Poster for the Korean teaser version of the movie Ecstasy (1958).
Kim Novak (1933-), a 24-year-old Colombian actor who had already starred in several films, it was the Picnic (1955) that really made her a new big star.
Not only does she have a plump physique and an explicit carnal desire, but it is rumored that she is difficult to get along with.
Images of Kim Novak in the film Ecstasy (1958).
She is very photogenic in color films, and her breath-taking qualities suggest that she is both accessible and out of reach.
However, she sometimes needs what is called "special treatment".
Kim Novak wasn't a last-minute compromise choice for Alfred Hitchcock (1899–1980), she was actually one of the candidates for this challenging role in Ecstasy Vertio (1958).
Images of James Stewart (right) and Kim Novak in the film Ecstasy (1958).
At the same time, she was also a well-known "commodity", not only appearing on the cover of Time magazine, but also a box office star in Hollywood at the time (there were only two or three such stars).
Her appearance complements James Stewart (1908–1997), something the unidentified and obscure Vera Miles (1929-) could not have.
Vera Miles's artistic photographs – In fact, Kim Novak was originally used as one of the substitutes because she and Vera Miles are very similar
Vera Miles, who collaborated on The Wrong Man (1956), had to quit the Ecstasy crew because she was pregnant.
At the time, Alfred Hitchcock thought the character in Ecstasy would make Vera Myers a superstar, a real actor.
Stills from the movie Ecstasy (1958), Vera Miles
"Over the years," Vera Myers later reflected, "there is only one type of woman in his films—Madeleine Carroll (1906-1987), Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982) and Grace Kelly (1929-1982). I tried to please him, but I couldn't. I'm a stubborn guy, and what he wants is the kind of guy who can be molded. ”
As for Ecstasy, she sighed and said, "He made his movie, and I have my own son." ”
Since Vera Miles' contract with Alfred Hitchcock had not yet expired, she had to participate in several television shows he produced, and later played a supporting role in Psycho (1960).
Later, Alfred Hitchcock said of Vera Miles, who was always angry: "I have no interest in her at all, I don't think I can get along with her very well." ”
When Alfred Hitchcock and François Truffaut (1932-1984) discussed Ecstasy in detail in the fall of 1976, François Truffaut said that Vera Myers might be able to present the feeling he wanted, but her replacement, Kim Novak, was born to play the Kansas girl in the play who had been transformed twice by a man with an exploitative penchant (Vera Myers also came from).
Kim Novak's makeup shot for the film Ecstasy (1958) – Vera Myers eventually misses a chance to become a superstar, completing Kim Novak
In that conversation, François Truffaut made a special analogy, "Vera Miles seems to be walking on the ground, while Kim Novak seems to be floating—she is exactly the kind of ghostly character that Ecstasy needs."
And Alfred Hitchcock calmly replied, "Maybe, but at least I can throw the newcomer into the water." ”
As a result, Alfred Hitchcock had to force the actress eventually selected by Ecstasy to take on the role of a replacement for the person he had originally chosen to play. Of course, this is also the core theme of Ecstasy.
Due to Vera Miles' pregnancy, Alfred Hitchcock began to resent Vera Miles as his plan for her was in trouble.
Promotional photo for the film Ecstasy (1958), James Stewart and Kim Novak
"Most actors are stupid kids," he said more than once, especially in the context of Ecstasy, "think Kim Novak." In the second part of Ecstasy, I let her finish the show while she had dark hair and didn't look so much like Kim Novak. But the only reason I asked her to star in the movie was that Vera Miles was pregnant. ”
Rita Hayworth (left) and Kim Novak pose for the premiere of the film "Red Wine and Green" (1957).
Ever since Kim Novak "tricked" Rita Hayworth (1918-1987) into the crew of "Pal Joey" (1957), she began to ignore anyone, and for this girl from the slums, as long as the price is good, everything is good, and she knows that she is the company's "cash cow".
Initially, Kim Nowak was extremely reluctant to make Alfred Hitchcock's films, and what she herself did not expect was that the only thing she would be remembered for in her life was to star in Alfred Hitchcock's Ecstasy.
