''Exam'' (2009 movie)- Review

Directed by: Stuart Hazeldine
Released: 2009
Country: United Kingdom

Cast: Adar Beck, Gemma Chan, Nathalie Cox, John Lloyd Fillingham, Chukwudi Iwuji, 

Genres: Psychological thriller, Mystery, Drama

Rating: 4 out of 5

Review

Eight candidates. In a room. For attending an assessment for a job. There are strict rules... But there is no question. The candidates co-operate with each other to find what the question is. And in doing so, they come across revelations, arguments, quarrels, and there are a lot of psychological effects...

''Exam'' is a splendid psychological thriller. It's a very deep and intense mystery and the psychological effect and intensity was really very, very impressive. I enjoyed every moment of it.

The invigilator mentions three rules:
(1) If the candidate ruins his/her paper, he/she will be disqualified.
(2) If the candidate tries to talk to the invigilator or the guard, he/she will be disqualified.
(3) If the candidate tries to leave the ruins his/her paper, he/she will be disqualified.

But when the candidates look at the paper, there is no question in it! They cannot ask the guard, because if they do so, they will be disqualified... But then they recall that they are allowed to talk to each other! They co-operate and try to work together to find out the question. They give each other nicknames: Blonde, Brunette, Dark, White, Black, Brown, and Deaf (there was another candidate who was disqualified at the very beginning of the exam, for ruining her paper).

On co-operating, discussing, trying to find new methods to discover the hidden question, they find out about each other, about the company, and more revelations. As the atmosphere grows tense and suspenseful...

This film was indeed very, very tense, very suspenseful, very puzzling, very engrossing! I loved the concept and also the twist at the end! The performances were brilliant, and the atmosphere, the situations were so well developed. It's a really very good film with a very clever storyline. 

4 out of 5

''The Skin I Live In'' (2011 movie)- Review

Directed by: Pedro Almodovar
Released: 2011
Country: Spain

Genres: Drama, Sci-Fi, Psychological thriller, Horror

Rating: 4.5 out of 5
  
Review

Ah, Pedro Almodovar, you are amazing. The Skin I Live In is meant to be a psychological thriller. The result is a blend between thriller, horror, drama, and sentiments. While chiefly a thriller, it also touches sentimental aspect, though there is no melodrama. The Skin I Live In is a haunting film,  a disturbing story told beautifully, with an excellent presentation and screenplay.

Robert Ledgard (Antonio Banderas) is a plastic surgeon and is successful in face transplantation. He comes up with a new idea, about skin that are resistant to insect bites, burns, etc. He is, however, forbidden to go on with this experiment.

But however, secretly, Ledgard has kept a young woman, Vera, hidden in his home. He is testing that very idea on Vera. Vera is kept hidden in a room of his house. She can't get out. The only people who know about her existence are Ledgard and his servant, Marilia. 

One day, an odd man wearing a tiger costume arrives in the house. He is actually Marilia's son, Zeca. Marilia tries her best to get rid of him. She cannot let anyone get a hint about Vera. However, Zeca discovers Vera, and then after breaking into her room, rapes Vera. However, Robert soon arrives and kills Zeca.

Marilia reveals to Vera the tragic past of Ledgard, about the suicides of both of his wife and his daughter. From that time, Vera and Robert seemingly fall in love and Robert is promised that they will be no more locked doors in future.

And then... there is flashbacks... We are shown everything of the past. Of what exactly had happened to Robert's wife and daughter. And who Vera actually is. A tale of suicides, revenges, mistakes, desperation, and terrible results of revenge.

The back story is shocking. Just shocking. It was like... a bolt from a blue! I mean, it is kind of a twist. And the background is told so beautifully, and often disturbingly.

