Good morning, and Happy Thanksgiving! Today I’m grateful for my family, for the possibility that my mashed potatoes will turn out even fluffier than last year’s (first, you need to dry them out on a warm burner after they’re boiled, and then you mustn’t over-mash them or they get too starchy), and I’m grateful to everyone and everything that distracts me from this, er, problematic month! Like Agatha Christie. Or Screen Drafts, my favorite film-centric podcast.

As I have mentioned before, it was Christie who inadvertently led me to Clay Keller and Ryan Marker: while searching for something Agatha-centric to listen to on my walk, I uncovered a Screen Drafts episode that had recently dropped: a draft (by guest GMs Bryan Cogman and Joanna Robinson) of the seven best film adaptations of Agatha Christie’s work. 

This was August 2022, and the Christie Draft was the 196^th episode of Clay and Ryan’s adventure into making “Best of” lists about every sort of film topic imaginable. I decided then and there to begin at the beginning and catch up with the first 195 episodes. And then I joined the podcast’s Patreon group and discovered that, behind that paywall, there were just as many episodes of bonus content! Never has a mere five bucks a month yielded so much fun and a whole new community of people I could celebrate – and kvetch with – on all manner of cinematic topics.

The only problem – and I wrote about this right here on this blog – is that none of these episodes focused on Alfred Hitchcock, my favorite director of all time. In fact, Hitchcock’s films are, quite annoyingly, rarely mentioned on Screen Drafts. Maybe it’s because the man’s work is so unique, but it left a very large hole in the otherwise entertaining fabric of this drafting game. So I publicly asked Clay if he would train the podcast’s attentions on Hitchcock’s work. And a mere twenty-seven months later, he did my bidding. (And, admittedly, perhaps the bidding of a few hundred other nagging patrons, GMs and fans!)

This month, Clay and Ryan dedicated Screen Drafts to the work of Alfred Hitchcock, as well as to Francois Truffaut, whose adoration of Hitch is largely responsible for the startling change in perception by U.S. critics of his work from “mere” entertainer to auteur. I was thrilled – but there was a risk involved: rather than a Super Draft (where every one of the honoree’s films is included in the final list), Clay decided to have a three-part Mega Draft where nine GMs (three apiece) would select the Thirty Best Alfred Hitchcock Films of all time. 

Having played the Screen Drafts Game many times at home with my buddies Sergio Angelini and Nick Cardillo, I know what a tricky proposition this can be. Trying to remain copacetic while creating such a list between nine film fans/scholars/artists with their own tastes is well-nigh impossible. Believe me, I know, for Sergio, Nick and I began our own game-playing with a Hitchcock draft. (More about that later.)

I won’t belabor this. At the start of Noirvember, I created my own Top Thirty and set it aside to see how well it would match up or diverge with what the Screen Drafts GMs came up with. In the end, these lists amount to an individual’s personal tastes vs. the comingling of nine distinctive preferences. Thus, when I say someone “made a mistake” or did something “morally unconscionable,” you’ll have to take it with a grain of salt. I mean – everyone’s a critic!

Enough with the build-up . . . here, side by side, are our final lists:

#	BRAD’S LIST	SCREEN DRAFTS’ LIST
1	Rear Window (1954)	Psycho
2	Psycho (1960)	Notorious
3	Notorious (1948)	North by Northwest
4	Shadow of a Doubt (1943)	Rear Window
5	Strangers on a Train (1951)	Strangers on a Train
6	North by Northwest (1959)	Shadow of a Doubt
7	Vertigo (1958)	The Birds
8	The 39 Steps (1935)	Vertigo
9	Foreign Correspondent (1940)	Rope
10	The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)	The Lady Vanishes
11	Rope (1948)	The 39 Steps
12	The Birds (1964)	Rebecca
13	The Lady Vanishes (1938)	The Lodger
14	The Wrong Man (1956)	Lifeboat
15	Sabotage (1936)	Foreign Correspondent
16	Rebecca (1940)	Saboteur
17	Lifeboat (1944)	The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
18	Young and Innocent (1937)	Marnie
19	Dial M for Murder (1954)	Stage Fright
20	Spellbound (1945)	Dial M for Murder
21	Frenzy (1972)	Spellbound
22	Blackmail (1929)	The Wrong Man
23	The Lodger (1927)	The Manxman
24	To Catch a Thief (1955)	The Trouble with Harry
25	Suspicion (1941)	Frenzy
26	Saboteur (1942)	Under Capricorn
27	The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934))	Young and Innocent
28	Marnie (1964)	Marnie (1964)
29	I Confess (1953)	Sabotage
30	Stage Fright (1950)	Downhill

As you can see, our top lists are pretty close. That may be because it’s hard to argue with what constitutes the top tier of Hitchcock’s oeuvre. Even so, I’m sure some people are disappointed that their favorites aren’t higher. Perhaps the most controversial choice will be Ben Mankiewicz’ placement of Vertigo in the eighth position. Folks, this beats the attempt during the first draft to put it at #22! But Vertigo divides people. I myself had no problem with this placement (Vertigo was my #7), but I know Nick Cardillo was steaming!! 

