(1946, directed by Alfred Hitchcock)

- inducted 2017 –

“The most memorable scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1946 classic Notorious is this one: a long take where stars Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman kiss each other for two-and-a-half minutes all over a Rio de Janeiro apartment. It’s a scene that became quite notorious in its own right: Hitch went around the Production Code’s ban on kisses that went longer than three seconds by having their stars stop the nuzzling once in a while to talk, make a phone call, arrange a dinner date. Not only was it a ballsy, clever move on Hitchcock’s part, it’s also one of the most erotic moments ever committed to celluloid.

“When I first saw that movie and that scene over 20 years ago, I was taken aback by how, well, believable the scene was. Like anyone who has seen cinematic love stories, I was conditioned to believe that, whenever you see a movie with two romantic leads, you automatically assume that they’re crazy about each other. And, yet, even before I could fall in love my damn self, I already had seen way too many films where the leads who were supposed to be in love seemed like they barely tolerated each other, let alone want to be in a relationship with one another. Whether it was the preposterousness of the material or the lack of chemistry from the actors, most romantic movies I viewed were thoroughly unromantic.

“But Notorious stirred up hella-mad emotion in me when I caught it on cable late one night. Watching Grant and Bergman cover each other with deep, long, tender smooches made me convinced these two must’ve had something going on after Hitchcock yelled ‘Cut!’ But, alas, they didn’t – they were just that damn good. (Also, at the time, Bergman was having a torrid, torturous affair with war photographer Robert Capa.)

“That moment reminds you how passionately charged Notorious is at its core. It may be an espionage-fueled film noir, with Grant’s cynical G-man recruiting Bergman’s tormented daughter-of-a-Nazi-spy to infiltrate a Brazil-based crew of Nazis by getting close to one (Claude Rains), who just happens to be an old flame of hers. But no matter how suspenseful and intrigue-infested this movie gets, you’re always reminded that Notorious is about two people whose desire for each other is so palpable, so intense, so friggin’ sexy, they can’t hide it -- even when they’re in the company of gotdamn Nazis!”

~ Craig D. Lindsey