The first hour of this film is spent with introductions. We are introduced to the characters, the situation. But we have no questions about who Vera actually is, how Vera is related to Ledgard's tragic past.  She just seems an innocent girl, an innocent victim of Ledgard's experiments.  The next part is the flashbacks, the background. The flashbacks answer the unasked questions. Ah, my mouth dropped open with surprise! Each of the back stories were so fascinating and shocking.  I'll say no more about this part!!! The last part... well, I better not say anything about that! 

Antonio Banderas is excellent as Ledgard. Elena Anaya, as Vera, delivers a strong performance as well. With strong performances, excellent concept, and an extraordinary screenplay this is a splendid film. It was so haunting, so amazing, so memorable. The last scene almost brought tears to my eyes!! Almodovar, salutes to you!

4.5 out of 5



 

''The Shining'' (1980 movie)- Review

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Released: 1980  
Country: United States   

 Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers, Philip Stone, Joe Turkel, Anne Jackson     

Genres: Psychological horror, Thriller 

Rating: 4 out of 5    

Review  

Just think of it. Three people are in a hotel alone. There is no one else. Then suddenly, things happen to one of them, terrible things. He starts acting madly and violently- ready to kill the two other people. No, The Shining is not a haunting house film. Here, the thing to fear is not the presence of spirits, but the things to fear is one of the main characters. The ghosts just form a background that is very creepy as well.   

 Stanley Kubrick's ''The Shining'' is a terrifying film, first of all, and sort of ambiguous as well. The film is somewhat confusing, because we have no idea what exactly is going on, why certain things are happening to the characters, etc. But however, this is a pretty scary and one of the best psychological horror films I've seen. The atmosphere and situations are built up so well that it's impossible to deny the greatness of this film.     

Jack Torrence, a writer, takes the responsibility of the Overlook Hotel in winter. In winters, the hotel is closed because snow makes it difficult to move; Jack and his family will be the only people in the hotel. The hotel is located in an isolated area, with no houses or people around. Jack decides to use the isolation of the hotel as a chance to pay attention to his writing. Jack hears about a tragedy that took place in the hotel. Decades ago, a man working in the hotel had killed his wife and two daughters and then committed suicide. In spite of this history, Jack decides to work in the hotel    

The family moves to the hotel. Jack's son, Danny, is clairvoyant and telepathic. He can sometimes sense what is going to happen in future. And he has a mysterious imaginary friend named Tony.  

 Soon, Danny starts sensing unnatural and supernatural things in the hotel. Twin sisters. A flood of blood. A mysterious room at the hotel, Room 237.     

Jack slowly starts getting violent, extremely violent. His nature starts changing: from a gentle person, he starts getting violent and, in short, mad. He senses ghostly presences in the hotel, encounters men from the hotel's past, and then he gets eager to murder his wife and his son...    

 The film repeatedly reminded me of a word: isolated. Just think of this. The hotel is situated in an isolated area, with no houses, no neighbors around, but only mountains and snow. And in this hotel, the three members of the family live around. You can probably guess how well the situation is built up. The production design is pretty marvelous. The hotel is luxurious and vast, which amazes not only the characters but also the audience. The background music is suitable and creepy and ghostly all around.    

 Jack Nicholson is great in his role. The character slowly becoming crazy- Nicholson portrays that very well. His performance is very scary and effective. One of the few disappointments in this film is Shelley Duvall's performance. Shelley plays Jack's wife Wendy, a very important character in the film, but her performance is rather ineffective, I should. As the son, Danny Lloyd gives a satisfying performance.     

Overall, this is a splendid psychological horror film. This may not be one of my favorites of this genre, but however, I enjoyed and liked it a lot.    

 4 out of 5

''Taxi Driver'' (1976 movie)- Review

Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Released: 1976
Country: United States

Genres: Crime, Drama, Psychological thriller

Main cast: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Harvey Keitel, Cybill Shephard, Albert Brooks, Leonard Harris

Rating: 5 out of 5

Review

Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro), a Vietnam War veteran, has insomnia. To spend his night, he takes a job, driving a taxi during night. Life may seem smooth, but inside Travis, there is a desire to clean the social indiscipline of the city: to make it a clean city with peace and sanity. But his desire is something dark, he is clearly mentally unstable, yet so gentle, yet so violent.

