The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock (remaking his own 1934 film of the same name)

Story: Charles Bennett, D.B. Wyndham-Lewis 

Cast: James Stewart, Doris Day

Music: Bernard Herrmann, Arthur Benjamin  

Time: 120 minutes

Bottom-line: Lot of time given for build-up, but delivers suspense and thrills masterfully

  If there was a Hitchcock film that is remembered for something other than the thrills, it is this 1956 film: The Man Who Knew Too Much. Though the film contains few Hitchcockian elements related to suspense, the film was more popular for the song ‘Que Sera Sera’, which also won the Academy Award for Best Song.  The third collaboration between James Stewart and Hitchcock proves to be another good thriller, but is still not as good as their previous collaboration: Rear Window. 

Dr. Ben McKenna (Stewart) and his wife, a retired theatre singer, Jo McKenna (Day), along with their son Hank (Christopher Olsen) are touring Marrakech. They meet a Frenchman in a bus, Louis Bernard (Daniel Gelin). Ben and Louis become friendly, though Jo is suspicious that Louis asks so many questions and avoids answering to theirs. The McKennas later meet an English couple: Lucy (Brenda De Banzie) and Edward Drayton (Bernard Miles), who also seem friendly. To the audience, some more suspicious moves of Bernard are shown. The next day, as the McKennas look around the market, they see an Arab man murdered in public. When Ben goes closer, he sees that it is actually Louis Bernard in disguise. He murmurs that an important foreign statesman will be assassinated in London, and that they must immediately tell authorities about ‘Ambrose Chappell’, and then dies. Meanwhile, another shock the McKennas get is that their son is kidnapped by the seemingly-friendly English couple, who demand Ben’s silence for their son’s safety. Does Ben tell the police about the last words of Bernard and risk his son’s life? Or does Ben try to prevent the assassination himself? Watch this Hitchcock film to find out!

Doris Day as Jo, and James Stewart as
Ben McKenna

The story is slightly slow. As I said, plenty of time is given for building up the story and suspense. In the beginning of the film, the story is more of a documentary about Morocco and Marrakech. It is only after the murder of Louis Bernard that the story speeds up. However, there are few clues in the beginning that should be paid attention to. There are few dialogues by Bernard, and some other scenes that may seem normal, but their importance is known later. 

Doris Day’s performance is brilliant. Her expressions when she suspects Bernard, her expression when she finds out that Hank is kidnapped, and finally her acting towards the end, in the Albert Hall, are excellent. She sings the song ‘Que Sera Sera’ at the end of the film, and this is what may have made the song (and in a way the film) so great that the song has become synonymous with the film. Stewart has also acted fairly well.

Gelin as Louis Bermard (left most); Olsen as
Hank McKenna (second from left); Day and Stewart

Unlike the shower scene in Psycho or the crop duster scene in North by Northwest, this film does not have any particular sequence in between the film that is interesting. The climax, however, is the best part of the film. The story proceeds slowly, and then goes tenser and tenser till a magnificent climax in the Albert Hall. The suspense is held at screaming point (literally!), and this scene, accompanied by Doris Day’s brilliant acting, is one of the best scenes in all Hitchcock films. 

A still that comes after the opening credits

To sum up, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much starts slowly, but has several boosts all leading to a teeth-gritting nail-biting finish. Doris Day’s acting, the story and magnificent climax make the film another treat from Hitchcock. There are not many elements of suspense and so, don’t expect many sudden twists and turns. The story is straightforward: no plot turns, no great score (but of course, a memorable song)… but the climax makes up for the lack of thrills in between the story.  

My Rating: 3.5/5

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 89%