The Wrong Man (1956) User Reviews

Hitchcock is the right man for suspense!

[jem132 · 8/10 · 11 June 2006]

This is a very underrated Hitchcock film that features amazing performances from it's two stars, Henry Fonda and (especially) Vera Miles. It is a sad, cynical offering from the Master Of Suspense that has a familiar theme (the title says it all), yet it also is perhaps one of Hitch's most unusual works.

The films runs more like a documentary in it's approach, and it feels inherently 'real'. The casting of 'everyman' Fonda in the role of Manny Balestero, a man accused of crimes he did not commit, works very well as we can feel empathy for Fonda and place ourselves in his position. Ditto with Miles. She is so convincing in her role as the mentally fragile wife Rose that her scenes are almost uncomfortable to witness. Portraying a person self-destructing is one of the hardest tasks an actor can face, but Miles does it subtly and movingly. It is a brilliant performance that ranks alongside Bergman's role in 'Notorious' and Wright's 'Charlie' in 'Shadow Of A Doubt' for best female acting honors in a Hitchcock film.

'The Wrong Man' has a sentimental, tender yet dark atmosphere. The sentimentality is perhaps due to the fact that the central action revolves around a family grouping in this film.There are no elaborate scenes of courtship and romance as in 'Vertigo' or sexy double entendres seen in 'Notorious'- Instead, we get the feeling that this is a real, normal family we are watching unravel at the seams due to the crimes of another.

Appropriately slow-moving to keep in check with Hitch's low-key approach for this one. New York in the 1950's was possibly never photographed so darkly real as it is here. Boasting great performances from the two leads, this is a must-see Hitchcock.

Hitchcock without the gimmicks...

[Doylenf · 7/10 · 26 October 2006]

THE WRONG MAN is a bleak Alfred Hitchcock movie filmed in suitably low-key style with crisp B&W photography and two very deeply felt performances by HENRY FONDA and VERA MILES.

Hitch's fear of police (traumatic experience as a youth) serves him well in crafting the kind of intimidation a man feels when he's unjustly accused of a crime he hasn't committed. Eyewitnesses place him at the scene of the crime and the police are ready to lock him up and put him away in prison.

The only one who believes in him (or his innocence) is his wife, VERA MILES, but she begins to undergo serious mental stress as the situation seems to get more and more hopeless. Eventually, she is driven to the brink of insanity and her heart hardens toward her husband. Vera Miles is excellent in the role, subtle and completely believable.

What distinguishes THE WRONG MAN from other Hitchcock films is that it's all filmed in a brisk, documentary style that leaves no room for the usual gimmicks. It's about as straightforward in its story-telling manner as any of his films has ever been, based on a true life incident in the life of a man falsely accused.

Summing up: Well worth watching, but not unless you're willing to be more than a little depressed by the somber mood.

And Justice for All?

[JamesHitchcock · 7/10 · 19 July 2005]

The theme of an innocent man wrongly accused of a crime was a frequent one in Alfred Hitchcock's work, but "The Wrong Man" is very different from most of his other treatments of this theme. It is based upon a true story, and is told in a sober, semi-documentary style rather than the director's more normal thriller style. There are no cliffhangers or chase sequences and no directorial set pieces like the scene with the crop-dusting plane in "North by Northwest" or the shower scene in "Psycho", and the ending is far more downbeat than the normal triumphant finale with the villain dead or in police custody and the hero vindicated and free to marry the beautiful young heroine. (One thing the film does have in common with a more traditional thriller is a suitably eerie musical score from Bernard Herrman who also provided the music for several other Hitchcock films).

The central character is Emmanuel Balestrero, a musician employed in a New York nightclub, a devoted husband and the father of two young sons. After visiting an insurance company to borrow some money against his wife's policy, Balestrero is arrested and told that he has been identified as the man who carried out two robberies at the company's offices. He protests his innocence but further witnesses come forward to allege that he was involved in other robberies. He is released on bail, and manages to find a lawyer to take on the case, but has difficulty in establishing an alibi that will clear his name. The action culminates in a trial scene, something of a rarity in Hitchcock's work. Although he was fascinated by the law and the criminal justice system, he preferred to create an atmosphere of physical menace rather than rely on the verbal duels of the traditional courtroom drama.

Parallel to the story of Balestrero's fight to establish his innocence is the story of his wife, Rose. Another of Hitchcock's interests, one often reflected in his work, was psychology, often but not always the psychology of the criminal mind. This interest is explored most deeply in "Spellbound", but it also appears in films such as "Strangers on a Train" and "Psycho"; both Bruno Anthony and Norman Bates can be seen as psychological case studies. In "The Wrong Man" the stress of her husband's ordeal affects Rose's mind, and she suffers first from depression, then from paranoia. She suffers a breakdown and is committed to a mental hospital. Vera Miles gives a particularly fine performance as Rose, contrasting with Henry Fonda's baffled but stoical Balestrero.

The film is not "scary" in the way that a normal Hitchcock thriller is scary, but is nevertheless frightening. In the average thriller, we feel anxiety on behalf of the hero; here we feel anxiety not only on behalf of Balestrero, who runs the risk of being imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, but also on behalf of society as a whole. This is one Hitchcock film with a serious message, intended to show that miscarriages of justice can occur all too easily. The director emphasised this message in the opening spoken prologue in which he addresses the camera directly, a prologue that replaces his normal cameo appearance. The possibility of an innocent man going to jail is all the more chilling for the fact that no-one has given perjured evidence or deliberately attempted to frame Balestrero. The witnesses genuinely believe that he is the guilty man, and the police remain dispassionate throughout. Certainly, some of the elements of criminal procedure shown would not be permissible today (suspects being arrested without being informed of their rights or of the crime of which they are suspected, interviews being conducted without a written or taped record being kept, two witnesses allowed to be present together during an identification parade), but this does not lessen the film's impact; anyone with any knowledge of the law will be aware that innocent people can still be convicted in the twenty-first century.