Like many other great films, ''Taxi Driver'' is another film whose greatness can't be explained in a few words. This, certainly, will not be one of my favorite films- but no one can deny it's greatness, it's accomplishment. The disturbing theme of the film is artistically played on screen, so engrossing and a wonder to look at.

Travis Bickle wants to clean the social indiscipline of the city. Driving taxis at night, he keeps a diary where he describes how he's passing his life. He becomes attracted to a woman named Betsy (Cybill Shephard), takes her to dates, form a relationship with her, a relation that ultimately comes to an end when he takes her to a see a pornographic film. Why did he start a relation with Betsy? Because he thinks that Betsy is a lonely person. And he knows very well what loneliness means.

Jodie Foster and Robert De Niro in ''Taxi Driver''

Travis buys guns, does exercises, to become more physically fit, that will help him to ''clean up'' the city. He comes across child prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster), and becomes desperate to save her. To return to her the normal childhood.

Loneliness plays a major role throughout the film.  Travis Bickle is certainly a lonely man, and umm... it'll be really very difficult to describe him. Really.

It is an extremely well-written and well-directed film. The screenplay is wonderful. It is filled with wonderful dialogues (the most memorable dialogue: ''You talkin' to me?'' which Travis asks himself, looking into the mirror). The acting, mentionably that of Robert De Niro, is wonderful. Jodie Foster has importance only in some 20 minutes (or even less than that), but the young actress played her role perfectly in a wonderful way. Cybill Shephard's Betsy will also remain a memorable character. Actually, none of the characters, other than Travis, actually gets that much importance in the film. Sure, they are all important, they are all connected to Travis, and we don't feel that they are missing. Yet, the screen presence of most of these characters, compared to that of Travis, is quite less.

The film actually gets shocking and disturbing at it's climax. Sure, the audience expected a certain violence at the climax, but it is so disturbing, compared to the rest of the film. The ending is also excellent, but let's not go into details.

Overall, Martin Scorsese's ''Taxi Driver'' is one of the best works in the careers of both Scorsese and Robert De Niro. An excellently-made film, ''Taxi Driver'' is one of the films that should not be missed.

5 out of 5

''The Prestige'' (2006 movie)- Short review

Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Released: 2006
Country: United States

 Genres: Mystery, Drama, Psychological thriller

Main cast: Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Rebecca Hall, Scarlett Johansson, Piper Perabo, David Bowie, Andy Serkis, Ricky Jay

Rating: 3 out of 5

Short review

''The Prestige'' is a very complicated and very nonlinear film. Christopher Nolan does a brilliant work, and it is a well-directed, well-written, well-made and well-acted film. The plot is about two magicians, Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Borden (Christian Bale), who had once been friends but then turned rivals as Angier believes Borden had killed his wife (Piper Perabo) during a trick. Over the time, the rivalry becomes strong as Angier tries to prove himself as a better magician and works hard to know the secrets behind Borden's most surprising trick, and eventually there are revelations. A very well-made film it is. I really liked the cinematography. It is a dark and good-looking picture. Well, the revelation is also good. But I think after watching 2 hours of complicated elements, extremely complicated, I didn't really have interest in the ending. So, this movie wasn't very fine with me. (That doesn't mean it is a bad film. It is a good film, but you just have to have patience while watching it).

3 out of 5

''Vertigo'' (1958 movie)- Review

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Released: 1958
Country: United States

Main cast: James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore

Genres: Psychological thriller, Romantic-drama, Mystery

Rating: 5 out of 5

Review

I have been sick for the last few days, and having nothing to do.  I decided it was time to revisit Alfred Hitchcock's ''Vertigo''. The first time I had seen it, probably September or October of 2012, I realized that it was a great movie, but until now, I had considered ''Psycho'' to be Alfred Hitchcock's best. But now I consider, after watching ''Vertigo'' for the second time, that Vertigo is Alfred Hitchcock's best film. It is a moving poetry, a beautiful love story, a passionate tale.

