The Trouble With Harry

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The Trouble With Harry

PG

1955

1h 39m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

88%

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33 Reviews

73%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

When a local man's corpse appears on a nearby hillside, no one is quite sure what happened to him. Many of the town's residents secretly wonder if they are responsible, including the man's ex-wife, Jennifer (Shirley MacLaine), and Capt. Albert Wiles (Edmund Gwenn), a retired seaman who was hunting in the woods where the body was found. As the no-nonsense sheriff (Royal Dano) gets involved and local artist Sam Marlowe (John Forsythe) offers his help, the community slowly unravels the mystery.

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Critics Consensus

Amplified by a darkly irreverent tone, The Trouble With Harry finds Alfred Hitchcock masterfully balancing his trademark suspense with pitch-black laughs.

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Geoff Andrew

Time Out

May 5, 2020

Hitchcock is reluctant to follow the subversive premises of the story through to their outrageous logical conclusion.

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

May 5, 2020

Alfred Hitchcock's 1955 comedy has long been overshadowed by the masterworks that surround it, but it's a wonderful, fanciful film, the most optimistic movie he ever made -- a fairy tale among nightmares.

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Penelope Houston

Sight & Sound

Apr 28, 2020

Assimilating the black humours of the comedie noire into the gentler comedy of village eccentricity, Hitchcock and his scriptwriter, John Michael Hayes, have concocted an entertainment insidious in its charm.

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Michael Calleri

Niagara Gazette

Jan 8, 2023

The film plays out with utterly charming merriment, which is assisted every step of the way by the acting of the sparkling cast. The characters may be naive, but they are adorably beguiling, and the tale bounces to a satisfying conclusion.

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Walter Chaw

Film Freak Central

Jun 24, 2022

4/4

In a career littered with experiments that succeed to different degrees, this is one that really worked.

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Francois Truffaut

Arts (France)

Apr 4, 2022

The color is artfully wonderful: fall shades disclose a poetry that offers a mischievous contrast to the gruesome text and action.

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Levi J

@Lev77 Jul 27, 2026

A delightful and dark comedy with beautiful New England autumn scenery. This movie states the absurdity of death, the complexity of guilt, and the stupidity of certain social rules/expectations, and Hitchcock did an excellent job!

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bearpawz T

@bearpawz May 8, 2026

I love this fun, quirky movie.. And the autumn scenery makes it even more special. So sit back.. and if you need another glass of lemonade, Miss Rogers will fix you right up! Charming, simple, fun movie...

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Horror fan 4

@Horrorfan4life Jan 12, 2026

An absolute classic who done it comedy. One of my top 3 Hitchcock movies. Tim Treakle

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Rare T

@RT00283363 Dec 6, 2024

Ratings for The Trouble With Harry are generally brought down by the weight of mild disappointment resulting from higher anticipation for a Hitchcock movie. However, from an objective and unbiased point of view, this could be considered a solid production. The plot, though of a homogeneous nature, is actually unique, containing just the perfect blend of suspense and foolishness, though the latter prevails. Even disregarding all aforementioned elements, Shirley MacLaine’s debuting presence, on a Hitchcock movie no less, should be reason enough to watch, let alone the rest of the cast.

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To F

@Frannko Nov 7, 2024

Es bastante entretenida y tiene ese toque tan puro de comedia. El sarcasmo le da un toque muy especial. Las actuaciones son muy buenas, como si todos se llevaran muy bien, sin malicia y sin odio.

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helder f

@uniquecliches Feb 14, 2024

This a great movie that revolves around harry, a man who's found dead. It's delightful. I reminds of a children's tale, where adults come together in a sort of a child play. Each character is simple yet complex. The acting is vey senseless. It reminds us of a school theater play. Truly beautiful

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Alfred Hitchcock

Director

Edmund Gwenn

Capt. Albert Wiles

Shirley MacLaine

Jennifer Rogers

John Forsythe

Sam Marlowe

Mildred Natwick

Miss Ivy Gravely

Mildred Dunnock

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Synopsis

When a local man's corpse appears on a nearby hillside, no one is quite sure what happened to him. Many of the town's residents secretly wonder if they are responsible, including the man's ex-wife, Jennifer (Shirley MacLaine), and Capt. Albert Wiles (Edmund Gwenn), a retired seaman who was hunting in the woods where the body was found. As the no-nonsense sheriff (Royal Dano) gets involved and local artist Sam Marlowe (John Forsythe) offers his help, the community slowly unravels the mystery.

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Producer: Alfred Hitchcock
Screenwriter: Jack Trevor Story, John Michael Hayes
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures, Alfred J. Hitchcock Productions
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 3, 1955, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 8, 2015
Runtime: 1h 39m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

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