Apart from "Psycho" this was Hitchcock's last film made in black and white, and he makes good use of the medium, with some striking photography. Particularly notable is his use of close-ups, such as of the witnesses when they think they recognise Balestrero as the robber, or of Vera Miles's face to illustrate Rose's emotional turmoil. This is a stark, sombre film, a memorable departure from the normal Hitchcock style. 7/10.

I was the wrong man

[jools_69 · 9/10 · 5 November 2006]

In almost an eerie coincidence I have been through exactly what this man (Fonda) went through. In my case I happened to get onto a railway carriage and sit opposite the victim of a crime a few weeks earlier.

For over a year, I like Fonda, watched with no control as people questioned, was it me? For me it was like watching a story of my own experience, the line ups, the very polite police, which they were, Hitchcock got that right, he did not try to make them monsters like many other directors would. The scared victims I saw at the line up. Going to court, the friendly lawyer, who at the same time made me feel I was doing all the legwork. I would also tell him things I felt important which he would brush off, similar to how Fonda was treated.

I am sure others who have had this happen to them will understand how scared you feel and as an honest person, I never have fully recovered from my experience.

Hats off to Hitch, he really did his homework on this one, nothing was out of place, all this really does happen and still happens, just because one person mistakes your face for a criminal's.

True story-authentic locations

[lreilly2 · 9/10 · 27 January 2005]

Based pretty much on the actual events & people of a miscarriage of justice that took place in Queens County, New York in the early 50's. The names of most of the people who took part in the event are unchanged in the movie and the location shots where the actual events took place add a touch of dark realism to the movie. The basic plot revolves around a musician who worked at the world famous Stork Club who was mis-identified by witnesses and arrested because he resembled an armed robber. Hitchcock dwells on the slow descent into helplessness and powerlessness that a citizen endures as he wends his way through the NYC (or any other) criminal justice meat grinder. There are chilling shots of his transport , by paddy wagon, into the Ridgewood Felony court and the Long Island City House of Detention. The lawyer he hired, Frank O'Connor, (his real name) went on to become District Attorney of Queens county and was later heavily involved in the infamous Kitty Genovese case. Not your typical Hitchcock film but one well worth seeing if for no other reason than to see one of Henry Fonda's better performances as the quietly stunned Christopher Emmanuel (Manny) Balestrero who sees his life, career and family endangered by forces he has little control over.

An Highly Recommended Hitchcock Classic !!

[Femme_Fatale_1983 · 25 August 2001]

Before i watched The Wrong Man, a lot of people were saying bad things about it, saying it was one of hitchcock's masterpieces gone wrong... and that the acting was wooden and the rest of it, but whatever you do, do not listen to any negative comments about this film!! it is absolutely brilliant !!! It was Hitchcocks first and only documentary style thriller and it works beautifully i think !!! It's based on a true story and i love the opening sequence when Hitchcock tells you about it being a true story... it is very different to any other Hitchcock film you've ever and i think will ever see, but it's brilliant. In my opinion he should have done more films like this.... Also Henry Fonda is absolutely wonderful as Manny... the whole way he handles the situation is wonderful to watch.... Also Vera Miles is amazing as the distressed wife... her perhaps best performance on screen !!

Over all my last words to you would be ... don't listen to negative reports go out and see this film !! it's brilliant and definitely a new and unique Hitchcock Film !!!!!!!!

A must see for all Hitchcock fans !!!

Scary because it's a true story (and is not uncommon)

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 1 December 2016]

I have to say, usually in this country it's an African-American man who gets arrested as the 'Wrong Man', but this Hitchcock film is indeed based closely on a true story. It's interesting to ponder why Hitch announces that fact at the outset, and I suppose it's because therein lies the true horror: that at any time, while minding our own business, we might be arrested and accused of crimes we haven't committed. We might be have our freedom taken, get locked up in a cage, and find ourselves at the mercy of the judicial system. The scenes where Henry Fonda is imprisoned are absolutely brilliant, as are the ones of him on trial, looking around the courtroom, and noticing the trivial little behaviors of those around him, while his own life hangs in the balance. The pace of this movie is a little slow at times, but a part of that is intentional, and heightens the realism. The police procedures may have you shaking your head, as will the notoriously unreliable eyewitness testimony. There is a bit of a twist in the story concerning Fonda's wife, played by Vera Miles, which I didn't expect. It's not Hitchcock's best work, but it is the most direct statement of his concerning this motif which appeared in so many of his films, and certainly worth watching.

Disquieting, a steely Fonda, and amazing Hitchcock. But it might make you edgy.

[secondtake · 9/10 · 11 March 2010]

The Wrong Man (1956)

There's no question Alfred Hitchcock has pulled off something amazing here, a kind of experiment. Entirely based on true events, and without any sense of chase, romance, or high intrigue, and without special effects or even witty dialog, he makes you feel for the main character, Henry Fonda, a man accused of a crime he did not commit.

It's often pointed out that Hitchcock had an enormous fear of the police, and of being accused when innocent. This shows up in many of his films, but never more clearly or more painfully than here. To watch is an adventure in frustration, almost to the point you have to turn it off. But of course, you can't just get up and leave. You have to know what happens.