There is a strange melody and a beautiful poetry running through ''Vertigo'' that is not generally found in Hitchcock's films. Among the Hitchcock films I have seen, ''Vertigo'' I have found most poetic. ''Vertigo'' is, along with it's emotional depth, a technical beauty, with the color red and green being often seen, and beautiful scores it has, and powerful acting it has, and a beautiful script it has.

The film's protagonist, Detective John Ferguson (James Stewart), known among his friends as ''Scottie'', has retired after his acrophobia has been the cause of an accident. His old friend, Gavin (Tom Helmore) meets him and gives him the job to follow his wife, Madeleine (Kim Novak). Why? Because sometimes it seems she becomes a different person; she goes to different places about which she does not afterwards  remember anything, she behaves strangely. Though at first hesitant as he has retired, John, however, agrees.

James Stewart and Kim Novak in ''Vertigo''

He follows Madeleine, and after seeing everything, he is hinted that there is a connection with this with Madeleine's ancestor Carlotta Valdes, and it may be so that Carlotta's spirit is possessing Madeleine. The second day Scottie follows Madeleine, she unexpectedly jumps in the San Franscisco Bay. Scottie saves her, they are introduced to each other, and then follows a poetic and emotionally intense tale of love, loss, gain, betrayal, and revelations...

The film is not great just for it's story. Rather, it's the combination of everything that makes it a great movie. The script is amazing. The cinematography is extremely fascinating. A memorable scene in the film was the green light that was reflected on the curtains, that was reflected on Kim Novak's face. At times, suddenly, everything becomes reddish or greenish: for example, the background suddenly has reddish light, and reddish light is reflected on the characters' faces. All these brilliant light effects in this film are wonderful.

My two favorite scenes in this film were:

(1) when Scottie and Madeleine visit the Muir Woods. At that scene, some of the dialogues spoken by Kim Novak's character are extremely memorable and iconic.  Many of the trees in the woods are over a thousand years old. A tree has been cut down and there are records of the historic events that the tree had witnessed. Kim Novak's character says: ''Here I was born, and there I died. It was only a moment for you; you took no notice.'' It will be a very memorable quotation. 

(2) The very next scene, the scene at the shore, was also deeply memorable. Kim Novak's acting brings all the emotions to life, adding much sublimity to the two beautiful scenes.

In many Hitchcock films, there is a outspoken, carefree character. Here we have Midge (Barbara Bel Geddes) Scottie's ex-fiance, and a painter, with whom Scottie spends much time with. It is also a memorable character.

James Stewart and Kim Novak are amazing. And Vertigo is amazing as well, with it's powerful screenplay. The cinematography, and the so remarkable lighting, and the beautiful score, and the acting, so remarkable, everything are so memorable. By the time we have watched this movie, it seems like a poetry, a sublime, sad, emotional ride throughout.

5 out of 5!

Black Swan (2010 movie)- Review

Directed by: Daren Aronofsky
Released: 2010
Country: United States

Genres: Horror, Psychological Thriller, Drama, Mystery

Main cast: Natalie Porter, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Review

Dark, grim, scary, disgusting, strange, beautiful, ''Black Swan'', directed by Daren Aronofsky is a great movie indeed. It is a disturbing and dark film, but oh, it's so beautiful and intense! Natalie Portman, in her role as the protagonist, delivers a brilliant performance in this horror film.

It is a weird film, I repeat, with the overall thing disturbing, strange, confusing and dark. Yet it is made with so much skill, and it has so much intensity and power in it that easily makes it among the best pictures of 2010.

The film centers on Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman). She is a ballet dancer. She is beautiful, timid, innocent, and with a lovely personality. Her mother is a former dancer.

