What is the iRankMovies score for North by Northwest?

Name: North by Northwest
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Genre: adventure, thriller
Released: 1959
Duration: 2 h 17 min
Rating: 8.3

North by Northwest has an iRankMovies score of 89.3/100, based on a weighted combination of IMDb (×3.0), Rotten Tomatoes (×2.0), Metacritic (×1.5), and TMDb (×1.0).

North by Northwest (1959)

It's a deadly game of "tag" and Cary Grant is "it"!

Release:1959

Runtime:2h 17m

Country:United States

Director:Alfred Hitchcock

Language:English

Genre

AdventureThriller

See the best adventure movies →

Keywords

New York CityAssassinationUndercover AgentEspionage spyCold WarMistaken IdentityDeception

iRank89

North by Northwest rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb8.3/10· 369K votes

Rotten Tomatoes97%

Metacritic98%

TMDb7.966/10· 5K votes

With 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 8.3/10 on IMDb and 98/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been very positive.

About North by Northwest

Advertising man Roger Thornhill is mistaken for a spy, triggering a deadly cross-country chase.

Cast of North by Northwest

Cary Grant
as Roger Thornhill
Eva Marie Saint
as Eve Kendall
James Mason
as Phillip Vandamm
Jessie Royce Landis
as Clara Thornhill
Leo G. Carroll
as Professor
Josephine Hutchinson
as Mrs. Townsend
Philip Ober
as Lester Townsend
Martin Landau
as Leonard
Adam Williams
as Valerian
Edward Platt
as Victor Larrabee
Robert Ellenstein
as Licht
Les Tremayne
as Auctioneer

North by Northwest facts

Budget: $4M
Box office: $13.3M

Our take on North by Northwest

Hitchcock's 1959 thrill ride mistakes an ad man for a spy and flings him across America — crop-duster, Mount Rushmore and all — in the blueprint for every glamorous chase thriller since. Witty, stylish and breathlessly paced, it practically invented the suave-everyman-in-peril formula the Bond films would inherit. If its elegant suspense and movement delighted you, seek out globe-trotting spy thrillers and mistaken-identity capers built on charm and momentum.

Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026Methodology Data sources

Audience opinions

What the audience liked

•Propulsive thriller mechanics establish template for modern suspense cinema enduringly
•Hitchcock's direction creates mounting tension through visual storytelling and clever editing
•Charismatic lead performance balances humor with genuine danger maintaining audience engagement

What the audience disliked

•Convoluted espionage plot occasionally becomes confusing despite slick narrative surface
•Romantic subplot feels somewhat obligatory and conventional compared to thriller elements