Years later, Kim Novak admitted, "Before filming began, Alfred Hitchcock asked me to go to the costume designer Edith Head (1897-1981), and she showed me a set of design drawings.
Edith Hyde was the director of Grace Kelly's styling and costumes in the films Rear Window (1954) and To Catch a Thief (1955).
Edith Hyde's costume image for Alfred Hitchcock's film
Kim Novak had hoped that Edith Hyde would help her design several very beautiful costumes like the one Grace Kelly wore in the movie.
Edith Hyde (right) and Grace Kelly discuss clothing fabrics on set in the film To Catch a Thief (1955).
But when she read the drawings edited by Edith Hyde for Ecstasy, she told Edith Hyde directly, "I'm sorry, I don't wear black shoes."
Edith Hyde replied, "It was Alfred Hitchcock who asked you to wear it."
Images of Edith Hyde and her costume manuscripts
Kim Novak then shrugged, "I'm sure the director won't mind."
Later, in an interview to commemorate the re-release of Ecstasy, Kim Novak recalled: "I thought he wouldn't care what kind of shoes I wore. I've never met a director who is so picky about the costumes and not only pays attention to the style of the costume design, but also cares about the specific color of the costume. The two things he wanted me to wear the most were black shoes and a gray suit. ”
Kim Novak's image in the film Ecstasy (1958) – this gray suit is now out of date
"After Edith Hyde showed me the gray suit, I said, 'Oh my God, it's too difficult to put on it and perform – this dress is too tight'. then. We tried on that black dress, and it got worse, so I said it was too tight-knit'. She replied to me, 'Well, maybe you'd better talk to Alfred Hitchcock'. ”
Directors Alfred Hitchcock and Edith Hyde (right) featured the universal film Family Conspiracy Plot (1976).
In fact, shoes are the first sticking point. "Kim Novak said she couldn't have worn shoes like that," Edith Hyde recalled, "because the shoes would amplify the shortcomings of her calf flesh." ”
The costumes prepared for her by Alfred Hitchcock and Edith Hyde became the focus of a dispute between Kim Novak and them, much like earlier disagreements with Nita Naldi (1895-1961).
On the set of the film Ecstasy (1958), Alfred Hitchcock and Kim Novak
"Miss Kim Novak came to the set with all sorts of stereotypes that I couldn't accept," alfred Hitchcock said, "and I don't like arguing with actors — and there's no reason to get electricians into our trouble." So I went to her dressing room and told her that it took me months to design those slip dresses and hairstyles. ”
She wasn't so easily convinced. "I'll wear any clothes," Kim Novak said as he hurried back to Edith Hyde's office to seek refuge, "as long as it's not a suit, as long as there's no gray, everything else will do." ”
On the set of the film Ecstasy (1958), from left: Kim Novak, James Stewart, Alfred Hitchcock
Edith Hyde then showed her a few pages of the script: "This girl must look like she's just emerged from the fog of San Francisco"—she has a pale face, a blond wig combed over her head, a gray suit, and white gloves.
"She's not only walking the streets of San Francisco, she's driving a car." Edith Hyde explains to Kim Novak, "Everyone is wearing suits there, and the script explicitly states to wear a gray suit. ”
"If you have to wear it," Kim Novak continued, "I tend to be purple or white. ”
"Edith Hyde, take care of this," said Alfred Hitchcock, after hearing the ongoing argument, "I don't care what she's wearing—as long as it's a gray suit." ”
In Ecstasy, Kim Novak wears a gray suit, black shoes, a black evening gown, a wide white coat, and everything else the director asked for.
Images of James Stewart and Kim Novak in the film Ecstasy (1958).
After seeing the finished film, Kim Novak may realize that the director has always been right, and few actresses have been as stunning as her clothes and photos in Ecstasy.
It's important to note that even if she looks at it 50 years later, her costumes don't seem to be very dated.
Like this film, her costumes belong to the category of eternity.
Location of the film Ecstasy (1958), Alfred Hitchcock and Kim Novak
From the pre-production of the film to the actual shooting, the tension between the director and the actors is constantly escalating.
