on Amazon.

A Good...Not Great...Biography but Largely Disappointing
I just finished this book and I totally agree with Candace's review listed here.
The review is right on the mark so I won't be repetitious.Claude was married to Frances for a long time, yet you barely get to know her in the book; hardly any insight into their relationship and what happened to Frances after their divorce.What happened to the son that Claude had when he was in England?Too many loose ends.Not enough informal details about Claude....What music did he like?Food?Interests (other than antiques, farming/gardening)?Not enough stories about him and his daughter's relationship as they got older....which there is no excuse considering she co-authored the book.Claude Rains was a fascinating man and a brilliant actor and there should have been more depth to this book.
Also, here's a few mistakes I found in the book...

Page 101 - Inaccurate synopsis of movie "Juarez" and Bette Davis (Carlotta) did not play Paul Muni's (Benito Juarez) wife but was the wife of Brian Aherne (Maximillian), who was the misguided and deceived King of Mexico.

Page 111 -Doctor's daughter was played by Nancy Coleman not Ann Sheridan.

Photo of Claude in a white dinner jacket holding a gun is from the film "Rope of Sand" not "Song of Surrender."

Photo listed as "With Whitney Bourne in Crime without Passion (1934)" should actually be "With Gertrude Michael in The Last Outpost (1935)."


Claude Rains may have been precise and professional, but the book certainly is not. ... Read more

Product Description
The career of Claude Rains is often, and unfairly, overshadowed by the careers of the ever-popular Karloff, Lugosi, Chaney and Rathbone, but few can dispute that he was truly one of the world's foremost character actors. The Invisible Man, ironically, made him quite the visible star. In his own inimitable way, Rains later became John Jasper (in Mystery of Edwin Drood), Louis Renault (Casablanca), Julius Caesar (Caesar and Cleopatra), and Mr. Dryden (Lawrence of Arabia).

While concentrating on Rains' more than fifty films, this book also comprehensively examines his work in other media: the stage, radio, television and recordings. His only child, Jessica, in the foreword, provides a brief biography of her father. There are many rare photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Claude Rains: A Comprenhensie Illustrated Reference to his Work in Films, etc.
It is interesting facts about Claude Rains I never knew before.
I am glad I bought the book about his life and times.

A Self-Made Man
Being a fan of some Bette Davis movies, I purchased "Deception" and was stunned by the performance of Claude Rains.Since then, I have purchased as many Claude Rains performances as I could.Here was a man who overcame a childhood of abject poverty, little education and two forms of speech impediments.He became a performer of such intensity it is difficult to notice anyone else in the scene.Although his height, or lack of it, usually kept him from getting the girl, Miss Davis admitted that he reeked of sex appeal.What Elvis evoked with a wiggle, Claude was able to do with that left eyebrow and that voice.Naturally, after seeing some performances, I definitely wanted to find out all I could about Mr. Rains and "An Actor's Voice" did not disappoint.This is a penetrating book about a brilliant. irreplaceable artist.

A great book
This book is exactly what it says, it is comprehensive (it covers his whole life in great detail). It's Illustrated (it has pictures and photographs throughout the book). It can most definitely be used as a reference to many things, Drama, The Arts, Claude rains, life in british poverty. Overall this is a very good book.

Soister does it again!
Another great biography from John Soister.Mr. Soister wrote the definitive book on Universal horror films from the 1930's a year ago, now he publishes the definitive biography of one of filmdon's acting giants,Claude Rains.A book on this wonderful actor was way overdue. Soisterproves it was well worth the wait! Each of Rains' films is recounted indetail, with Soister's well informed opinion on each film, and Mr. Rains'performance.If you are a fan of Claude Rains, or Hollywood's Golden Era,THIS is a must book for you! He may have been short in physical stature,but Claude Rains was a towering giant when it came to talent, style, andfilm presence.You won't be disappointed in buying this great work! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Nifty Frankenstein satire/pastiche
One of Rick DeMarinis' first novels (1975), A Lovely Monster is a nifty spoof of Frankenstein, in which the main character, the monster created by Dr. Tellenbeck, takes for his own name that of his favorite actor, Claude Rains. Once he's gained his strength, Claude wastes no time engaging in pulchritudinous activities in the condo in which he and his creator have moved into.

This belongs in the same overall group of works perpetrated by the likes of Robert Coover and Donald Barthelme--hip 20th century takeoffs on classic lit and/or legends/fairy tales. It's a real hoot. The book is not too easy to find and is pretty short (less than 125 pages), but is a really fun read.

