Review: Hitchcock ‘North by Northwest’ play more Jim Carrey than Cary Grant

Imagine if Cary Grant’s role in the iconic spy thriller “North by Northwest” had actually been played by Jim Carrey and you have a good idea of what to expect from the play of the same name that kicks off the American Conservatory Theater’s 2026-27 season.

Of course, it would have been possible for Carrey to have actually played that part given that the “Dumb and Dumber” comedian hadn’t even been born yet when brilliant director Alfred Hitchcock crafted this 1959 film. Still, this Emma Rice-directed production, which is making its North American debut at A.C.T.’s Tony Rembe Theater through Oct. 18, definitely brings a sense of “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” to ‘North by Northwest.”

Rice, the acclaimed director known to Bay Area audiences for previously helming A.C.T.’s “Brief Encounter” and Berkeley Rep’s “The Wild Bride,” intentionally turns “North by Northwest” on its head in so many ways. She takes the blueprint from one of the greatest suspense thrillers of the era and then zaps every single ounce of suspense and thrill out of it. In its place, and to the soundtrack of Sir Hitchcock rolling over in his grave, she adds heaps upon heaps — or, more accurately, suitcases upon suitcases — of inventive physical humor, sight gags and comedic props in an effort that will likely delight as many fans of the original film as it will disappoint.

Indeed, this play probably has a way better chance of clicking with those folks who’ve never seen the movie, since that would eliminate all the unfair (but unavoidable) comparisons to the Grant in one of his finest roles and master director Hitchcock operating at the top of his game.

For those familiar with the film, however, one of the big questions — if not the biggest — going into the play was how would the set designers tackle those large-scale iconic scenes that worked so well on big screen?

And the answer?

With as little expense as possible.

But that’s part of the charm of this stage production, as it downsizes the big moments in such ludicrously simple yet inventive ways, giving viewers the choice to either completely suspend any type of disbelief or to just plain buy-in with the joke of trying to simulate a crop duster plane attack on the stage or reconstruct Mt. Rushmore for the grand finale. Most of the set changes that occur, as the characters go from one location to another, are simply marked by placards placed on suitcases.

This clears out a lot of room for the wonderful cast to carry the story, which they do with the use of some truly special choreography and physical humor. Danny Collins definitely nails the lead role of Roger Thornhill, eating up the spotlight with a go-for-broke approach that is definitely more Carrey than Cary. He leaves the suave and debonair behind, going instead for a goofy Gumby vibe that draws big laughs from the crowd through exaggerated dance moves and flexibility.

The storyline is the same as the film, as Thornhill gets caught in a dangerous game of mistaken identity that leads him on a chase across the country to try and clear his name (and not get killed). In the Hitchcock’s original, the story keeps growing more intense as Thornhill’s situation continues to spiral out of control. In Rice’s version, however, there’s absolutely none of that — as things just keep getting sillier and, eventually, the storyline takes such a backseat to the humor that it becomes an afterthought.

The result is all the drama, which was such a vital part of the original “North by Northwest,” just disappears. By the end of the play, it was really hard to muster up the energy to even care how things would turn out. The climactic Mt. Rushmore scene was anything but, producing no real satisfaction besides that which came from knowing that this play was finally coming to an end.

And that, sadly, is no laughing matter at all.