And the turns of events are so reasonable and yet so unbearable, you just want to get up there and say, do this, do that! It's weird to say, this is not an enjoyable movie. But it's a very good one, maybe flawless in its attempt to trap you as much as the main character was trapped. The surrounding cast is terribly believable, the cops, the wife, the kids. And it unfolds with such dramatic relentlessness. The camera angles (thanks to Robert Burks) are psychologically intense (and edited for discomfort). And the music (Bernard Herrmann, soon to score Psycho) only adds more tension.

Beautifully. As an exercise in precision, and in sticking to the facts, this is as good as a dramatic (non-documentary) film can get. Wikipedia has a small amount of helpful information, and tcm.com has a lot (click on articles or reviews on the left for a range of texts). But of course, watch it straight. See some period New York City scenes (from streets to jails to what looks like the amazing 57th St. bridge at dusk). A wonderful, if not uplifting, movie.

Solid, Thought-Provoking Drama Of An Innocent Man's Nightmare

[ShootingShark · 6/10 · 24 January 2009]

Manny Balestrero is the bass player at a nightclub in New York. One night he is picked up by the cops and charged with two robberies after some witnesses identify him and he cannot provide an alibi. How can he prove his innocence ?

In sharp contrast to the glamorous, evocative, stylish thrillers of The Man Who Knew Too Much and Vertigo which adjoin it in Hitchcock's career, The Wrong Man is a deliberately ordinary, unsensational, frighteningly plausible story of mistaken identity. It was based on a true story, no details were altered and it was shot in many of the actual locations in New York where it happened (notably The Stork Club, a famous hangout in midtown Manhattan). What Hitchcock and Fonda achieve here is a disturbingly real, almost documentary-like portrayal of how it feels to be criminalised. And although Manny only spends a brief time in confinement, the terrible bewildering process is depicted with intense detail. Even worse than the trauma of the arrest are the after-effects on his life, specifically his wife's nervous breakdown, his fruitless search to clear his name and his endless money worries (bail, lawyers, doctors). Hitchcock had a pathological fear of being arrested (he never drove a car so he wouldn't get a ticket) and his film gently but firmly reminds us that no matter how robust any justice system is, there is always the capacity for honest mistake. Nobody deliberately maligns Manny - even the witnesses who ID him genuinely think they're doing the right thing - but he and his family are cruelly victimised and only escape via good fortune. Both Fonda and Miles are excellent in the leads; his Everyman performance ranks with The Grapes Of Wrath and 12 Angry Men (his next film), and she is even better than in her much more famous subsequent appearance for Hitchcock in Psycho. The great director proves here, as he did so often in his career, what a gifted range he had as a filmmaker, skilfully adapting his style to best suit the drama and the atmosphere of the piece. Unusually in this film he does not make a cameo appearance, but instead appears in shadow to deliver a brief introduction.

Overlooked Masterpiece

[jluis1984 · 9/10 · 14 January 2006]

The name of Alfred Hitchcock, the Master of Suspense, is and will be eternally linked to his most well-known masterpieces such as "Psycho" or "The Birds"; sadly, this has left "The Wrong Man" in the obscurity as an overlooked gem that in fact deserves to be seen and appreciated by film enthusiasts worldwide.

The true story of Emmanuel Ballestrero (played superbly by Henry Fonda) and his unfair imprisonment when he is accused of a crime he did not commit, is represented faithfully in Hitchcock's "The Wrong Man", with all its frightening realism.

The most important thing about this movie must be the fact that it is based on a real life tragedy, this is a big difference from the rest of the Hitchcock's work. The Master adds more realism to the movie by keeping a low profile direction, almost in a documentary style. Gone are the camera tricks, the contrived plots and the suspense; in "The Wrong Man" we have a scary noir-esquire tale of crime in its more realistic way. In fact, Hitchcock himself decided to turn his cameo into an "introductory speech" because he felt that a cameo would take away the realism of the movie.

As I wrote above, the script is very simple, and without plot twists or a clear McGuffin to look at; nevertheless, the master guides us through the suffering of this man as he is humiliated by the police in sheer realism. Hitchcock takes away his characteristic dark humor and gives us a grim tale of injustice, probably fueled by his own terrible fear of police. This fear is latent in every frame, and the fear of imprisonment is particularly shown in all its scary magnitude when Ballestrero is locked for the first time, the camera gives depth to his prison and Fonda's expression is superb.

Henry Fonda gives one of his best performances ever, as the quiet every man who works as a musician in a bar. It is a very realistic performance that alone worths the price of the movie. I dare to say that this is probably Fonda's best role. The rest of the cast is average but its understandable because the movie is completely focused on Fonda, all of them give very natural acting that fits the tone of the movie. Notable exception is Vera Miles, who gives a Tour-De-Force in his representation of Ballestrero's wife, who suffers a nervous breakdown when his husband is in jail. Vera's acting is outstanding and her performance shows the mental decay that Mrs. Ballestrero suffered in real life with scary realism.

As you probably have noticed, the perfect description for this movie is "scary realism", that is what "The Wrong Man" is, a realistic portrait of a tale of injustice and how a man had to go through hell just because the justice had picked, the Wrong Man 9/10. Overlooked gem.

An under-appreciated gem from the Master of Suspense

[lightguardian2002 · 7/10 · 10 June 2006]

I have seen a majority of Hitchcock's films, and though "The Wrong Man" may not be in the same league as movies like "Shadow Of A Doubt", "Notorious", "Vertigo" and "Rear Window", it's a classic in it's own right.

I have read some of the critic's reviews of this film, stating how it was a failure as a "Neorealist" film. While it is certainly true that the film was inspired by the Italian Neorealistic movement, it was equally inspired by the elements of classic film noir. There are three major elements that makes this film such a chilling, engrossing, uneasy film to watch: 1) Alfred Hitchcock's masterly command of this genre, combined with its stark realism; 2) the way both Hitchcock and Henry Fonda make us identify with the character through his entire ordeal; and 3) the way Hitchcock makes it appears as if this could happen to anyone, given the right set of circumstances.