You see, back in April 2023, we had our own Top Thirteen Hitchcock draft here on Ah Sweet Mystery (you can read all about how that went down right here), and Nick dominated the game. I only had a measly veto, which I should have saved, but I had to veto Notorious in a lower position to get it higher. This meant I sadly had to see Rear Window, not only my favorite Hitchcock but maybe my favorite film of all time, get placed all the way back at #4. Oh, sure, that’s high up on the list, but for me it wasn’t high enough! At least I got The Wrong Man on the list, made sure The Birds was not too high and put Notorious in the top five. I tried awfully hard to have Psycho beat Vertigo, but Nick had too many blessings in his pocket, and he was determined to get Vertigo in the top spot, just like those bozos over at Sight and Sound did for so many years. 

Here was our final list: 

THE THREE MUSKETEERS DRAFT

1. Vertigo
2. Psycho
3. Strangers on a Train
4. Rear Window
5. Notorious
6. North by Northwest
7. Frenzy
8. The Birds
9. Shadow of a Doubt
10. Foreign Correspondent
11. The Wrong Man
12. Rope
13. Dial M for Murder

As you can see, it’s sadly lacking in any pre-Hollywood British films (although The 39 Steps was there for a minute). It was a really tough draft to do, and I’m grateful to Clay that Screen Drafts widened their scope to the top thirty; that was much more manageable, even if it left room for some crazy titles to get played played!

As might be expected, the list of GMs who tackled Hitchcock this month was largely comprised of Screen Drafts stalwarts. I felt pretty comfortable with the Top Ten draft, mostly because I figured that longtime drafters Maureen Lee Lenker and Oriana Nudo couldn’t go too wrong with the titles that were left. But we also had the added benefit of that superstar from the world of Turner Classic Movies, Ben Mankiewicz, making his debut on the podcast. Ben was a hoot, full of interesting stories and (mostly) wise opinions. (I don’t agree that Rear Window is too “safe” a choice to be Number One, Ben. It is #1 in my heart and always will be, as I tried to express right here.)

The second draft (picks 20 – 2110) was a delicious ride, due to an exciting trio of guests: Darren Franich, Mark Harris, and Adam B. Vary. All of them made some choices that I disagreed with, but there was always another GM to use a veto and correct that error to my satisfaction. Plus, I appreciated Vary’s kind words about The Wrong Man, which in this man’s opinion, had ended up on The Wrong List. 

Which brings me to the most problematic draft – the first (picks 30 – 21); even drafter Drea Clark (a favorite of mine), who ended up as guest commentator on the Top Ten draft, had the grace to admit some screwy choices were made. Of course, everyone is entitled to their tastes and opinions, but William Bibbiani and Walter Chaw managed to chew up fourprecious spots with Torn Curtain, Under Capricorn, Downhill and The Manxman (and Bibbs even tried to get Jamaica Inn on there, too!!!!). As a result, three films that should be on the final list are not on the final list, and they are, in ascending order of personal preference: 

1. To Catch a Thief – sure, you can call it boring, GMs, but the quartet of Cary Grant, Grace Kelly, John Williams, and Jessie Royce Landis is always delightful, and the scenery was gorgeous enough to steal Kelly away from Hollywood and from our hearts. It deserved to be on the bottom third of this list.
2. Suspicion – I probably like this one less than any of the GMs who tried to sell it, but it is an interesting enough experiment – Cary Grant is always interesting when he plays a cad – that it should have been on the list instead of a bore-fest like Under Capricorn or Torn Curtain. This is where GM egos backfired on everyone!
3. Blackmail – this is an important film in its use of new sound technology. It’s also a hugely entertaining film and a great example of an innocent person caught up in horrific circumstances. And this is one of those all-too-rare occasions when the person is a woman. Blackmail is a terrific film and deserved to be on this list! (And I appreciate Oriana making mention of this fact, even if it was too late to do anything about it.)

Despite any minor caveats I may have, the Hitchcock tribute was a month-long delight. Ultimately, you have to go into Screen Drafts for the conversations (which always delight) rather than the results (which can delight or infuriate – or both!). I’m glad that Clay finally listened to me, er, to all of us. If you, too, are a fan of Hitchcock and have never listened to Screen Drafts, this might be your gateway into a really delightful podcast. Give it a listen! And have a wonderful Turkey Day!!