Julie Andrews is distractingly terrible in Torn Curtain, a film in which Alfred Hitchcock -- he of great films like Rear Window, Vertigo and Psycho -- can only muster up minor energy and slight intrigue for his espionage story treatment. Tragically, this great director only achieves mediocrity.

that polish woman was ridiculous

Has it's moments but this curtain should remain closed......

Some good scenes, but not very memorable.

"Torn Curtain is not a total disaster." - Dan Callahan

Oh THAT curtain! An underrated Hitchcock entry, well directed with plenty of effective suspense scenes and some compelling secondary characters. I don't quite buy Newman as a scientist, at least the way he plays it here. Andrews is decent, though her character has nothing to do. Definitely worth the watch.

It's hard to find anything redeeming here: boring story/screenplay, Newman's character is unlikeable, Andrews is whiny and the pacing is somewhere between dull and comatose. I guess Hitchcock was trying to outdo "Psycho" with the famous cringe-worthy murder scene, which even manages to become boring.

Although definitely not his best film, I still just love the way he builds up the plot, the tension, narrowing in everything towards an unavoidable last scene... that unfortunately doesn't reeeeally come.

Not Hitchcock's finest hour, but it does have more than a few good suspense scenes. Unfortunately it also has Julie Andrews as the most obnoxious woman on earth.

Much maligned Hitch entry is actually very suspensful and well directed, with many impressive set pieces (the chase through the museum, the farmhouse murder, the climactic ballet performance). Newman and Andrews are an unconvincing couple, but both turn in solid performances; Newman feels slightly strained as if his 'method' performance grinds uncomfortably with Hitch's iron directorial grip. In support, Wolfgang Kieling stands out as the creepy Gromek. Great it ain't, but very entertaining.

67.500

i'm disappointed about Hitchcock's nationalist manner, besides it's also too long with similar Hitchcock suspense tricks

Andrews is good. Newman is not quite convincing--too often he looks like he's Paul Newman playing a guy; he gets better in the second half though. Gromek was fun (I was sorry when they killed him off)--as was Lint and the crazy Polish lady. But too many hair-raising split-second escapes--it started to look like pro wrestling ("See the tag team of Newman and Andrews take on the Commie Marauders!"). And lame musical touches at the beginning and end; especially the AHP theme during his cameo.

On the weaker end of the masters scale, but it has it's moment.

Pretty good, except for the over-reliance on shabby rear projection and obvious sets. Besides the brutally long murder scene, it doesn't really add anything new to the Hitchcock legacy, but it's entertaining throughout, and tense enough to keep you glued to your seat. The only major problem is the Andrews character: at first she adds an interesting element, but eventually she becomes little more than a piece of luggage. Her presence neither helps nor hinders the operation, she's just there.