Hitchcock and Selznick: The Rich and Strange Collaboration of Alfred Hitchcock and David O. Selznick in Hollywood

They were the odd couple of cinema: Hitchcock's spry, intelligent thrillers were very much at odds with Selznick's adaptions notable for their fidelity to their source. Hitchcock, in contrast, was anything but faithful to the source material of his many film adaptions. Both adaptions and original material focused on key visual images around which the plot was built. Selznick was the opposite of Hitch in that his productions were focused more on the narrative. Their collaboration managed to enrich each other's skills.Although they made few films together during their ten year "collaboration" (in reality Hitch was under contract so his status was more as suborindate than equal), most of them are hampered by their lack of cohesive styles. As producer/director they didn't hit their collborative stride until Hitch's Notorius in 1946. Most of Hitch's work was with other producers and studios for which he was loaned out like any other actor or director of the time.Nevertheless, Hitch learned valuable lessons in structuring a film for the American audience. He also managed to reach an audience that he could only have imagined before coming to America. Selznick's most valuable lesson was learning to let his directors occasionally have their way on projects. Leff's book is a bit too scholarly in tone for the average film fan but is well written and researched. It's also quite expensive given that it's a large format paperback (this probably has to do with the small audience imagined for it and the fact that it comes from the UC Press). Many of Leff's more interesting observations have turned up as commentary on a number of Criterion DVDs (particularly the Spellbound DVD released last year). There were many classic films produced during their time together but just as many misfires (Spellbound, despite it's many attributes is a good example of the disasterous turn their collaboration could take). Hitch hadn't hit the height of his powers as a director yet. His most powerful films (Rear Window, North by Northwest, Vertigo, The Trouble With Charlie, Strangers on a Train, Psycho and The Birds)loomed in his future. Nevertheless, his films from this time frame are, at times, revolutionary in one way or another (Saboteur, Shadow of a Doubt, Lifeboat among many others).This book details their work together from uneasy partnership to the truce that allowed Hitch to produce one of his most magnificient films (Notorius). Although Hitch's work has come to dominate our culture more than Selznick's (with the possible exception of Gone With The Wind), neither man would have achieved his goals without the other.

You probably couldn't find two more fascinating personalities in the history of cinema than Hitchcock and Selznick, and Mr. Leff does an excellent job providing background information and behind-the-scenes details on their collaborations. The book tends to slow down at times, mostly due to expositionary passages which are essential, but which delay getting to the good stuff.One thing I would have liked more of would have been more information on what each of these characters did away from each other. I realize that gets away from the main thesis, but I think that Mr. Leff tries to involve as many of those details as he can into his narrative but is forced to pare it down to stay on course.What's particularly interesting is how Hitchcock and Selznick virtually switched places in the Hollywood hierarchy over the course of their time together. Knowing what we know about each man in his later years lends an extra creedence to Mr. Leff's work.

For any serious fan and student of Hitchcock, this compellingly readable book is a must. Should be on the bookshelf along with Donald Spoto's great book "The Dark Side of Genius." Where Spoto's book provides excellent detail on the Hitchcock side of this strained but dynamic collaboration, Leff's book fills the gap on the Selznick end, providing both an historical perspective (Hitchcock on the rise, Selznick at the beginning of his decline) and an insightful look at the filmmaking methods of both men, striving to push the envelope in the repressive era of Will Hayes' Hollywood code. Hitch may have bridled under Selznick's heavy-handedness, his obsession with using name talent and his emphasis on dialogue and character development. Yet, many of the great Hitchcock films that came after their colloaboration bear the mark of Selznick's influence in all these areas. Mr. Leff's book offers an eminently fair rendering of each man's creative contributions and personal angst in their 10 year association, and is an important contribution to mid-20th century American film history.