North by Northwest mirrors many of themes echoed by art during the Cold War. Portraying Roger Thornhill as an innocent man running away from the government ostensibly represents the growing mistrust in government at the turn of the decade leading into the 1960s. The government’s scope and power was growing as the Cold War with the Soviet Union intensified. I think this film was a clever way for Alfred Hitchcock to get his opinion about government’s role as big brother across without being seen as a traitor to the U.S.–especially important at a time when Congress’s House Un-American Activities Committee was on the prowl, indicting film industry magnates like the Hollywood Ten. Although I don’t fully appreciate the hype around this movie, I did enjoy its hidden meaning.