If you see a copy, grab it and enjoy! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Should be no stars--an awful book!
I bought this book after seeing an advertisement in a magazine, and it was a huge mistake. This has to be one of the most badly written books I've encountered in some time. Poor spelling, punctuation errors, a lack of photos (there are supposed to be some, according to the preface, but there are none), and too much fiction (making up dialog when referring to a situation where there was no one else present to witness it or no other record of the event) make this book a complete waste of time, and is a great disservice to one of the greatest actors on the screen.

I would recommend Claude Rains: A Comprehensive Illustrated Reference by John T. Soister and JoAnna Wioskowski, with a Foreword by Claude Rains' daughter, Jessica Rains, which is the best book I've come across about Rains.

Claude Rains: A Comprehensive Illustrated Reference to His Work in Film, Stage, Radio, Television and Recordings

the life and times of claude rains
the biography is slightly interesting. It is, however, spoiled by incredibly bad punctuation, on almost every page. If that wan't enough, it states on the back cover "I hope you will enjoy all the photos of his life and in his films." Unfortunately there is not a single photograph in the biography. The only photograph there is is on the front cover.

Good but lacking
This book needed a proof reader. A few segments were repeated and sometimes in a slightly differennt form, indicating portions of the draft were included with the "finished" copy.I liked the subject enough to overlook these shortcomings but just barely. Please, take the time to proof-read this before you print it again.

Please seek out another biography
Having purchased this book under the impression that it was a legitimate biography of the great character actor, Claude Rains, I was disillusioned to discover that it is merely a collection of the author's files about the actor. Cohesive narrative, analysis of a magnificent career and humanity offered by the telling anecdote are all missing. Please save your money. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 1358 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.Signed essays ranging from 500 to 2,500 words, written by subject experts and edited to form a consistent, readable, and straightforward reference. Entries include subject-specific bibliographies and textual cross-references to related essays. ... Read more

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Chapters: Joseph Chamberlain, Claude Rains, Robert Browning, Boris Karloff, Leslie Grantham, Ida Lupino, Rikki Beadle-Blair, Anthony James Leggett, Benjamin Jowett, Wayne Gray, Shaun Newton, Martin Mcdonagh, Pat Coombs, Oliver Percy Bernard, Pete Bennett, Sydney Wooderson, George Ndah, Hyacinth Morgan, Martin Ruane, Chris Sulley, Charles Ammon, 1st Baron Ammon, Bob Johnson, Carlton Fairweather, Peter Perrett, Dave Mehmet, Alfred Domett, Barry Driscoll, Nosher Powell, Frank C. Papé, Mark Debolla, Sidney Bates, Mickey Bennett, Kenneth Oxford, John Oxenford, B. L. Driscoll, Albert Evans, George Perren, Peter Scantlebury, Albert Smith, Madeline Brock. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 214. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman, politician, and statesman. In his early years Chamberlain was a radically minded Liberal Party member, a campaigner for educational reform, and President of the Board of Trade. He later became a Liberal Unionist in alliance with the Conservative Party and was appointed Colonial Secretary. At the end of his career he led the tariff reform campaign. Despite never becoming Prime Minister, he is regarded as one of the most important British politicians of the late 19th century and early 20th century, as well as a colourful character and renowned orator. Chamberlain was the father of Sir Austen Chamberlain and Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. Chamberlain was born in Camberwell in London to a successful shoemaker and manufacturer also named Joseph (17961874). He was educated at University College School (then still in Euston) between 1850 and 1852, in which he excelled academically, achieving prizes in French and mathematics. The elder Chamberlain was not able to send all his children into...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=88256 ... Read more

Product Description
Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Alain Delon, Michel Serrault, Alain Chabat, Ciarán Hinds, Rex Harrison, Claude Rains, Gottfried John, Louis Calhern, Timothy Dalton, Christopher Stills. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Michel Lucien Serrault est un acteur français né le 24 janvier 1928 à Brunoy (Essonne) et mort le 29 juillet 2007 à Équemauville (Calvados). Marié le 27 janvier 1958 avec Juanita Saint-Peyron, qu'il avait rencontrée au conservatoire Maubel à Paris alors qu'il prenait des cours de comédie, avec pour témoins Jean Poiret et Françoise Dorin, Michel Serrault a eu deux filles : Caroline morte accidentellement en 1977, âgée de 19 ans, et Nathalie. Juanita, dite Nita, morte le 15 novembre 2008, aura été jusqu'à la fin l'amour de sa vie. C'était un des acteurs les plus populaires et atypiques de sa génération, apprécié aussi bien par l'intelligentsia que par le grand public pour s'être coulé avec aisance et authenticité, tout au long d'une carrière forte de cent trente cinq longs métrages, dans des rôles très différents et originaux: du boulevard (La Cage aux folles), de la comédie absurde ou délirante (Buffet froid, Le Miraculé, Rien ne va plus) à un registre plus sombre (Garde à vue, Les Fantômes du chapelier, Mortelle randonnée, Docteur Petiot) en passant par une palette d'interprétations dramatiques nuancées (Nelly et Monsieur Arnaud, Le Monde de Marty). Il est le seul comédien à avoir obtenu le César du meilleur acteur à trois reprises. Entré à 14 ans au petit séminaire de Conflans à Charenton-le-Pont, il souhaite devenir prêtre et proclame avoir deux passions : « faire rire et m'occuper de Dieu ». C'est le père Van Hamme qui l'oriente alors vers son métier de comédien. Michel Serrault dira plus tard qu'il n'aurait pa...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

