The Big Picture

Sean Connery’s performance in
Marnie
is considered among his most underrated roles, showing his acting depth beyond action.
Alfred Hitchcock’s
Marnie
delves into themes of obsession, trauma, and control, with Connery’s character delving into complex emotions.
Despite rightful criticisms,
Marnie’
s performances, suspenseful moments, and Hitchcock’s stylistic approach have earned praise over time.

Generally, among aficionados, Sean Connery’s performance in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1964 feature Marnie is considered to be one of his most overlooked roles, if not the most — meaning it’s better than it’s given credit for being. Not surprisingly, the movie’s certainly controversial. Still, it is widely regarded as one of his “most underrated” in an extensive filmography. It is also considered one of Hitchcock’s “best,” but it too has its partisans. There are many possible reasons why it remains one of Hitchcock’s most underrated thrillers, one of which is likely the expectations created by the films before it — the wildly successful Psycho and The Birds. But the main reason Marnie is an uncomfortable watch today is Hitchcock’s alleged treatment of his leading lady following his unrequited feelings.

Marnie (1964) Marnie, a troubled woman with a penchant for stealing, is blackmailed into marriage by her latest employer, Mark Rutland, who discovers her criminal past. As Mark tries to uncover the reasons behind Marnie’s behavior, deep psychological scars and dark secrets from her past are revealed, leading to a suspenseful and emotional climax.Release Date July 17, 1964 Cast Tippi Hedren , Sean Connery , Diane Baker , Martin Gabel , Louise Latham , Bob Sweeney , Milton Selzer , Mariette Hartley Runtime 130 Minutes Main Genre Mystery Writers Winston Graham , Jay Presson Allen Studio Universal Pictures Expand

What Is ‘Marnie’ About?
Hitchcock described Marnie as a “sex mystery” in which the man and the woman are hunter and hunted. The setting is the Deep South and the world of horse breeding; the main set piece is a fox hunt, which acts as an allegory for the whole film. Marnie tells the story of a deeply disturbed woman (Tippi Hedren) who expresses self-destructive behavior through grand theft and deception. She is also deeply afraid of sex and men: they represent a loss of control for her. While infiltrating and “casing” a new company to burgle, Rutland & Co. Publishing, she attracts the boss’s attention, wealthy Mark Rutland (Connery). After Marnie makes off with nearly $10,000 in Rutland & Co. money, Mark, who speaks of having studied animal psychology, tracks her down and blackmails her into marrying him. On their honeymoon cruise, he begins a process of trying to “cure” her of the childhood trauma at the heart of her pathology. Meanwhile, even though she resists him to the point of attempting suicide, he falls in love with her.

Hitchcock began considering Hedren for the lead role in Marnie in early 1963, after firing the first screenwriter, Evan Hunter, ending with a final script by Jay Presson Allen from a novel by Winston Graham. The project quickly became what Hitchcock biographer Donald Spoto, in his book The Dark Side of Genius, called “a surprisingly personal film.” In fact, it is almost confessional in its subtexts, with Collider’s Chris Cabin describing the movie as, “a thinly veiled consideration of Hitchcock’s working relationship with his own actresses.”

Sean Connery’s Character Was Overshadowed By Its Perception as Hitchcock’s Avatar

Hitchcock cast Connery in Marnie at a pivotal early point in the actor’s career and a critical point late in the director’s career. Hitchcock was coming off the enormous success of Psycho and The Birds, and expectations were high for another hit. Connery had just made a huge splash in Goldfinger, his third go-round as James Bond, and was looking for something different to do. Connery’s image was one of a man of action. Marnie is not an action film, nor is its hero, Mark Rutland, a man of action. Marnie is not as exciting as the Bond films, Indiana Jones and theLast Crusade, Red October, or any of Connery’s most iconic roles.

Here, we have Connery in a drawing-room role. He doesn’t even ride a horse like almost everyone else in the film. The big emotions don’t come until the end, and there are few moments of romantic and sexual expression. However, the movie — and Connery’s chracaterization — are dragged down by the awful rape scene Hitchcock had his heart set on; a scene Connery didn’t want to film, and Hunter didn’t want to write. Still, Connery’s performance is skilled and compelling. His fascination with Marnie is intriguing within the framework that HItchcock built, and he plays it well. His performance is not flashy, but he has a wry, smooth, and refined edge right up there with the best of his other work.

Related Sean Connery Had a Real-Life James Bond Moment Early in His Career The star’s unexpected encounter with a violent gangster has become the stuff of Hollywood legend.

Although Hitchcock had shown a genuine interest in psychiatry and mental illness as early as Spellbound in 1945, Marnie was largely perceived through external factors which ultimately influenced how the movie and its performances were received. During the filming of The Birds, Hitchcock had reportedly given Hedren an ultimatum to become his mistress, which she refused, or not work again for the duration of her exclusive contract to him. Under this cloud, Marnie was made, with the director and female star speaking only through intermediaries. Considering Connery’s character’s intrigue, obsession, and blackmail of Hedren’s Marnie, the film couldn’t escape the reported real-life parallels. Needless to say, tensions were high, work on the movie was awkward. The making of Marnie and the story of Hitchcock’s pursuit of Hedren is dramatized in the 2012 HBO film The Girl.

Sean Connery Was Not Alone in Being Overlooked

Besides Connery, equally overlooked, are the other noteworthy actors who appeared in the movie. Then rising star Mariette Hartley played welcoming Rutland & Co. secretary Susan Clabon, the compelling Diane Baker as Mark’s scheming and suspicious widowed sister-in-law looking to land Mark for herself, and Louise Lathan in a memorable performance as Marnie’s wounded and wounding mother. And as in the aforementioned New Yorker piece, though the movie’s storytelling is praised when seen within a vacuum, re-evaluation of the film under Hitchcock’s alleged abuse, taints its legacy. However, moments such as the young girls singing their morbid nursery rhyme outside Marnie’s mother’s house (a nod to Fritz Lang), strategically placed lightning and thunderstorms, wordless suspense moments like Marnie’s dropping of the shoe while making a getaway, the Southern ambiance, the marvelously staged and edited fox hunt sequence, the final flashback to the night of Marnie’s initial trauma, and Hitchcock’s overall stylistic approach have all earned praise.

Over time, with repeated viewings, the film improves when one looks past the flaws and instead pays attention to the performances. If it is not great, it is at least very good. Connery helps make it very, very good. Though initially, Marnie did not earn the same praise as the director’s most notable works, the film made some money over its investment and eventually grew a following. Hedren would finish out her seven-year contract not working, then go on to raise a daughter and advocate for animal causes. Hitchcock’s last critical hurrah, before his death in 1980, was Frenzy in 1972. Connery would round out his 40-year career by winning a best supporting actor Oscar for The Untouchables in 1988. Marnie would go on to be, if not loved, reappraised and appreciated.

Marnie is available to rent or buy on Prime Video in the U.S.

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