"I never had dinner or tea or anything else with him," Kim Novak recalls, "except for one time when the whole cast had dinner together, and I was late that time." It's not my fault. But I guess he'd think I was late for some big-name entry. He was therefore prejudiced against me. During the shoot, he never really told me what he was thinking. ”
Images of James Stewart (left) and Kim Novak in the film Ecstasy (1958).
Like many actresses before him, Kim Novak was never quite sure "whether Alfred Hitchcock liked me."
Over the years, Kim Novak's few recorded remarks about Alfred Hitchcock have appeared indifferent.
On the set of the film Ecstasy (1958), from left: James Stewart, Alfred Hitchcock, and Kim Novak
Over time and after Ecstasy was seen as one of the best films of all time, her words became more optimistic: the character and the film "are a true portrayal of my earlier experience at Columbia." The company executives tell us, 'You're special, you're different, we need you,'" and then someone will say, "We need you, but we want you to have someone else's style."
Stills from the movie Ecstasy (1958), Kim Novak
This situation is almost the same as the actress's role in Ecstasy, and she later admitted to this statement.
Kim Novak argues that "this [film] man told me to play a character — what should I do, what should I wear..."
James Stewart agrees: "While the film was still being filmed, I felt that it was a very personal film. ”
Images of James Stewart in the film Ecstasy (1958).
Samuel M. Thompson, who wrote the final screenplay for Ecstasy, A. Taylor Samuel A. Taylor (1912-2000) agreed: "Like me, anyone who sees him during filming will find that this is a story that really and truly feels deeply about him."
Ecstasy was the culmination of Kim Novak's career, and she never had the opportunity to play such an important role since.
In May 1959, Gary Grant and Kim Novak were photographed at a dinner party in Cannes
At the age of 57, she quit film and television, left Hollywood, and co-ran a livestock farm with her second husband, Robert Malloy, a veterinarian.
For Alfred Hitchcock, Ecstasy is a testament to his lifelong fascination, which refers to the transformation of an actress according to the ideal model of the blonde beauty in her heart.
He oversees everything the actress presents on the screen, whether it's hairstyles, costumes, makeup, shoes, or camera angles and final editing.
Throughout Alfred Hitchcock's life and career, he has been striving to realize his dreams, but at the same time it also involves the conflict between repression and gentry, reality and art.
"I made this film to show the dreamlike qualities of a man," he said, and that man was Alfred Hitchcock himself.
Like James Stewart in Ecstasy, Alfred Hitchcock chose fantasy over reality, and in this respect, film is the perfect medium for illusion, because the beauty of the actress, carefully designed and cleverly presented, is itself a huge illusion (as Ingrid Bergman put it, "Hair is fake, teeth are fake, clothes...). And the lights perform all kinds of miracles...").
But the deeper reality derived from works of art and whimsy has no trace of falsification.
What about the relationship between Alfred Hitchcock and the actor? He cultivated actors such as Gary Grant (1904-1986), Joseph Cotten (1905-1994), James Stewart and Henry Fonda (1905-1982) for purely profitable purposes, and that was why he cultivated them.
Film Ecstasy (1958) American Blu-ray edition cover
However, there was no strong friendship between them. According to Alfred Hitchcock's authorized biographer, "he didn't have any deep friendships with the famous [male] stars, even though he liked them and worked with them as often as possible, like Gary Grant and James Stewart" — in fact, he worked with the two actors four times each.
With Half of James Stewart's face on the left and Gary Grant's half face on the right, it became the most perfect male face in director Alfred Hitchcock's mind
For Alfred Hitchcock in particular, James Stewart in particular was more of a collaborator, not only because James Stewart's personal company often invested in films, but also because James Stewart himself was involved in all stages from screenwriting to post-production, which was unimaginable to Gary Grant.
Set of the film Ecstasy (1958), Alfred Hitchcock and James Stewart (left)
Alfred Hitchcock and James Stewart had a very close and good rapport, but in private the two had little contact and did not talk on the phone when they returned home.
But on set, it only takes Alfred Hitchcock a look, and James Stewart knows how to act.
