Because of the emotional violence behind the suppression of trauma, Marnie is perhaps the director’s most harrowing work ever.
With this thriller, Hitchcock let loose his rigid structuring and allowed the trauma to guide the story along. Because of the emotional violence behind the suppression of trauma, Marnie is perhaps the director’s most harrowing work ever. The film represents Hitchcock at his most confrontational with his sexual perversions and examinations of the darkness of one’s soul. Connery’s character is a revisionist take on a Hitchcock protagonist, as his supposed heroism is immediately undermined by an inherent sense of paranoia. No MacGuffin or set piece is required, as psychological turmoil is thrilling enough as a dramatic device. All in all, Marnie is worthy of being placed highly in the Hitchcock canon.