Celebrated ballet dancer Beth (Winona Ryder) has to retire because of her age. The director, Thomas Leroy, starts seeking for a dancer who can perform the roles of both the beautiful White Swan and her seductive twin, the Black Swan, in ''Swan Lake''. Thomas finds Nina just too suitable to be the White Swan only, but he thinks Nina will have difficulty to immerse herself into the role of the Black Swan. Nevertheless, after an incident, he accepts her to play both the swans in ''Swan Lake''.

Nina has difficulty to fit into the role of the Black Swan, but then we realize that the role is getting her completely insane. She starts getting immersed into the darker side of the character, her sweet and timid character starts changing as she slowly transforms...

There's another important character in the story, Lily (Mila Kunis), a new dancer,  who...

The film creates a dark, grim, and oft-scary, thrilling, suspenseful, and dramatic situations by the use of darkness. The sets, and the dark and smooth cinematography are delightful enough. A mentionable thing is that it doesn't have much brightness and the lighting is never that bright. The dark and gloomy atmosphere that is created is wonderful. Along with this, there are the background music which are mostly so beautiful.

  The overall film is strange enough: at times we come to know of Nina's hallucinations, and we come across a number of surprises and twists which I won't like to reveal here.

Then there are the costumes, and the makeup, which are all so very pretty! 

Natalie Portman's acting is extremely good and she indeed deserved the Oscar which she won for this film. From her portrayal of the timid and soft ballet dancer Nina, to her darker side, her hallucinations, her shocks upon thinking about what is happening- it is extremely well-acted by Portman. Mila Kunis is present as Lily, another weird role, and she gives a much good performance. Barbara Hershey is excellent as Nina's mother, a former ballet dancer who is somewhat stubborn and strange. Vincent Cassel as the director John is excellent. Winona Ryder is good enough. The others who are present remain simply minor supporting characters.

In spite of the disgusts and extremely disturbing element that sometimes gets too intense (at one very disturbing scene, I looked away), the film is, oh, so very beautiful. ''Black Swan'' is a strange film, weird and disturbing, dark and sometimes violent, but it's a very excellent film. 

4.5 out of 5!

Shadow of a Doubt (1943 movie)- Review

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Released: 1943
Country: United States

Genres: Psychological thriller

Main cast: Teresa Wright, Joseph Cotten, Henry Travers, Patricia Collinge, Macdonald Carey, Hume Cronyn

Rating: 4 out of 5

Review

Alfred Hitchcock's ''Shadow of a Doubt'' is yet another a wonderful psychological thriller, in which there are perfect thrills and a few scares. It is a powerful and engrossing one, and perhaps another masterpiece by Alfred Hitchcock.

This movie's protagonist is the teenaged girl Charlie, who is grumbling about their family life. Her joys know no bounds when she hears that Uncle Charlie- her mother's brother after whom she was named- is coming to come to them for a visit. She knows her life would become jollier if her uncle would come to visit them. Her uncle arrives.

We see that she perfectly adores her uncle, though she has never seen him much before. They are ''like twins'', she says. She thinks life is going to be wonderful as Uncle Charlie is now with them. But then she notices some weird things about Uncle Charlie, but she doesn't pay much attention to this.

Everything changes as two people want to take photographs of the family. Uncle Charlie refuses his photograph to be taken, but after his photograph is finally taken, he gets furious and takes away the negative roll.

One of them, Jack, wants Charlie as his guide around the town. Then, he tells her that they are looking for a criminal man, and Uncle Charlie might be that particular person. Charlie is shocked. She agrees to help them if she can. Later, she runs to the public library and from the newspapers, she becomes aware of a terrible fact.

As the young, yet brave protagonist Charlie, Teresa Wright is simply marvelous. Charlie is perhaps a very memorable character. We can easily see her bravery. This bravery and courage made her a quite memorable character to me. As the antagonist, Joseph Cotten gives a splendid performance. Uncle Charlie is certainly psychopathic, and has murdered several widows.

