Taglines: Thief… Liar… Cheat… she was all of these and he knew it!
Marnie Edgar (Tippi Hedren) is a habitual liar and a thief who gets jobs as a secretary and after a few months robs the firms in question, usually of several thousand dollars. When she gets a job at Rutland’s, she also catches the eye of the handsome owner, Mark Rutland (Sean Connery). He prevents her from stealing and running off, as is her usual pattern, but also forces her to marry him.
Their honeymoon is a disaster and she cannot stand to have a man touch her, and on their return home, Mark has a private detective look into her past. When he has the details of what happened in her childhood to make her what she is, he arranges a confrontation with her mother realizing that reliving the terrible events that occurred in her childhood and bringing out those repressed memories is the only way to save her.
Marnie is a 1964 American psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The screenplay by Jay Presson Allen was based on the 1961 novel of the same name by Winston Graham. The film stars Tippi Hedren and Sean Connery. The music was composed by Bernard Herrmann, his last of seven critically acclaimed film scores for Hitchcock. Marnie also marked the end of Hitchcock’s collaborations with cinematographer Robert Burks (his 12th film for Hitchcock) and editor George Tomasini (who died later in the year).
Development and Writing
Alfred Hitchcock began developing the film adaptation of Winston Graham’s novel Marnie in 1961. He commissioned Joseph Stefano, the screenwriter of Hitchcock’s recently released Psycho, to work on the script. Stefano made extensive notes and wrote a 161-page treatment. The director’s first choice to play the title role, Grace Kelly, by then Princess Grace of Monaco, withdrew from the project when the citizens of Monaco objected to her appearing in a film, especially as a sexually disturbed thief. Also, when Kelly married Prince Rainier in 1956, she had not fulfilled her contract with MGM, which could have prevented her from working for another studio. As a consequence of Kelly’s departure from the film, Hitchcock put it aside to work on The Birds (1963).
After completing The Birds, Hitchcock returned to the Winston Graham adaptation. Evan Hunter, who had written the screenplay for The Birds, developed Marnie with Hitchcock, and wrote several drafts. Hunter was unhappy with the rape scene in the original novel, as he felt the audience would lose sympathy for the male lead. The director, however, was enthusiastic about the scene, describing to Hunter how he intended to film it.
Hitch held up his hands the way directors do when they’re framing a shot. Palms out, fingers together, thumbs extended and touching to form a perfect square. Moving his hands toward my face, like a camera coming in for a close shot, he said, “Evan, when he sticks it in her, I want that camera right on her face”.
Hunter wrote a draft containing the rape scene but also wrote an additional, substitute sequence, which he pleaded with Hitchcock to use instead. Hunter was dismissed from the project on May 1, 1963. His replacement, Jay Presson Allen, later told him that “you just got bothered by the scene that was his reason for making the movie. You just wrote your ticket back to New York.” Just as Hunter had been unaware of Stefano’s earlier work on Marnie, Presson Allen was not informed that she was the third writer to work on the adaptation.
About the Story
Marian Holland charmed Sidney Strutt (Martin Gabel), head of a tax consulting company, into hiring her without references. Some months later, she steals nearly $10,000 from the company safe and flees. Changing her appearance and identity, Marian, whose real name is Margaret “Marnie” Edgar (Tippi Hedren), travels to Virginia where she stables a horse named Forio. She then visits her invalid mother, Bernice (Louise Latham), whom she supports financially, in Baltimore.
Mark Rutland (Sean Connery), a wealthy widower who owns a publishing company in Philadelphia, meets with Strutt on business. He learns about the robbery and recalls Marnie from a previous visit. Some months later, Marnie, posing as Mary Taylor, happens to apply to Mark’s company and is hired after he recognizes her. While working weekend overtime with Mark, Marnie has a panic attack during a thunderstorm. Mark comforts then kisses her. They begin seeing each other socially. It is learned that Marnie suffers from bad dreams and the color red can trigger an extreme emotional reaction.
Soon after, Marnie steals money from Mark’s company and again flees. Mark tracks her to the stable where she keeps Forio. Unexpectedly, he blackmails her into marrying him, much to the chagrin of Mark’s former sister-in-law, Lil (Diane Baker), who is in love with Mark. Lil grows suspicious when she discovers Mark has spent a considerable sum since marrying Marnie. On their honeymoon cruise, Marnie is repulsed by any physical intimacy. Mark initially respects her wishes, but later forces himself on her. The next morning, she attempts to drown herself in the ship’s swimming pool, but Mark saves her.
Lil tips off Mark that Marnie’s mother is still alive and living in Baltimore. Mark hires a private detective to investigate. Meanwhile, Lil overhears Mark telling Marnie that he has “paid off Strutt” on her behalf. Lil mischievously invites Strutt and his wife to a large party at the Rutland mansion. Strutt recognizes Marnie, but Mark persuades him to say nothing. When Marnie later admits to additional robberies, Mark works to reimburse her victims in exchange for dropping charges.
Mark brings Forio to their estate, pleasing Marnie. During a fox hunt, Forio bolts. After a wild gallop, Forio misses a jump and breaks a leg, and lies on the ground screaming in pain. Marnie frantically runs to a nearby house and manages to obtain a gun and shoots her horse. Crazed with grief, Marnie goes home where she finds the key to Mark’s office. She then goes to the office, opens the safe, and finds herself unable to take the money she wants to steal, even after Mark arrives and “urges” her to take it.
Marnie (1964)
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Starring: Tippi Hedren, Sean Connery, Diane Baker, Martin Gabel, Louise Latham, Bob Sweeney, Alan Napier, Mariette Hartley, Bruce Dern, Meg Wyllie, Kimberly Beck, Melody Thomas Scott
Alfred Hitchcock’s cameo can be seen five minutes into the film, entering from the left of a hotel corridor after Marnie passes by.
Screenplay by: Jay Presson Allen
Production Design by: Robert F. Boyle
Cinematography by: Robert Burks
Film Editing by: George Tomasini
Set Decoration by: George Milo
Makeup Department: Jack Barron, Virginia Darcy, Robert Dawn, Howard Smit
Music by: Bernard Herrmann
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: July 22, 1964 (New York City)
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