Few circumstances are more compelling than a good man unjustly accused of terrible crimes. And few filmmakers illustrate this concept better than Hitchcock.

A Very Sad Drama Based on a True Story

[claudio_carvalho · 9/10 · 4 May 2005]

In New York, the Catholic Italian musician of the Stork Club Christopher Emanuel "Manny" Balestrero (Henry Fonda) is a simple man, married with his beloved wife Rose (Vera Miles) and having two sons. On 14 January 1953, his wife needs an expensive teeth treatment, and Manny goes to the insurance company, trying to raise a loan. However, he is wrongly identified by a clerk as the man who robbed the place twice, being arrested and sent to jail. His friends pay the bail and he tries to prove his innocence. Meanwhile, Rose has a nervous breakdown, caused by her mistrust on his innocence, and is sent to an institution for treatment.

"The Wrong Man" is a very sad and touching story of the injustice against an innocent man, affecting the health of his family. Henry Fonda is amazing in the role of an ordinary man, who accepts passively the situations, believing on God and praying for strength and justice. Vera Miles is fantastic in the role of a wife who believe she has part of the guilty for the action of her beloved husband. This movie was filmed in many authentic locations, and is a very different work of Alfred Hitchcock. Maybe due to the theme be so serious, Hitchcock appears only introducing of the story, and does not have any other small participations as he usually does in his movies. The black and white photography, with shadows, and the score of Bernard Herrmann, complete the magnificence of this great underrated movie. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "O Homem Errado" ("The Wrong Man")

Well shot and acted crime drama

[Stampsfightclub · 7/10 · 9 December 2009]

Christopher Balestrero (Fonda) is mistaken for a bank robber and has no evidence to support his innocence.

The first film of the greatest British director to be based on a true story Alfred Hitchcock gleefully sets the viewer up for the ride by standing in the middle of an unknown place and telling us so. As the screen fades and we meet Henry Fonda in his home with Vera Miles and kids we have a set up for a tantalizing story of mistaken identity and criminal injustice.

Initially the build up is fairly sluggish as Christopher is leading a pretty standard family portrayal and after ten minutes or so we follow the main character into the bank to enquire about a loan and then the ante is generated.

The bank recognizes the face of Christopher to be the face of a recent robber in the area, and after skilfully denying the application, the bank turn him away. A wonderfully shot pickup at his very home and Chris is involved with the police who order him to walk into stores and back out so the cashiers and workers can identify him. This tactic by the police is certainly different from your stereotyped police perception in modern crime films and as with Hitchcock's fear of the Police, they certainly generate a calm but underlining authority over everyone.

The plot continues to spell out challenges for Fonda's character who suffers torment and pain physiologically and physically in the hands of the police in prison. One excellent moment comes when Hitchcock places Fonda against the wall in his cell, giving the feeling of horrible claustrophobia and uses the camera to swivel around and around, giving off haziness and a delicious sense of nausea.

Fonda does well in the lead role, capturing the personality of a known innocence but struggling to deal with the new surroundings and predicament he is in. He is however not as captivating in this role as other big names in Hitchcock films, such as Cary Grant.

What was a great surprise however was Vera Miles as Chris' wife. In almost a supporting role she is quietly accurate as a troubled wife and her decent into madness would make Hamlet look silly. This spices up an added sense of drama and contributing to the real story scenario, it is a credit to the actress.

The plot moves slowly with a few action sequences and bearing in mind this is a real event that was inevitable but for Hitchcock you expect more and the film is almost a sad let down because of it.

Nevertheless this is still well shot with a glorious exploration of the law order with some wonderful performances and excellently set up scenes.

A Journey In Darkness

[slokes · 4/10 · 16 November 2009]

Hard to watch by design, "The Wrong Man" impresses with its technique and stark dissimilarity from what we associate with director Alfred Hitchcock. But novelty does not equal brilliance.

Henry Fonda is the title character, a club musician named Manny Balestrero mistakenly pegged for a hold-up man while trying to borrow some money from his wife Rose's (Vera Miles) life insurance policy. The arrest forces Manny to not only prove his innocence but fight to keep his family intact.

"Bleak and dour" is the best way to describe this movie. "Every step a journey in darkness" is the trailer's tagline, and it is only a slight exaggeration. Hitchcock even does a voice-over telling us how unusual a story this is for him to tackle, because "every word" of it is true.

The problem with "The Wrong Man" is the way it makes real life feel like a trip to the dentist's. Fonda feels wrong in the central role, not because he is not a convincing everyman but because he seems so uncomfortable in his own skin. Even before he is charged with anything we watch him regard his surroundings with a strange, strained, sheepish smile. Prison doesn't seem much of a change.

Hitchcock fans might enjoy this detour into Kazan territory (minus the method acting) for the way it sets up some unique camera work. Sequences of Fonda's head revolving inside a lens and later of him seen through a cell latch hole get much of the attention, but just as interesting, and more in keeping with the realistic aesthetic, are the numerous POV and high-angle shots that play up the claustrophobia in less showy ways.

I have a hard time understanding how people might view "The Wrong Man" as an underrated masterpiece. The central story is too thin, takes way too long to develop, and is resolved with offhanded ease following one of the least interesting trial sequences ever shot. Hitchcock himself seems to lose interest in it, going full-tilt into a second story about Rose's mental meltdown. Miles certainly has effective moments in her spotlight scenes, enough to make one wonder what she would have done with the part she was offered in "Vertigo", but her crack-up as written is too abrupt and capped by a laughably pat end frame.