Customer Reviews (35)

AN ASTONISHING LIFE

.....If only one half the episodes in Flynn's book are true then his adventures were as exciting as any fiction writer could conjure.

.....His journey from Tasmania to the King of Hollywood was as improbable as any rags to riches story ever told.

.....A Hollywood actress once said that Flynn's main problem was that he liked the ladies and the ladies liked him.Olivia DeHavilland, his co star in eight pictures, said that she had a crush on Errol but that their relationship was platonic and confined to the screen.She claimed that he asked her to marry him while he was still married to Lilly Damita but as loveable as Errol was she could never marry a man who was likely to be in another woman's bed whenever he got the chance.

.....She told a story of shooting a scene with Errol in "Robinhood" where they had to kiss and she didn't want the scene to end so she kept flubbing her lines so that they would have to shoot it over.She said that by the sixth take Errol began to have a problem with his tights.Olivia was in her eighties and white haired when she gave that interview and she delivered it deadpan.She was hillarious.

.....I am on my second reading and I think I could read this book at least once a year and still find it entertaining.Flynn was one of a kind and we are not likely to see another.I highly recommend this book.

By far the most entertaining autobiography I've ever read...and reread
4.8 stars

Easily my favorite memoir.

Flynn is an excellent writer and lived a truly epic, fascinating life. This book rarely flags, and only then towards the end. The rest is absolutely hilarious, and surprisingly insightful and self-effacing. I expected nothing when I found this on a library shelf some years back in Colorado, never having heard of it, and never have I been more pleasantly surprised by a book of any sort.

Flynn was a star like we can't imagine. He almost invented the devil-may-care movie star type, and no one has surpassed him since. Movies back then were everything; there was no tv, only books and radio, neither of which show a face, so when a perfect mug like Flynn's arrived on screen, attached to an athletic, daring scamp of an adventurer, he was, well, in like Flynn.

The only memoir I've found worth reading more than once (three times to date), Wicked Ways succeeds not only due to its great humor but Flynn's extraordinarily exciting early life. By far the best part is his adventures through the Orient with one of the wildest characters I've ever encountered in fact or fiction, Koots. This guy is something else, and deserves a movie and book of his own. I won't spoil this section, but suffice to say that few films pack the fun, humor and suspense that those chapters do. They're some of my favorite tales of all time, in fact.

The later years of Hollywood stardom and the fall therefrom get a bit wearing for both author and reader, and one feels that details may be missing but doesn't really care. Flynn may have a been a rogue in every sense of the word, but he also comes across as a decent man, with a sense of honor and fair play. He may have slept around with every starlet in Hollywood, many of them quite young, but it seems assured that none of them did so except very willingly. He's a charming bloke to the nth degree, and you'd be hard pressed not to smile and wave goodbye as your daughter gets into his Bentley and rolls away.

If you need humor and adventure in equal doses, both very large, this is your book.

Highly recommended.

In like Flynn
Great read, though his style of writing and lopsided story line is from a whole other world. Easily one of the best read's for a while. Helps to understand one of Australia's greatest hollywood star's of all time.

A Guide For Living...no...REALLY LIVING!
This is hands down the best autobiography I have ever read.I enthusiastically recommend it to anyone who wants to make the most of life.Sure, it may contain exaggerations, embellishments, and flat out lies.It doesn't matter.It is beyond inspirational, not to mention suspenseful, insightful, and shockingly intimate and revealing.Funny too!In short, I knew almost nothing of Errol Flynn before I read this book.Now, I love this guy!Pity him too, because there is an element of truth in this book that really puts the life of fame and fortune into perspective.Despite his so called 'shortcomings,' one cannot help admiring this guy's courage, wit, will, and yes, honesty.Whether he had a ghost writer or not, it was Flynn's voice I heard narrating.And I think its important to remember that some stories are true that never happened.Throughout the book, Errol demonstrates how the philosophy of 'acting as if' can take a man from obscurity to the extraordinary.A beautiful book to document a great life, and I dare say it should be a 'must read' for any young MAN setting out to live life to the fullest!Or, at the very least, a 'must-read' cautionary tale.

