
Uncle Charlie ( Joseph Cotten) confronts his niece ( Teresa Wright) in a seedy bar about what she knows. He begs her for help she reluctantly agrees not to say anything, as long as he leaves soon to avoid a horrible confrontation that would destroy her mother, who idolizes her younger brother. Uncle Charlie follows and takes her into a seedy bar.

One night Uncle Charlie lets his guard down and describes elderly widows as "fat, wheezing animals" horrified, Charlie runs out.

The initials engraved inside the ring he gave her match those of one of the murdered women, and during a family dinner, he reveals his hatred of rich widows. Charlie refuses to believe it at first but then observes Uncle Charlie acting strangely. One of them explains her uncle is one of two suspects who may be the "Merry Widow Murderer". Young Charlie guesses they are undercover police detectives. Two men appear at the Newton home, trying to take Uncle Charlie's picture. Uncle Charlie gives his niece an emerald ring that has someone else's initials engraved inside. Her uncle arrives, and at first, everyone is delighted with his visit, especially young Charlie. She receives wonderful news: Her mother's younger brother (her eponym), Charles Oakley, is arriving for a visit. Plot Ĭharlotte "Charlie" Newton is a bored teenage girl living in the idyllic town of Santa Rosa, California. The film was also Alfred Hitchcock's favorite of all of his films. In 1991, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Charlie slowly realizes Oakley is in fact a wanted man, the "Merry Widow" killer, something Oakley soon recognizes. Written by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson, and Alma Reville, the film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Story for Gordon McDonell.Ĭharlotte "Charlie" Newton lives with her parents in Santa Rosa, when charming and sophisticated Charles "Uncle Charlie" Oakley comes to visit at short notice. Shadow of a Doubt is a 1943 American psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten.