Once you get used to his no-frills performance, Fonda is interesting to watch in his offbeat way, and the secondary players are all good. Especially worthy of notice are Harold J. Stone as the lead detective in the Balestrero case and Doreen Lang as maybe the most awful of the many awful witnesses gathered by police.

That the police make so many mistakes is undoubtedly the point Hitchcock wants to make here, and there are times where the frightening arbitrariness of life grabbing one by the throat is made very real. "Just when you thought it was safe to walk into the insurance office" could be this film's tag line.

But after a few scenes of this, I was ready to move on. Hitch, alas, was not, and "The Wrong Man" suffers for it.

Hitchcock's scariest film

[boris-26 · 23 November 2001]

THE WRONG MAN has to be the scariest film made by Alfred Hitchcock. The driving force is it's realism. Based on a true story, we follow a struggling Queens musician (Henry Fonda) falsly accused of local robberies. We don't have suave Cary Grant dodging cropdusters or Mount Rushmore. There is no darkly funny Robert Walker making quips about murder. It's all frightfully real- the arrest process, the breakdown of Fonda's family (An incredible performance by Vera Miles as his wife) and the grueling courtroom process. The opening hour of unsmiling detectives checking Fonda's story, and watching Fonda become more defenseless is outright chilling.

Unexpected jewel from the Master

[averjee · 10/10 · 19 March 1999]

This is a terrific, dark, taut thriller from Hitchcock, based on a true story. Not his usual ostentatious style, but it plays on the theme of a wrong man caught up in extraordinary events beyond his control (REAR WINDOW, NORTH BY NORTHWEST, PSYCHO).

It may be Hitchcock's most cynical film. Henry Fonda plays a man falsely accused of armed robbery. He is a quiet man, whose life gets turned upside down as a result.

Hitchcock spares us nothing of the horror of the predicament of Fonda's situation. He shows many of the details of how Fonda is accused, arrested, and tried in real time, so we are as fully worn down as the protagonist.

The plot was quite unbelievable by 1950s standards that Hitch needed all the realism he could muster. For example, Hitchcock himself introduces the film in a prologue, to verify that it is indeed based on a true story. Also, don't look for his trademark cameo - he did shoot a scene where he was a customer in a store, but that scene ended up getting cut. Hitchcock personally interviewed all of the participants in the real live drama. And the doctor at the sanitarium is played not by an actor, but by a real doctor.

Bare bones Hitchcock.

[Anonymous_Maxine · 9/10 · 3 March 2007]

I think pretty much every lesser known Hitchcock film has a whole society of people who call it "one of Hitchcock's great unsung masterpieces," and The Wrong Man is no different. The wrong man theme is one of Hitchcock's favorites and he has used it a great many times to create some of his most suspenseful films, and he uses that and almost nothing else to create the considerable suspense in this film.

Hitchcock had a genuine fear of the police, and you can see it in many of his films, this one more than most. Henry Fonda delivers a wonderful performance as a regular man who just wants to be a good man and a good husband, but suddenly finds himself embroiled in this case of mistaken identity. The film is structured differently from a lot of his other films, which often showed a man forced into isolation by misplaced accusations, only to slowly reveal himself to be a hero and gradually get the girl, who paid him no attention at the beginning of the film.

(spoilers) In this film, Christopher Balestrero (Henry Fonda) is never a hero nor does he try to be, and his wife not only does not gradually grow more and more fond of him despite the accusations against him, but she grows more and more distant due to the accusations.

Hitchcock personally introduces the film in his only speaking role in any of his movies (he introduced his television series episodes, but mostly as comic relief), and warns that the movie is completely true and absolutely frightening. It is a successful adaptation of a true story, although clearly highly polished to satisfy the studio. Definitely one of Hitchcock's more notable efforts.

In the title role, Henry Fonda's only appearance in an Alfred Hitchcock film

[jacobs-greenwood · 6/10 · 25 October 2016]

If you've read any of the biographies about Alfred Hitchcock at all, you know of his fear of being locked up and his distrust of the police. This film is the perfect manifestation of those fears and, ironically, it's based on a true story. In fact, the movie opens with the director's shadowed figure speaking "what you are about to hear is absolutely true", or words to that effect, in lieu of his typical cameo.

Based on the novel by Maxwell Anderson, this last effort by screenwriter Angus MacPhail, whose other feature length adaptation for the director was Spellbound (1945), tells the story of Manny Balestrero, a musician and family man who was incorrectly identified by witnesses as an armed robber.

Sandwiched between his last two (of four) collaborations with James Stewart, Hitchcock uses Henry Fonda, for the first and only time, to tell this real-life noir drama. The film also marks the first of the two Hitchcock films with Vera Miles, who would go on to play Janet Leigh's concerned sister in Psycho (1960).

Harold Stone and Charles Cooper play the police lieutenant and detective who, based on identifications from several women robbery victims, arrest and then process Balestrero (Fonda) through to jail - the film's most memorable scenes. Nehemiah Persoff plays Manny's brother-in-law, who comes up with the bail.

The story then shifts somewhat to a focus on Manny's wife Rose (Miles), who begins to suffer a mental breakdown and she blames herself for what's happened to her husband. Anthony Quayle, who plays the inexperienced, yet competent defense council that the Balestreros hire, advises Manny to have his wife see a doctor (Werner Klemperer), and eventually she's institutionalized.

A thirteen year old Tuesday Weld appears, uncredited in her first film, as a giggling girl that the Balestreros come across while trying to find witnesses for his defense.

The subplot of Rose's collapse notwithstanding, the film is still pretty good even with its hokey ending, then again it's based on a true story.