Other characters include Charlie's parents, played by Henry Travers, and Patricia Coolinge. As Jack, Macdonald Carey gives a good performance. Hume Cronyn gives a brilliant performance as Herbie, an eccentric neighbor who and Charlie's father always discuss about better techniques to murder each other! Edna May Wonkott gives a truly splendid performance as the nerdy bookworm sister of Charlie.

The film slowly becomes darker. Thrills are frequently present and it gets quite very engrossing. Aside from this, Teresa Wright as the innocent and brave protagonist and Joseph Cotten as the psychopathic antagonist contribute to make the film a great one. The camera work also is excellent, and the background music is generally very good.

On the whole, pretty excellent and indeed a great movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Thrills are frequent, and overall, the film is immensely likeable!

4 out of 5! 

"Strangers on a Train" (1951 movie)- Review

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Released: 1951
Country: United States

Genres: Film-noir, Psychological thriller, Crime

Main cast: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Patricia Hitchcock, Leo G. Carroll, Kasey Rogers, Robert Gist, Howard St. John, John Brown

Rating: 4 out of 5

Review

Two strangers meet on a train. One of them, who is rather strange, talks about something which the other one thinks as a joke. Yet, the strange man is truly serious.

Oh yes, this happens at the very beginning of Alfred Hitchcock's ''Strangers on a Train''. This movie is adapted from the novel by Patricia Highsmith. The first few scenes of the film takes place on a train, and the discussion that takes place between the two men are somewhat looks weird, and the man named Bruce Anthony looks creepy.

Guy Haines is a handsome tennis player, played by Farley Granger. One day he is traveling to Metcalf on a train, to visit his wife. His wife, Miriam, is an unpleasant woman, and he wants to divorce her to marry the woman he loves, the beautiful Anne Morton. A man named Bruce Antony starts a conversation with Guy, revealing that he is his fan and knows many things about him.

Then Bruce says a thing which scares the audience. He tells Guy that they can swap murders. Bruce would murder Miriam, in return of which Guy would have to murder Bruce's father.

This horrible thing is taken simply as a joke by Guy, and he doesn't pay much attention to this, but however, Bruce is serious.

Guy leaves Metcalf after an unpleasant conversation with Miriam...

Meanwhile, while Miriam is in an amusement park, Bruce strangles her...

While entering his home, Guy sees Bruce waiting for him. Bruce informs him that he has killed Miriam and starts asking when will he kill his father. Guy is both horrified and frightened. He cannot go to the police as they will suspect him for the murder. They will think that he had murdered Miriam so that he can be with Anne Morton.

Police want to see Guy. When his alibi, a man whom he met at the train on his way back home, fails to identify him, police start suspecting him. Now a detective Hennessy accompanies him wherever he goes. Meanwhile, Bruce Anthony often appears...

The character of Bruce is certainly psychopathic. He is the antagonist. From the moment he makes his appearance and starts a conversation with Guy, we notice something strange with him. And it seems apparent that he often has crazy ideas. Robert Walker gives a brilliant performance as Bruce. His splendid performance makes the character seem more creepy and strange.

Farley Granger had previously collaborated with Hitchcock for the film ''Rope''. He likewise gives a marvelous performance as the handsome, well-known tennis player Guy Haines.

Ruth Roman as Guy's intended Anne Morton, the daughter of the Senator, is brilliant. Her character, the gentle and kind Anne Morton, is memorable.

Besides Walker, Granger and Roman, a splendid performance is given by Patricia Hitchcock, the daughter of Alfred Hitchcock. Her character, Barbara Morton, is a supporting character, but remains memorable. She is charming, outspoken, and says whatever she thinks. She looks a bit like Miriam, and her eyeglasses makes her resemble more to Miriam, which... Oh, I don't think I should reveal anymore.