James Stewart said that Alfred Hitchcock almost never discussed the specific acting with the actors, and the actors he chose generally had to be able to understand his intentions, as long as the director "started", he knew how to perform.
Alfred Hitchcock would sometimes get up from his big chair and come up to James Stewart and say, "This scene is a bit tired, isn't it?" Then without saying a word, he walked back and sat down.
Alfred Hitchcock and James Stewart right)
James Stewart understood that the director was unhappy with the rhythm and timing he had mastered.
This communication between them was silent and effective, often just looking at each other to see everything, and it is no wonder that some people jokingly refer to them as the "Hitchcocks" people.
Unfortunately, "Ecstasy" not only failed at the box office when it was released in the United States, but also received bad reviews.
At that time, Alfred Hitchcock privately blamed James Stewart for being too old to be attractive to the audience (but the following year he succeeded in using the older Gary Grant to play North by Northwest, which is not the reason), and never wanted to work with him again.
Even if James Stewart took the initiative to show goodwill, he refused, but the two later maintained a relatively friendly relationship.
In fact, James Stewart is not always docile, and he is sometimes very conceited.
If a scene he was convinced that his feelings were right and he refused to obey anyone's opinion, including the director, he would yell at Alfred Hitchcock and argue until it was filmed on his own terms.
But Alfred Hitchcock also never tried to hide his feelings for people like John Gielgud (1904-2000), Michael Redgrave (1908-1985), Lawrence Oliver Laurence Olivier (1907-1989), Gregory Peck (1916-2003), Montgomery Lee, and John Olivier (1907-1989), Gregory Peck (1916-2003). Actors such as Clift Montgomery Clift (1920–1966), Sean Connery (1930–2020) and Paul Newman Paul Newman (1925–2008) felt uneasy and even resentful.
Promotional photo for the film Ecstasy (1958), James Stewart
Perhaps, the main reason for his emotion is that these male actors are full of confidence in their handsome looks and the admiration of fans.
There is still a long way to go to empathize with The greatest conflict and pain in Alfred Hitchcock's life: he shrinks back in the face of what he craves most, he knows the deepest meaning of the "ecstasy" of love, and he understands the desire to both want and fear falling in love.
Set of the film Ecstasy (1958), Kim Novak and James Stewart
In Ecstasy, we learn about Alfred Hitchcock both from the complex two-sidedness of Kim Novak's character and from James Stewart's tortured, doomed lover.
Kim Novak has two sides because she is a combination of victim and perpetrator. She seems calm, distant, and indifferent, but she longs to express a strong lust.
Stills from the film Ecstasy (1958), Kim Novak and James Stewart
However, what no one expected was that after more than a decade, Ecstasy was considered a classic work by Alfred Hitchcock.
Ironically, Ecstasy's status is as paradoxical as its ending.
After experiencing a mediocre response in the early stages of release, the artistic value of this film has been continuously recognized by a new generation of young filmmakers.
Stills from the movie Ecstasy (1958), in which Alfred Hitchcock walks lonely through the dockyard door at 11 minutes
From the New Wave films of Chris Mark and François Truffaut to the works of Brian De Palma and Martin Scorsese, the new Hollywood film boys Brian De Palma and Martin Scorsese; from Tim Burton's comic book spree Batman (1989) to Peter Jackson's epic masterpiece The Lord of the Rings (2001) series, you can see "The Lord of the Rings" (2001) series. The shadow of Ecstasy.
In 2008, exactly 50 years after its release, the American Film Institute voted it the greatest suspense film of a century and continues to be one of the most influential classics.
Poster for the Japanese version of the movie Ecstasy (1958).
Hitchcock wonders why Creft and Brando quarreled.
Hitchcock used Bergman as a model for "Rear Window" by Grace Kelly stirring up a pool of spring water
"Soul Snatcher" three same-sex dramas Men why bother to embarrass men The first shot to the end
Hitchcock's only neuro-comedy, the heroine says dirty words more than the director says
James Stewart gets Marlene Dietrich pregnant with the romantic reality of "The Shop on the Corner."
The director was threatened with having Kim Novak act in "Picnic" to force himself to become a blockbuster star by sexiness