21: The Trouble With Harry

THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY feels like an odd departure for Alfred Hitchcock in the the middle of the 1950s, a decade that would see him produce films like Rear Window, Vertigo and North by Northwest, but in a sense it represents a return to his roots. Very early in his career, many of his silent efforts were screwball comedies, featuring relatedly flawed leads bumbling their way to a happy ending. Here, in the midst of one the greatest decades for any filmmaker ever, Hitchcock used went back to the farcical while still retaining the murder and intrigue that made him a household name. Though the mixture isn’t always successful, the result is an undeniably entertaining time that lingers well in the imagination. Centered on a group of small town folk struggling to deal with a mysterious dead body, The Trouble with Harry pairs well with the 80s cult gem CLUE. Both films share an anarchic fun, with indelible performances and banter worthy of even the best screwball classics.

This film also introduced the world to Shirley MacLaine, who would go onto an amazing career as one of the great comic actresses. To get a double dose of her charms, pair this 1955 film with the 1966 crime comedy GAMBIT, featuring Michael Caine and a delightful narrative device that shouldn’t be spoiled.