North by Northwest

Just a short note to say that this week I went to see North by Northwest at the BFI, which was, as ever, a delightful experience.  I don’t really know why they’re playing it – it was by no means a new print, though it possibly has something to do with the fact that it was released 50 years ago – but seeing it in the cinema really drove home the colossal importance to the success of the overall work of Bernard Herrmann’s terrific and pacy score, which benefitted tremendously from proper amplification on a real sound system.  The BF, who had never seen it before (film not really being his bag), decided that it was enjoyable hokum; I think it’s fantastic hokum.  Catch it while you can, as its run ends on 9 July at the BFI Southbank.