FAMILY PLOT

US, 1976, 120 minutes, Colour.
Karen Black, Bruce Dern, Barbara Harris, William Devane, Ed Lauter.
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

Family Plot has plenty of plot and entertainingly so. At 75, Hitchcock directed tongue-in-cheekily, enjoying the conventions of the light thriller, punctuating the thrills with laughs, including a runaway drive down a mountain. Barbara Harris is very good as a daffily cunning medium, conniving with her taxi-driver boyfriend-actor, Bruce Dern. William Devane is a flashily smiling villain, aided by Karen Black. Kidnappings, hidden identities, murders are at first mysterious, but after early clarification provide the setting for suspense, how will it happen? The main concern is the spinning of a good yarn where the con-artists are the goodies and the criminals are the baddies. Alfred Hitchcock's last film.

1. An enjoyable film, comedy, Hitchcock film? The work of Hitchcock at 75?

2. Its place in the Hitchcock tradition? Thriller aspects, comedy, themes of identification, guilt and responsibility? The screenplay by Ernest Lehman and North By Northwest?

3. The original novel was called The Rainbird Pattern. Appropriate? The humorous ambiguities in the present title?

4. The atmosphere of the locations and the environment for the characters? Use of colour, city locations, Blanche's house, Adamson's house, the countryside, the village, the jeweller's shop, the various places in the city where action happened? The locations of the car chases? The atmosphere of mediums' meetings? The importance of the music and the particular themes for each character?

5. The immediate introduction of the audience to the enclosed atmosphere of the crystal ball, the seance, Julia Rainbird and her history, her concerns, reliance on Blanche? The introduction to Blanche and the indications of her phoniness? Blanche and her intelligence, ignorance.. bravado? Style and phoniness? The supply of basic information through the sales' sequence indications of the ingredients for the plot? The comedy and Blanche's reliance on her medium? How was this reprised during the other sequences with Julia Rainbird? Blanche's other work as a medium ? especially the time when George distracted her and she had to seek information in the kitchen?

6. How was Blanche the heroine of the film? Could audiences easily identify with her? Her ordinariness, silliness, confidence trickster? Her relationship with George, the emphasis on sexuality? Their greed and love of money? How much to commend her as a heroine, except for her concern for the heir to get his money? Becoming a victim of the criminals? An ambiguous heroine?

7. How was George an ambiguous hero? His character and personality, role as an actor, work as a taxi driver? His relationship with Blanche? Loving her, irritated by her? A hero of their style of life, the house, the hamburger meals? How shrewd was he? His ability to uncover the pieces of information and track down the man searched for? An ordinary hero, how much to commend him as hero? His becoming a victim of the criminals? The importance of each contrived way of linking the two plots and their patterns? George halting his car as Fran crosses the street? The establishment of the two couples, the pattern of the couples, their manner and style, Blanche White and her name, Fran in black? The suave style of Adamson, the awkward style of George? How similar were their ways of behaviour, in terms of one or work? Innocence and guilt? Two kinds of greed? The contrast of cruelty and kindness? How well did the screenplay interweave the two couples, bring the strands together with mysterious identities?

9. The thriller aspect of Blanche and George's investigations? The comic tones? George and his seeking information at public offices, his visit to the village, to the cemetery and the mystery about the Shoebridge family? (And the use of information from Julia Rainbird and Blanche's efforts of eliciting more? The ominous sequence of the garage with Maloney's suspicion? Blanche as searching for the Adamsons in the phone book and the humorous visits to the unlikely Adamsons? The appointment with Maloney at the mountain top, the humorous drinking of beer ? and the priest with the party of children and the assignation with a girl? The threat on the mountain top and the final encounter with Maloney?

10. The parallel attention to the kidnappings? The explanation and visual presentation of Fran and Arthur and their style, with holding the man kidnapped, the contact with the police, the getting of jewellery? The irony of the capture and kidnapping of the bishop? The holding him in the apartment? The look of the apartment where he was kept?

11. The contribution of Maloney and the sense of menace? His wife? His visit to Adamson and his scare in going back when the police arrived? The appointment with Blanche and George? The cutting of their brakes (and the suspense and hilarity of the chase ? Blanche's awkwardness, George's skill?) The irony of his death? His wife in wanting to get rid of George and giving him more information? Adamson's laugh about the news of Maloney's death?

12. The contribution of Fran as a character? Her skill at impersonations for the kidnapping? The bond with Arthur? Her not knowing his past? Living with his style, sharing his greed? Her baulking at murders?

13. How did things come to a head with Blanche's appearance at their apartment as they were to leave? Their coping with her? Her skill in pretending? The build-up with George to the rescue? His hiding the plan with Blanche and their trapping the villains? The irony of the Rainbird inheritance and the money as reward for the taking of the criminals?

14. The humorous ending - Blanche and her leading George to the jewellery and her final wink? An appropriate ending for this kind of comedy thriller?

15. Hitchcock in mellow form - an old man looking at the foibles of comedy and crime and people's manner of behaviour? His attitude towards morals, relationships, language, violence? The place of religion - feudal, the religious overtones of the past? The bishop and the Church? His themes of identity? The irony of Adamson inheriting money but being a criminal? Guilt? Patterns of behaviour? The light touch? How plausible, implausible? A conundrum?