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6 comments
4 comments
Rank This Matchup or Comment/Reply Below
on 9/8/2010
This is a tough Hitchcock match here. Neither are my favorite of his but both are still quite good. I appreciate what he did with Rope but there is more going on in Shadow of a Doubt and I think the performances are better as well.
Though not nearly his best film visually, Hitchcock's Rope always stood out to me as one of his creepiest films. I absolutely loved Cotten's performance in Shadow of a Doubt, but he wasn't nearly as disturbing a villain as those two boys in Rope.
on 12/20/2010
Tough one. Aside from Strangers on a Train, these two films may have my favorite Hitchcock set-ups. I'm giving the edge to Rope because it manages to be intense and exciting without ever leaving its one location and it has what I think is one of Jimmy Stewart's most interesting performances.
on 10/25/2011
Rope is great, but Shadow of a Doubt has one of the best ensemble casts ever in a Hitchcock film ... and the whole Frank-Capra-small-town-gone-wrong thing is superbly done.
on 10/26/2011
Woah. Rope is clever is so many ways, from it's long takes to its premise. At its heart however it's an episode of Colombo. The chief villain is a straight-up classic pyschopath and you're asked to accept him as this non-human opponent for a battle of wits with Jimmy Stewart's academic. Shadow of a Doubt is creepier, more menacing and just generally better. Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten are bloody brilliant at portraying innocence and it's polar opposite. In the home, Joesph Cotten is out of place, his struggle with his desires barely contained. In the seedy bar later on, it's Teresa Wright. An innocent in a place of vice, still immune to it, but sticking out like a sore thumb to everyone around. I'll take Shadow of a Doubt for the win.
on 1/29/2012
I love both films (and most of Hitch's output), but Shadow gets the nod here simple because, with Rope, the gimmick kind of overshadows the whole film.
on 7/27/2013
Two great films from Hitchcock, but I prefer Rope. It is such an intense film.
on 2/19/2014
Both are great, but Rope for me. Such a unique movie.
on 10/27/2014
Very close but I think Shadow of a Doubt is slightly superior maybe because of the villain played by Joseph Cotton
I mean Joseph Cotten
on 2/15/2021
Both are great. I'll go Shadow of a Doubt, but I need to rewatch Rope!