More Kafka Than Hitchcock

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 24 October 2007]

The problem that most people have with The Wrong Man is that it's not the Alfred Hitchcock we've come to expect. No unflappable hero like Cary Grant, no cool blonds to accompany the hero like Madeleine Carroll, or Grace Kelly, no McGuffin as Hitchcock always describes the object everyone is after in his films.

The object our protagonist, in this case Henry Fonda, is after is to clear his good name. And The Wrong Man is based on the true story of Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero who apart from working odd hours due to his job is your average normal family man. Fonda is a bass fiddle player in the orchestra at the famous swanky Stork Club in Manhattan.

Fonda's Kafkaesque nightmare starts when wife Vera Miles needs some ready cash so he goes to borrow on his insurance policy. His dumb luck to walk into the insurance office and look like a man who had held the place up before. Fonda's even wearing the same type clothes.

The insurance company calls the police and Detective Harold J. Stone is assigned. Remember this was the days before Miranda warnings were mandatory, otherwise had Fonda called a lawyer right then and there, he might not have gotten in this mess. Stone convinces himself he's got the right man and Fonda is arrested.

When the police think they are on the right track it's mighty hard to dissuade them. Back when I was a working person as an investigator for the NYS Crime Victims Board, I handled a couple of claims arising out of the break-in murder of a lesbian woman in Brooklyn in 1995. The woman's partner was also injured by the same man who broke in. However the police were absolutely convinced that the partner herself had a hand in the killing. They told that to one and all who would listen including me in my official capacity. The partner's claim was held up as a result of this.

As it turned out the police on a totally different case arrested a man who confessed to the break-in murder/robbery. Now the partner was never arrested as Henry Fonda was, but she was under suspicion by all because the police investigating went on a totally different track. The surviving partner eventually got all that was due her by my agency. So I'm here to tell you that these things can and do happen in real life and the case of Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero was no aberration.

Actually though, as good as Fonda is in the part, the best work in the film is done by Vera Miles. She blamed herself and her mismanaging of the household finances as the reason for her husband's troubles. She suffers a complete mental breakdown as a result. Vera's performance was Oscar caliber stuff, it should have been considered by the Academy.

Although it would seem a most odd choice for the role, British actor Anthony Quayle played Frank D. O'Connor, former State Senator, who defended Balestrero. O'Connor later worked the other side of the courtroom when he became District Attorney of Queens County, President of the New York City Council and Democratic candidate for Governor in 1966 against Nelson Rockefeller. O'Connor later went to the New York State Supreme Court where he was well respected. I'm sure O'Connor in real life was pleased with the way Anthony Quayle played him.

Though a film like this would be more identified with someone like Jules Dassin, Alfred Hitchcock did a fine job. Pity the film was not better received because the movie going public expected certain things from a Hitchcock film.

Hard Luck Case

[telegonus · 7/10 · 30 December 2018]

This Alfred Hitchcock directed picture was based on the true story of something that went terribly wrong one night for a musician who worked in a swank and at the time very famous New York nightclub, and what happened to him one night when, on his way home from work, he was confronted by policeman in a car outside his home and was arrested on charges of armed robbery.

This musician, Manny Balestrero, was innocent of the crime of which he was accused; and from things the viewer gets to know about him he is a caring family man, imperfect in mostly small ways; a devoted husband and father; and overall an upstanding citizen. What follows Manny's arrest is essentially a ritual of dehumanization and humiliation, as Manny is prepared by the police to spend his time in jail as he await his trial.

What little good news that comes Manny's way is that he has acquired the services of a decent, sympathetic, competent lawyer who believes in his case, and who works hard for him. The downside during this period is the slow, tragic mental decline of Manny's wife, whose mind is slowly unraveling under the stress of her husband's predicament ; and it's easy for the viewer to see where she is headed from her increasingly strange and for her atypical behavior, as she becomes detached from reality and sinks into a deep depression.

The Wrong Man is a movie that feels like a short trip to hell. There's not a moment of joy in the entire film. There are, for sure, good people in the story, and yet they are, most of them, helpless in their attempts to help Manny, as the wheels of justice are as slow as they are heavy. Manny's ordeal is a long one; and what in the end saves him is nothing less than a miracle. A good Catholic, Manny prays to God for help; and his prayers are answered; after a fashion, that is.

However that may be, Manny's personal life is ruined. His wife is a mess. What fame and goodwill he received in the media vanished quickly. The story happened a long time ago. Manny was not going to appear in coast to coast talk shows. A movie, this one, would be made of his ordeal; but one cannot put a price tag on personal suffering Could any of the suffering he went through be made up for in some way? One senses not. Manny shall survive, shall continue to earn a living, but he shall not prosper. To put it in plain English: to be saved from a several years prison sentence and a felony conviction is not the same as "winning". Manny did not win his case so much as the state lost its case. Manny lost the night he was arrested.

There is no quick fix,--or for that matter even a slow one--for people who have suffered as Manny did. This is what the viewer of The Wrong Man learns about our criminal justice system and, more broadly speaking, our society. Manny was one of many people who are not perhaps blessed in life to any great extent, yet not cursed, either. They live in a kind of drab normality, occasionally interrupted by moments of joy and of love. After his arrest, Manny was too wounded to wholly recover, though he did live. His wife fell apart and never wholly recovered.

