The Man Who Knew too Much
1956  NR  DRAMA  2h
CAST— James Stewart, Doris Day, Brenda De Banzie, Bernard Miles, Ralph Truman, Daniel Gelin, Alan Mowbray, Carolyn Jones, Hillary Brooke
MUSIC— Bernard Herrmann  DIRECTOR— Alfred Hitchcock

     Entertaining if inferior remake of the 1934 suspense drama, also directed by Alfred Hitchcock, in which a plot to assassinate a French politician is leaked to a vacationing couple. After their son is kidnapped, the couple must keep silent, or the child dies. They begin a two-partied search, tracking the baddies to jolly ol’ London, where the trail leads them ever nearer to a tearful hug-fest of a reunion. The film has its share of problems (when did Hitchcock start directing musical thrillers?) and, of course, it lacks some of the fine tuning of the original, but for most viewers the star power and Technicolor may help. Oscar-winner for Best Song (Whatever Will Be, Will Be [Que Sera, Sera] [Jay Livingstone and Ray Evans]).
OUR RATING— ** ½
ORIGINAL— The Man Who Knew too Much (1934)