The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

John Michael Hayes (screenplay)
Charles Bennett (story) ...

Release Date:

1 June 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A little knowledge can be a deadly thing!

Plot:

A family vacationing in Morocco accidentally stumble on to an assassination plot and the conspirators are determined to prevent them from interfering.

Plot Keywords:

Father Son Relationship | Stabbed In The Back | Whistling | Veil | Mother Son Relationship

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

James Stewart	...	Dr. Benjamin 'Ben' McKenna
Doris Day	...	Josephine Conway 'Jo' McKenna
Brenda De Banzie	...	Lucy Drayton (as Brenda de Banzie)
Bernard Miles	...	Edward Drayton
Ralph Truman	...	Inspector Buchanan
Daniel Gélin	...	Louis Bernard (as Daniel Gelin)
Mogens Wieth	...	Ambassador
Alan Mowbray	...	Val Parnell
Hillary Brooke	...	Jan Peterson
Christopher Olsen	...	Henry 'Hank' McKenna
Reggie Nalder	...	Rien
Richard Wattis	...	Assistant Manager
Noel Willman	...	Woburn
Alix Talton	...	Helen Parnell
Yves Brainville	...	Police Inspector

Also Known As:

Homme qui en savait trop, L' (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Hombre que sabía demasiado, El (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Homem Que Sabia Demais, O (Brazil) (Portugal) (original subtitled version) [pt]
Mann, der zuviel wußte, Der (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Mannen som visste för mycket (Finland: Swedish title) (Sweden) [sv]
Anthropos pou gnorize polla, O (Greece) [el]
Covjek koji je previse znao (Croatia) (DVD title) [hr]
Czlowiek, który wiedzial za duzo (Poland) [pl]
En manos del destino (Argentina) (alternative title) [es]
Ish sh'Yada Yoter Me'dye, Ha- (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Man die te veel wist, De (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Manden der vidste for meget (Denmark) [da]
Mannen utanför lagen (Sweden) [sv]
Mies joka tiesi liikaa (Finland) [fi]
Uomo che sapeva troppo, L' (Italy) [it]

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | Arabic

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.50 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | UK:PG | USA:Approved (PCA #17717) | UK:A (original rating) | Iceland:L | Spain:T | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Norway:16 | USA:PG | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

Avenue Bab Jdid, Marrakech, Morocco

Company:

Filwite Productions

Trivia:

Many of the Moroccan extras had been mistakenly informed that they would only be paid if they were actually visible in the film. This led to a lot of pushing and shoving to get close to the camera until the crew explained to them that they would be paid no matter what.

Goofs:

Continuity: On their first morning in London, McKenna leaves a taxi and walks down a quiet residential street and stops at the next corner. Four or five camera shots were taken as he slowly walked down the street. In the first three or four shots the shadow of the buildings along the block extended across the sidewalk to about three feet into the street. But in the final scene at the corner the shadows were gone.

Quotes:

[to Louis Bernard]
Hank McKenna: If you ever get hungry, our garden back home is full of snails. We tried everything to get rid of them. We never thought of a Frenchman!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Matrix (1999)

Soundtrack:

Storm Cloud Cantata

Que Sera Sera

The original The Man Who Knew Too Much brought Alfred Hitchcock acclaim for the first time outside of the United Kingdom. Of course part of the reason for the acclaim was that folks marveled how Hitchcock on such a skimpy budget as compared to lavish Hollywood products was able to provide so much on the screen. The original film was shot inside a studio.

For whatever reason he chose this of all his films to remake, Hitchcock now with an international reputation and a big Hollywood studio behind him (Paramount)decided to see what The Man Who Knew Too Much would be like with a lavish budget. This is shot on location in Marrakesh and London and has two big international names for box office. This was James Stewart's third of four Hitchcock films and his only teaming with Doris Day and her only Hitchcock film.

I do wonder why Hitchcock never used Doris again. At first glance she would fit the profile of blond leading ladies that Hitchcock favored. Possibly because her wholesome screen image was at odds with the sophistication Hitchcock also wanted in his blondes.

Doris does some of her best acting ever in The Man Who Knew Too Much. Her best scene is when her doctor husband James Stewart gives her a sedative before telling her their son has been kidnapped by an English couple who befriended them in Morocco. Stewart and Day play off each other beautifully in that scene. But Doris especially as she registers about four different emotions at once.

Day and Stewart are on vacation with their son Christopher Olsen in Morocco and they make the acquaintance of Frenchman Daniel Gelin and the aforementioned English couple, Bernard Miles and Brenda DaBanzie. Gelin is stabbed in the back at a market place in Marrakesh and whispers some dying words to Stewart about an assassination to take place in Albert Hall in London. Their child is snatched in order to insure their silence.

For the only time I can think of a hit song came out of a Hitchcock film. Doris in fact plays a noted singer who retired from the stage to be wife and mother. The song was Que Sera Sera and I remember it well at the age of 9. You couldn't go anywhere without hearing it in 1956, it even competed with the fast rising Elvis Presley that year. Que Sera Sera won the Academy Award for Best Song beating out such titles as True Love from High Society and the title song from Around the World in 80 Days. It became Doris Day's theme song for the rest of her life and still is should she ever want to come back.

In fact the song is worked quite nicely into the plot as Doris sings it at an embassy party at the climax.

Instead of doing it with mirrors, Hitchcock shot the assassination scene at the real Albert Hall and like another reviewer said it's not directed, it's choreographed. You'll be hanging on your seats during that moment.

This was remake well worth doing.