Warner Bros. Pictures
Alfred Hitchcock earned himself the nickname “The Master of Suspense” from his early British films like The Lodger to his glossier Hollywood output from Rebecca to Vertigo and beyond. Of course, Psycho is his most famous film but that actually fits into a category of his smaller, more intimate portraits of innocent (or misguided) people in the wrong place at the wrong time. Hitchcock’s usual protagonist was a man caught up in an unusual situation, being accused of something and only he can prove his innocence (see North By Northwest). And even when Hitchcock ventured out on location, his films still had a Hollywood backlot feel to them thanks to the use of rear screen projection (in the days long before green screen and CGI).
But in 1956, Hitchcock undertook a new project with the title The Wrong Man, his first film that was actually based on a true story. In 1951, a New Yorker by the name of Manny Balestrero, a musician at the famed Stork Club, was arriving home one evening when he was approached by the police, taken to the station and accused of committing a series of armed robberies in the neighborhood, all because he went to his insurance agency to inquire about a loan to help pay for his wife’s needed oral surgery. Balestrero had been positively identified by several witnesses, was jailed, then released on bail, hired a lawyer and set about proving his innocence. In the meantime, his wife had a nervous breakdown because of the stress and had to be placed in a sanitarium while Manny continued to try to clear his name. The case even went to trial, and things weren’t looking good until a juror became bored and asked the judge why they had to keep listening to the testimonies. A mistrial was declared but Manny’s story was still not over.
As Hitchcock was taken with this tale, particularly because of his own fear of being incarcerated (thank to a prank his father played on him as a child where he had the police put him in jail for several minutes), he wanted to make the film version of Balestrero’s story as realistic as possible, including shooting in New York City (he was allowed to film scenes inside the Stork Club) and its outskirts … until it became too cold and he retreated back to Hollywood, with his production team seamlessly recreating some exteriors and most of the interior sets on a backlot (the only rear projection you’ll see is during Manny’s car ride to the police station and various locations he was supposed to have robbed, but it never calls attention to itself).
Hitchcock also helped sell the story of the Everyman in an extraordinary situation with his casting of Henry Fonda, a down-to-earth actor who made a career out of playing down-to-earth people. While it may be hard to believe him as an Italian New Yorker, particularly with the more authentic casting of his parents, Fonda still pulls of the feat of making us believe this man is caught up in something he did not create, and we can see the fear on his face as he enters the jail (a real jail with real inmates as extras, so that fear may have been even more authentic than just Fonda acting). Fonda gets lost in the role, and we as a viewer just want to root for him to be found innocent, but the twisted judicial system just doesn’t seem to be on his side.
Also giving a terrific performance is Vera Miles, the Hitchcock protegé who was being groomed as Hitch’s next big star but she had the nerve to get pregnant prior to the filming of Vertigo and he never forgave her (which is why she got the small, thankless role of the sister of Marion Crane in Psycho). Here she plays an average, but very attractive, housewife who dotes on her husband and their two sons, but as the stress of the case begins to weigh on her, she becomes more disheveled as she can’t sleep and loses touch with reality. While the film is focused on Manny’s incredible story, the film also shows us very directly how a crime, or the accusation of a crime, can tear apart the accused’s family members as well. Miles gives a heartbreaking performance as she is in the hospital, barely aware of her husband’s visit.
The Wrong Man is, in fact, Hitchcock’s most emotional film because it is so realistic, almost to the point of being what we’d call today a docudrama. In addition to Miles’ performance, there is a scene with Fonda and the oldest son where he tells the boy what a wonderful son he is and he hopes he has his own wonderful son one day, and the moment just pulls the heartstrings thanks to the writing but more because of Fonda’s heartfelt performance. You don’t get many moments like this one in a Hitchcock film.
The Warner Archive recently released The Wrong Man on Blu-ray, and they have done a superlative job with the film. Warner Brothers created a new transfer from a fine grain master positive and scanned it at 2k resolution, cleaning up the film and removing and repairing flaws in the source, but maintaining the film’s grain pattern, which was a deliberate choice by Hitchcock and cinematographer Robert Burk to give the film a documentary realism. The black and white film, presented in a 1.77:1 aspect ratio, balances the blacks, greys and whites nicely, offering up very fine detail in close-ups as well as wider shots. You can even read the small print on Balestrero’s newspaper. The Warner Archive Blu-ray presents the film in probably the best shape it’s ever been in since it was shot.
The audio is also a marvel, encoded in lossless DTH-HD Master Audio 2.0, accurately reproducing the dialogue (both on and off camera), sound effects and Bernard Herrmann’s jazzy, minimalist score with nary a hiss, pop or click to be heard. For a film of this vintage, that is truly a remarkable achievement.
As a bonus, the Blu-ray also features the short documentary Guilt Trip: Hitchcock and The Wrong Man (20:19) from 2004, featuring Peter Bogdanovich, Robert Osborne, Richard Schickle, art director Paul Sylbert, director Richard Franklin (Psycho II), and Christopher Hustead talking about the making of the film, from Hitchcock’s detailed storyboards (prepared to keep shooting to a minimum so the studio had nothing to use if they wanted to recut the film) to some trickery used to get some specific shots and Herrmann’s score. For a short piece, it is pretty informative. The film’s trailer is also included.
Hitchcock really set out to do something different with The Wrong Man, going so far as to even eschew his typical cameo, feeling it would detract from the realism, instead appearing in silhouette on a soundstage introducing the film. The Wrong Man was not a successful film financially, but seeing it today one can sense the gritty realism Hitchcock was striving for while getting engrossed in the story and captivated by the performances of Fonda and Miles. This may not be the Hitchcock you’re used to seeing, but it is well worth the time, especially with this excellent presentation.
The Warner Archive generously provided Hotchka with a Blu-ray of The Wrong Man for reviewing purposes.
Share this post