View on Errol
This is a great book, really gives insight into the real Errol Flynn, the scoundrel, the adventurer, the pirate, the swashbuckler, the human. He was everything in real life and more what he was in the movies. ... Read more

Product Description
The most expensive movie ever made in Britain at the time, this breathtaking adaptation of Shaw's epic was notoriously lavish. Shot in Technicolor and directed by Gabriel Pascal, the film was so extravagant that the director even took sand to Egypt to get the right cinematic colour. As Rome invades Egypt, Julius Caesar (Rains) stumbles across the young and unrefined princess Cleopatra (Leigh), sheltering in the Sphinx. Impressed by her spirit and intelligence, seduced by her charm he determines to make her Queen. Cleopatra learns about power and politics at the feet of a master but her downfall begins when she is seduced by Mark Antony. This witty, brilliantly designed movie features a memorable cast including Stewart Granger (The Prisoner of Zenda), Flora Robson (Wuthering Heights), Stanley Holloway (My Fair Lady) and a very young Jean Simmons (Great Expectations) as the harpist. ... Read more

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NYC Broadway Playbill at Royale Theatre 186 performances ... Read more

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One of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest films, Notorious features the director at his devilishly elegant, self-assured best. A visual masterpiece, it plays like a seamlessly assembled jigsaw puzzle, in which each piece fits together with clean precision. This romantic thriller features a cast to kill for: Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant, and Claude Rains. Bergman plays the daughter of a disgraced father who is recruited by American agents to infiltrate a post-World War II spy ring in Brazil. Her control agent is Grant, who treats her with disdain while developing a deep romantic bond with her. Her assignment: to marry the suspected head of the ring (Rains) and get the goods on everyone involved. Danger, deceit, betrayal--and, yes, romance--all come together in a nearly perfect blend as the film builds to a terrific (and surprising) climax. Grant and Bergman rarely have been better. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Suspense, Restrained Love
Hitchcock's 1946 "romantic" thriller stars Ingrid Bergman as the daughter of a Nazi spy living in the United States convicted of treason. Bergman an amorous and promiscuous playgirl who is reluctantly conscripted by an enigmatic American espionage agent Cary Grant, finds herself in more peril than she bargained for on her assignment in Brazil. This has always been considered one of Hitchcock's better thrillers, however personally I never found it that intriguing even though I am a Hitchcock enthusiast. I even watched this film again before I wrote this review. For me it seems a bit out of step from his other films. In a strange way it jumps ahead to a style Hitchcock employed in 1969's TOPAZ. For me it lacks romanticism. There are love scenes just as there are in TOPAZ. Equally as in TOPAZ the actors just seem to be going through the motions in these passionate scenes. However, there is no lack of acting talent in either film. Hitchcock's intent of the histrionics is for his actors to give as realistic performances as possible and downplay the dramatics. The characters in both films are spies and live their lives from day to day never knowing if this one will be their last. People leading such lives must learn to go on with detached indifference and suppress any feelings of emotion and love. Both Bergman and Grant turn in excellent performances. This is not the same Cary Grant audiences were used to seeing. He let none of his own personality surface and just played the character as written. He remains always distant and aloof in his scenes with Bergman. We can only read the disgust on his face when Bergman is off camera of his true feelings for her. Bergman playing off his aloofness also suppresses her love for him when both are on camera together. So there is a romantic theme in the film but it is not visually provocative as in other Hitchcock films because of the constraints of the film's plot. That is what makes it look so different from his other films. We also see shades of PSYCHO present in this film. Claude Rains as the aristocratic Nazi Alexander Sebastian has a similar quixotic relationship with his mother as Norman Bates has or had with his. One highlight of the film is underrated composer Roy Webb's beautifully written theme. From a technical standpoint Hitchcock once again pulls off an impressive and notable camera shot, somewhat similar to a shot he later used in MARNIE. Hitchcock brings the camera from the top of a stairway overlooking a huge cocktail party in Claude Rains' sprawling mansion and slowly moves through the guests right up to the "key" that is in Bergman 's hand. The close up of the "key" is a crucial one for that "key" physically and symbolically unlocks the secret disguised in Claude Rains' mysterious wine cellar. This film is Hitchcock's most underplayed and seductively sensuous. It is never overtly romantic yet remains absorbing and suspenseful. However I still do not think it looks like your typical Alfred Hitchcock film. ... Read more