The Wrong Man is a true to life movie, and an exceedingly sad and depressing one. It's a downer from start to finish. Justice was served in the end; and yet two people's lives were ruined along the way. Where's the justice in that? There isn't any. The entire story of this film is that of a hard luck case. Manny was not a fortunate man to begin with, though he had some good things in life prior to his arrest. Afterward, he was still a hard luck case, only now he could walk the streets again as a free man; in theory anyway.

if there are films that are "under-rated", this one wold be near the top of the list

[Quinoa1984 · 10/10 · 30 October 2005]

After sitting through The Wrong Man, it puzzles me greatly why this film isn't seen by more, or rated as highly as some of Alfred Hitchcock's masterpieces. True, he does seem to be subverting his style slightly for the story, which is at the core a tragedy of a man falsely accused (and maybe not with the same tension we'd expect like in Strangers on a Train or Psycho). But to me it shows him really with an experimental edge that just seemed to really strike me. This is Hitchcock going for something Kafkaesque ala the Trial, and on that level the film is downright scary at times.

Though Henry Fonda's Manny Balestero is told of his charge after being arrested, the whole 'procedural' nature of the film's story, of how the system can be the damnedest thing, makes it downright gripping. Like with the Master's other films, one can see the suspense at times almost sweating through the frame, and the kind of Cold-War era paranoia that works magnificently (like when Manny is at the insurance office, where the plot thickens), along with the sort of Joseph K. quality to the lead of being presumed guilty more than being presumed innocent.

But there is also something very powerful, and challenging, about the casting of the lead. In a sense Hitchcock was one step ahead of Sergio Leone, who would do something similar with Once Upon a Time in the West (though Leone was going for a lot more twisting the genre screws). It's a filmmaker saying, 'look, I'm giving you Henry Fonda, maybe the most, if not one of the most, good-hearted movie stars from the 40's- Grapes of Wrath, My Darling Clementine, The Lady Eve, etc- but I'm putting him in a situation where he's in this strange scenario of not playing himself, or rather being in a society that is brutal and unflinching'.

Fonda was the perfect choice considering the material, and while it is based on a true story and Fonda is terrific at his role, that Hitchcock leaves out certain details of his innocence (says the trivia on IMDb) adds a certain level to the subject matter. Maybe he is guilty and we just are too gullible to think it? How long can all this doomed atmosphere continue? On an existential level almost Hitchcock delivers a kind of very recognizable world with the terror on a different but just as engaging level as his 'popular' films.

If Fonda is our fatefully unlucky protagonist, Vera Miles is equally compelling as his wife, who can't seem to take what has been going on with her husband. If there is some sense of pitch black satire amid the "true-story" drama of the story, she is the representation of paranoia affecting a seemingly good person. Why this happens exactly to Rose Ballestero, her descent into a kind of closed-off madness, isn't made entirely clear (again, Kafka), and the conclusion to the film brings something that I was hoping would happen, and did, and makes for something far more challenging than if a standard Hollywood director would've tackled the material.

Using real locations in NYC, the great many character actors that make up the police and everyday people (there is some very good casting in the insurance office scene), and a musical score that is decidedly vintage Herrmann, Hitchcock uses this sort of documentary realism to heighten his own subjective approach (all the images of prison bars, the film-noir type lighting and staging, the use of space in the rooms). It all works to help the story, which goes against the grain of the 50's era thriller, and it works extremely well.

In fact, for my money, I would rank this among my top five or so favorites in Hitchcock's whole oeuvre. It's a bold statement to be sure, but for the particular cinema fan, this brings on entertainment on a truly dramatic scale and, until a certain point I won't mention, is unrelenting.

Unexpected,offbeat Hitchcock subject

[BJJManchester · 7/10 · 29 December 2007]

THE WRONG MAN covers a subject matter that Alfred Hitchcock frequently used in a large percentage of his output:an innocent man trying to clear his name over a crime he did not commit.But the details are wholly different from the suave,witty byplay with Cary Grant in TO CATCH A THIEF and NORTH BY NORTHWEST,in rich technicolor, glamorous sets and locations,for example.On this occasion,Hitchcock places his story in Wintry New York,filmed in stark monochrome,with a low-key,almost documentary-style feel to the proceedings,which prevent any elaborate Hitchcockian set-pieces.The main protagonist,Manny (Henry Fonda),a perfectly ordinary,decent and straightforward working man (a musician at a swanky nightclub) is accused of a series of hold-ups,and is seemingly powerless to fully prove his innocence of the crimes in a court of law.In the end,the real villain is eventually captured,but not after his wife Rose (Vera Miles) cracks under the strain and suffers a mental breakdown.

THE WRONG MAN is certainly not one of Hitchcock's more typical works,despite the familiar plot line;the pace is deliberately slow and stately,it's hero is of the most modest (if not dull) of proportions,and there are no opportunities for any humorous relief.On the other hand,this does not entirely work against the film.The details of Manny's ordeal after his wrongful arrest and period in the police station are very convincing and even a little harrowing,and Fonda and Miles are impressive as the man and wife haplessly caught in the terrible events that have taken over their lives.Ms Miles herself,an underrated actress, is particularly persuasive as Rose,her gradual mental deterioration very effectively and believably performed,with some very touching and moving dramatic moments.She certainly deserved an Oscar nomination at least for her excellent portrayal of this role,in possibly the best performance of her film career.

In the midst of such classics as VERTIGO,NORTH BY NORTHWEST and PSYCHO,THE WRONG MAN has been somewhat unfairly overlooked in this creatively fertile period for Alfred Hitchcock.And while it is true that it lacks the humour,memorable individual sequences and imagery that the above films have in abundance,this is still a diverting and worthwhile attempt by Hitch to approach one of his most favourite subject matters from a more modest,but unusual standpoint.And he still manages to produce some striking moments of cinematic invention,most notably when Fonda's face is gradually superimposed on that of the real hold-up man,just before he commits the crime that will give his game away and clear Manny.The film's only real negative point is the casting of distinguished British actor Anthony Quayle as Fonda's lawyer;Quayle is by no means an embarrassment in the role,but his struggle with an American accent is obvious and one wonders why Hitchcock didn't cast any available US actor in the part.

