IMDb >
North by Northwest (1959)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsNorth by Northwest (1959) More at IMDbPro »
| Photos (see all 59 | slideshow) | Videos (see all 9) |
Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Ernest Lehman (written by)
Release Date:
17 September 1959 (Japan)
more
Tagline:
Alfred Hitchcock takes you.... North by Northwest! more
Plot:
A hapless New York advertising executive is mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and is pursued across the country while he looks for a way to survive. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Spy
|
Advertising
|
Agent
|
Government Agent
|
Murder
more
Awards:
Nominated for 3 Oscars.
Another 4 wins
&
3 nominations
more
NewsDesk:
(58 articles)
Facebook Fans: Win a Copy of North by Northwest on DVD!
(From FilmSchoolRejects. 22 November 2009, 6:00 AM, PST)
North by Northwest on Blu-Ray
(From CanMag. 21 November 2009, 12:23 PM, PST)
(From FilmSchoolRejects. 22 November 2009, 6:00 AM, PST)
North by Northwest on Blu-Ray
(From CanMag. 21 November 2009, 12:23 PM, PST)
User Comments:
I finally get how great it is: Hitch infuses his wrong-man caper with ironic movie language and reality-be-damned escapism and suspense.
more (365 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) more
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (USA) (complete title)
Breathless (USA) (working title)
In a Northwesterly Direction (USA) (working title)
The Man in Lincoln's Nose (USA) (working title)
Intriga internacional (Argentina) (Mexico) (original subtitled version) (Uruguay) (Venezuela) [es]
La mort aux trousses (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Der unsichtbare Dritte (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Intriga Internacional (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Észak, északnyugat (Hungary) [hu]
Con la muerte en los talones (Spain) [es]
De dood op de hielen (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
I sista minuten (Sweden) [sv]
Intrigo internazionale (Italy) [it]
La nord prin nord-vest (Romania) [ro]
Med hjertet i halsen (Norway) [no]
Menneskejagt (Denmark) [da]
Na sever severozápadní linkou (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Pólnoc, pólnocny zachód (Poland) [pl]
Perseguit per la mort (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Sever-Severozapad (Serbia) [sr]
Sjever-sjeverozapad (Croatia) [hr]
Sti skia ton 4 giganton (Greece) [el]
Sti skia ton tessaron giganton (Greece) (reissue title) [el]
Vaarallinen romanssi (Finland) [fi]
more
Breathless (USA) (working title)
In a Northwesterly Direction (USA) (working title)
The Man in Lincoln's Nose (USA) (working title)
Intriga internacional (Argentina) (Mexico) (original subtitled version) (Uruguay) (Venezuela) [es]
La mort aux trousses (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Der unsichtbare Dritte (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Intriga Internacional (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Észak, északnyugat (Hungary) [hu]
Con la muerte en los talones (Spain) [es]
De dood op de hielen (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
I sista minuten (Sweden) [sv]
Intrigo internazionale (Italy) [it]
La nord prin nord-vest (Romania) [ro]
Med hjertet i halsen (Norway) [no]
Menneskejagt (Denmark) [da]
Na sever severozápadní linkou (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Pólnoc, pólnocny zachód (Poland) [pl]
Perseguit per la mort (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Sever-Severozapad (Serbia) [sr]
Sjever-sjeverozapad (Croatia) [hr]
Sti skia ton 4 giganton (Greece) [el]
Sti skia ton tessaron giganton (Greece) (reissue title) [el]
Vaarallinen romanssi (Finland) [fi]
more
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
131 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (2000) |
Canada:PG (Ontario) |
UK:A (1959) |
USA:Approved (PCA #19156) |
USA:TV-G (TV rating) |
Iceland:L |
Spain:13 |
Sweden:15 |
South Korea:12 |
Netherlands:AL (DVD rating) |
Netherlands:12 (re-rating) |
Netherlands:12 (2008 re-release) |
Brazil:14 |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:G (1959-1998) |
Australia:PG |
Chile:14 |
Finland:K-16 |
France:U |
Germany:12 (re-rating) |
Peru:14 |
UK:PG |
West Germany:16 (original rating) |
Norway:16
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #55 Greatest Movie of All Time.
more
Goofs:
Continuity: Escaping from two thugs, Thornhill dashes out of the Plaza, grabs a cab, and it drives off. The thugs get into the next cab and go after him. From inside his cab, Thornhill then looks back at the hotel but the thug's cab is not there. It should be just pulling away from the curb.
more
Quotes:
Roger Thornhill:
No. No, Mother, I have not been drinking. No. No. These two men, they poured a whole bottle of bourbon into me. No, they didn't give me a chaser.
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies: 10th Anniversary Edition (2007) (TV)
more
Soundtrack:
It's a Most Unusual Day
more
FAQ
Where can I find screenshots from this film?What route does Thornhill follow as he travels north by northwest?
What is the title "North by Northwest" supposed to mean?
more
more (365 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for North by Northwest (1959) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| The Fugitive | Strangers on a Train | The Spider Returns | King of New York | Raiders of the Lost Ark |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb top 250 movies | IMDb Action section |
| IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |














Its Hitch's most briskly entertaining movie, and one of his most comic, adventure-caper type movies, largely thanks to the persona of Cary Grant. But its also one of his most suspenseful - in the fact that Grant is being recognised as someone else, and that he may be put in jail for someone else's crime.
I've finally come to realise just how great North by Northwest is. The reason you should love Hitchcock is he put entertainment upfront. Hitchcock was not interested in whether this or that would happen in real life: he was interested in what would make the most entertaining scene for the movie. North by Northwest is a peak in this regard. The dialogue and situations intentionally throw reality to the wind - the double-entendre dialogue in the love scenes is not supposed to be the way people talk!
If you said to Hitchcock "as if he'd keep driving" or "as if she'd do that" - he would just laugh at you and say you've missed the point. This is 100% movieland, and once you get used to the fact, and that this is not a fault in the film, but done intentionally, you'll love it. Its expressionistic - everything happens in movie language: the people laughing at Grant in the elevator, the way he keeps driving drunk near the beginning, the way he grabs the knife and everyone stares at him after someone's been stabbed.
It flirts with the idea of identity. I thought it was interesting how Grant first is dismissing, then incredulous that people should be calling him by another name; then, as the tries to find out who this guy is, he enters the hotel room of this new identity, then he puts the suit on, and finally he identifies himself as George Kaplan.
A succession of fantastic, memorable scenes, a great leading man in Grant, and one of Hermann's essential Hitch scores make for a movie i can put on at any time.
10/10