Greta Gerwig called one classic spy film “perfect“, and she should be first in line to remake the legendary movie. Gerwig got her start as an actor in the indie genre known as mumblecore, where she excelled at playing naturalistic but hilarious characters. She eventually branched out into the larger independent film sphere before finding her way into bigger movies.
Her defining roles came in films by Noah Baumbach, whose works captured her innate ability to draw pathos from her characters. Gerwig’s ongoing partnership with Baumbach has continued in front of and behind the camera, and they’re one of the most artistically fruitful duos of the 21st century. Gerwig began directing early in her career, but found success much later.
2017’s Lady Bird earned Gerwig two Oscar nominations, and established her as one of the best new voices in film. She followed that with Little Women, which also earned a heap of critical attention. However, it was 2023’s Barbie that started a new chapter for the filmmaker, and launched Gerwig into the upper echelon of Hollywood.
In an interview with Indie Wire, Gerwig laid out her 32 favorite movies. Her list ranged from established Hollywood classics to understated foreign films, and it was clear which movies influenced her work as a filmmaker. A spy movie from the ’30s got special attention, and she called it “maybe one of the most perfect movies ever made.“
Greta Gerwig Is Right About The 39 Steps Being A Perfect Movie
While listing her favorite films, Greta Gerwig included Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 masterpiece, The 39 Steps. Already more than a decade into his career by that point, The 39 Steps can be considered the director’s first opus, and really where he began to find his style. It has many Hitchcock trademarks, including murder, mistaken idenтιтies, and lots of suspense.
The film concerns a hapless Canadian traveling in the U.K. who is wrongfully accused of a murder and gets wrapped up in an international spy ring. The film’s scope is impressive for something made in the 1930s, and it gleefully bounds from one location to the next, showcasing the rapidly changing world of communication and travel in the decade.
Though some ᴀssessments of movies are verbose, Gerwig is right on the money when calling The 39 Steps a perfect movie. It can be considered a precursor to modern blockbusters, and altered the usual structure of films at that point. Gone was the staged look of early sound, and in came a bombastic adventure with lots of humorous twists.
It deserves to be considered one of Alfred Hitchcock’s best movies, and is representative of the filmmaker’s approach to cinema going forward. He would make many such films across his career, but few had the same charm as The 39 Steps. The perfectly paced suspense was effective in the ’30s, and hasn’t grown stale or dated nearly a century later.
The 39 Steps’ Remakes Haven’t Quite Recaptured Hitchcock’s Magic
Because the classic spy film is based on a book, there have been several remakes of the story over the decades. Hitchcock was the first to take a stab at John Buchan’s novel, and his adaptation choices often influenced many of the remakes that followed. Sadly, none of the remakes could match the 1935 version in overall quality.
The original novel has entered the public domain, but Hitchcock’s film is still held under copyright.
A 1959 remake was explicitly based on the Hitchcock movie, even keeping many of the notable changes. It immediately drew comparisons to the original, and was much slower than its predecessor. The 1978 and 2008 versions both strove to be faithful book adaptations, but largely failed at that goal while being dull imitations of the 1935 film.
What all the remakes lacked was a clear vision, something Hitchcock never had trouble imparting in his films. He was a master at adapting literary works, and arguably made the Buchan novel better with his additions and subtractions. Especially as the book aged, so too did its ideas. Hitchcock’s interpretation, on the other hand, was made to last forever.
Why Greta Gerwig Would Be Perfect For The 39 Steps
Because the trend of remaking classics won’t go away, it’s inevitable that The 39 Steps will get the remake treatment again. However, there is an opportunity to right some historical wrongs, and deliver a re-do of the spy film that is actually good. Considering Greta Gerwig’s love of the Hitchcock gem, she is the prime candidate to direct a remake.
While it would be a bit out of her usual wheelhouse, Gerwig has proven herself capable of jumping from one filmmaking style to another. The quantum leap from Lady Bird to Barbie shows how flexible she is, but also how it’s her deft storytelling that really shines through in the end.
The 39 Steps needs a filmmaker who understands the emotion behind the story, and Gerwig does. The film is a spy thriller on the surface, but Hitchcock’s version has a heaping dose of tongue-in-cheek humor as well. That humor is motivated by the humanity of Hannay, and his haplessness is as charming as it is relatable.
Gerwig’s future as a filmmaker seems set, and with her upcoming adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia, she’s entering a new phase. Hopefully she takes some time to do smaller pᴀssion projects once she’s accomplished all of her career goals, but only time will tell where Greta Gerwig goes next.