Also present are Leo G. Carroll, as the Senator and the goodhearted father of Anne Morton and Barbara Morton, Robert Gist as the friendly Detective Hennessy, Kasey Roger (credited as Laura Elliott) as Miriam, the unpleasant, adulterous wife of Guy Haines. In minor roles, there are the presence of Norma Vaden as Mrs. Cunningham, a guest at Mr Morton's party, John Brown as Professor Collins, Marion Lorne as Mrs. Anthony and Jonathan Hale as Mr Anthony.

A memorable scene in the film was that when Miriam and her cousins enter the Tunnel of Love, followed by Anthony (who has come to the amusement park intending to kill Miriam) on a separate boat, and there is darkness in the tunnel. Though nothing else happens in the Tunnel of Love, I felt this scene thrilling. Also, when Miriam is killed and we see, through Miriam's eyeglasses which had fallen on the ground, Bruce strangling Miriam. That scene is scary enough. And the climax at the merry-go-round is amazing and excellently made.

The suspense and thrills that the film contains is enough to make one gaze at the screen until the very end of the movie. This is another example of Alfred Hitchcock's great works, and with great performance by it's actors and a brilliant screenplay, it remains a memorable movie in the history of cinema.

4 out of 5

Spellbound (1945 movie)

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Released: 1945
Country: United States

Main cast: Ingrid Bergman, Gregory Peck, Michael Chekov, Leo G. Carroll

Genres: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Film-noir

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Review

I like Alfred Hitchcock's films. Spellbound is a psychological thriller mystery film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It stars Gregory Peck, and Ingrid Bergman.
 
Spellbound is an entertaining, interesting, wonderful movie filled with mysteries and surprises for the viewer. When I was watching, I found the storyline highly interesting and started feeling very curious. The story is filled with mysteries.

Ingrid Bergman plays Constance Peterson, a psychoanalyst and she works and lives in a mental hospital. A young doctor, Dr. Edwardes, joins the hospital, replacing Dr. Murchison (played by Leo G. Carroll), who has worked in the hospital for years.

Dr. Peterson and Dr. Edwardes fall in love. But, however, Dr. Peterson notices something strange in Dr. Edwardes.

After matching signatures, Dr. Peterson understands that this Dr. Edwardes is an imposter. Dr. Edwardes tells Constance that he killed the real Dr. Edwardes, and is pretending to be him. Constance is convinced that he didn't kill Dr. Edwardes; he is just suffering from Guilt Complex. They, after seeing an evidence, come to think that his initials might be J.B.

J.B. runs away, leaving a letter for Constance informing where he will be going. Meanwhile, the police have to come to know that an imposter is disguising himself as Dr. Edwardes.

Constance, convinced that J.B is innocent and just has a Guilt Complex, comes to J.B, who is staying at a hotel. He has registered in the hotel with the name ''John Brown''. She decides to cure him. While the police is looking for him, Constance tries to find out his memories, his past, why he is suffering from Guilt Complex, and what happened with Dr. Edwardes.

The film has such interesting mysteries that made me find the story highly interesting and made me curious about what is indeed the matter, what has really happened. And the solution to all these mysteries was really remarkable.

This film has a very good storyline. And alongside being mystery and thriller, the film also has romantic elements as well. Constance and the amnesia patient fall in love. After they meet at a dinner table, they meet the next day as well, and go to have lunch together. Slowly, they fall in love.

The film is a very good, very interesting mystery movie, directed excellently by Alfred Hitchcock. It also has an excellent cast: Ingrid Bergman is perfect in the role of Dr. Constance Peterson. Gregory Peck is excellent in his role. Michael Chekov is his role as Dr. Alex Burlov, Constance's teacher, is excellent. 

Cinematography is very good. The music is excellent.

Overall, with a story good story, excellent screenplay, excellent presentation, excellent cast, excellent cast, and good cinematography,  Spellbound is a film which I found very interesting. Highly recommended.

3.5 out of 5