That quibble aside,THE WRONG MAN is still a very well-crafted effort by one of the cinema's masters,and although not one of his very best (it is certainly among his saddest and gloomiest),it is definitely worth further appraisal after being somewhat ignored and undervalued for many years.

RATING:7 out of 10.

Forget it is Hitchcock and appreciate it

[bandw · 9/10 · 22 July 2011]

I think this movie would have been universally praised if Hitchcock had used an assumed name to direct it, since a lot of the negative comments are to the effect that it is not a typical Hitchcock. And that is the case, since this is a straightforward telling of what is presented as a true story of a man falsely accused of robberies. And there is no twist at the end. However, there is some truly great work here. Consider the opening credit scenes that have Henry Fonda (as Manny Balestrero) playing the bass in a small orchestra in New York's Stork Club. At the start of the sequence there is a ballroom full of dancers and, as the credits go on, one scene morphs into another with each successive scene having fewer dancers. By the end of the credits we are down to closing time and Manny is heading home. Brilliant opening credits auguring good things to come.

The movie has some of the of the best black and white cinematography ever. Whether it is a car moving across a bridge through light and shadows or a close-up of a woman's eye peering suspiciously at us, the cinematography alone held my attention.

Fonda and Vera Miles do a great job in playing how a man and his wife react to false accusations, with Fonda playing the innocent who is trying to deal with a bad situation in a most responsible and rational manner and Miles cracking under the pressure. Fonda says a lot with his eye movements--a quick glance to the side or a disbelieving stare tell us a lot. I always wonder who gets the credit for such effective use of what movies can uniquely portray. Is it the director, the cinematographer, the art director, the actor?

For me the emotional involvement was established by considering how I would react to such a case of false accusation and arrest. And, equally importantly, how would I handle dealing with a wife buckling under the pressure. Probably not as well as the Fonda character. The backdrops are rather grungy--stark bare walls, crumbling plaster, exposed lamp cords, claustrophobic jail cells, sparsely furnished court rooms. Interesting to note that this was filmed a decade before the Miranda warning requirement. You get so used to seeing that in crime dramas that you miss it when it is not there.

The Bernard Hermann score is not as prominent as many of his are. Much of it is played on the bass; a tie-in to Manny's profession?

Virtually forgotten, but a worthy addition to the Hitchcock canon nonetheless

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 25 July 2013]

THE WRONG MAN is a virtually forgotten Hitchcock movie, made with a relatively low budget and never spoken about compared to the director's other films from the same era: DIAL M FOR MURDER, THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH, etc. I never even knew it existed until I saw it on the TV schedules.

Having watched it, I can see why it's so unknown. It's played deadly straight - there's no light humour from Cary Grant-alikes or anything to soften the drama. It tells a true story, which is unusual for a Hitchcock film. There's no action, no thrills and explicit scenes of danger or excitement.

Instead, this is a tense, realistic piece of human drama about a miscarriage of justice perpetrated by the New York Police Department on an unsuspecting man. Yes, Hitchcock was very fond of the 'wrong man' type story, but this is the narrative at its most pure and undiluted, a thorough exploration of the flaws in the justice system.

Henry Fonda is outstanding as the innocent man caught up in a growing nightmare, and he's lent excellent support by both Vera Miles as his suffering wife and Anthony Quayle as his inexperienced lawyer. The tale is gripping throughout, from the first case of mistaken identity, through one of the most horrifying courtroom scenes I've ever witnessed, to the bittersweet conclusion. THE WRONG MAN is a great film - one of the director's best!

Dreary and literal

[onepotato2 · 4/10 · 1 January 2005]

Love Hitch. Rear Window is astonishing. Vertigo is remarkable. But his best films toy with viewpoint and film technique. With an excellent script he can provide the additional satisfaction of cultural commentary or layered meaning.

This offers little in the way of any of those things. The script is the major problem. For 40 minutes all development proceeds along a single anticipated line: each new test will positively i.d. Manny (Fonda) as the culprit in a string of crimes. But when you give your movie the title "the Wrong Man," you've tipped off the audience about both the theme, and the protagonists culpability. You don't need such a sober, laborious setup! It's so plodding that your mind is already trying to read allegorical meaning into it after ten minutes. The score literalizes obvious points and underscores mundane visuals (shoes?) with tension. The music cues might have worked in a half hour television format, which is I suspect where the problem originates.

For various reasons Fonda and Vera Miles would never be the leads in another Hitch movie. Miles got pregnant. Fonda is miscast. He may be the least Italian person you could give the part to. He's too articulate and middle-class to play someone mired in red-tape because he can't explain himself better. This is also due to the minority-erasing casting of Fonda. It would be feasible that a non-white person would have a hard time explaining themselves. Fonda, who disliked the Method just recites the script sincerely. His performance has no arc whatsoever. Emotionally, his reaction to being arrested and humiliated is not so different from riding a bus. Nothing registers; it's like looking at a prop for 90 minutes. If he can't get excited about his own fate, how can a viewer? Mad magazine spoofed this back in the sixties as the dullest treatment of an endless series of ordinary moments. It was an unusually perceptive piece.

There are several moments in Hitch's career where he tries to escape his genre and meets resistance. There's the mediocre comedy Mr. and Mrs. Smith. There are his historical pictures Jamaica Inn and Under Capricorn. And then there's this; an attempt to play one of his favorite themes straight, without a wink to the audience.

It feels like an early test of naturalistic filming that he'd show off again in Psycho. It's a very anti-Hollywood film. It's filmed very crisply. Coming from anyone other than Hitchcock, it might have worked.