Under Capricorn

Under Capricorn
Australian theatrical poster
Directed byAlfred Hitchcock
Written byHume Cronyn (adaptation)
James Bridie (screenplay)
Based onUnder Capricorn
by Helen Simpson
Under Capricorn
by John Colton and Margaret Linden
Produced byAlfred Hitchcock
Sidney Bernstein
StarringMichael Wilding
Ingrid Bergman
Joseph Cotten
Margaret Leighton
Narrated byEdmond O'Brien
CinematographyJack Cardiff
Edited byBert Bates
Music byRichard Addinsell
Louis Levy
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release date
  • 8 September 1949 (1949-09-08)
Running time
117 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3 million,[1] $275,000[2] or $2,500,000[3]
Box office$1.5 million[4] or $2,668,000[3]

Under Capricorn is a 1949 British historical drama film directed by Alfred Hitchcock about a couple in Australia who started out as lady and stable boy in Ireland, and who are now bound together by a horrible secret. The film is based on the play by John Colton and Margaret Linden, which in turn is based on the novel Under Capricorn (1937) by Helen Simpson. The screenplay was written by James Bridie from an adaptation by Hume Cronyn. This was Hitchcock's second film in Technicolor, and like his preceding color film Rope (1948), it features 9- and 10-minute long takes.

The film is set in colonial Sydney, New South Wales, Australia during the early 19th century. Under Capricorn is one of several Hitchcock films that are not typical thrillers: instead it is a mystery involving a love triangle. Although the film is not exactly a murder mystery, it does feature a previous killing, a "wrong man" scenario, a sinister housekeeper, class conflict, and very high levels of emotional tension, both on the surface and underneath.

The title Under Capricorn refers to the Tropic of Capricorn, which bisects Australia. Capricornus is a constellation; Capricorn is an astrological sign associated with the goat.

  1. ^ "109-Million Techni Sked". Variety. 18 February 1948. p. 14 – via Internet Archive.
  2. ^ "Hitchcock Bernstein Unit Reported quitting independent production". Variety. 12 January 1949. p. 3. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 29 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
  4. ^ "Top Grossers of 1949". Variety. 4 January 1950. p. 59 – via Internet Archive.