Rebecca (1940)

You had me at Hitchcock.  And if that wasn't enough you can also throw in the great Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine.  These three mainstays of Golden Hollywood are all involved with the mysterious Rebecca.

Rebecca is the story of an unnamed girl who marries the wealthy Maxim de Winter who was ruined after the death of his first wife Rebecca.  Upon entering the estate of Manderly the second Mrs. de Winter is constantly being compared to the first wife of that name and is petrified by her maid and still devotee of Rebecca, Mrs. Danvers.

Rebecca was filmed in an eerie light making the most mundane things creepy, such as the opening of a window, a portrait in the hall or an embroidered pillow case, goosebumps were sent up my spine.

 I've seen this movie many times and still manages to catch me off guard.  I think this is because there are gaps of questioning left in the conclusion, leaving this storyline as unfinished or unsolved, as somethings must stay unearthed.

Jane Eyre (1943)

Orson Welles stars as Edward Rochester, the brooding employer of governess Jane Eyre in this adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's Gothic novel. An orphan with a tragic story herself, young Jane, played by Joan Fontaine slowly frees Edward from his self-imposed prison, but his troubled past stands in the way of their burgeoning love.

First, I must say that there was a disclaimer before the beginning of the film, not because of its content but because the film was so old and the distributors did as best they could to put the footage together. Although, if they had not proclaimed that ahead of time I wouldn't have been the wiser.

Both Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine did a superb job in the acting department, and could actually see him as a fantastic Heathcliff as well, {sorry Laurence}. Joan in a way revised her role in Rebecca, once again playing the quite plain sweet and innocent heroine that you just have too love. This 1940s production of Jane Eyre is a fantastic gothic classic.