In “North by Northwest,” Why is Thornhill Mistaken for Kaplan?
The plot of North By Northwest (1959) revolves around a case of mistaken identity. Roger Thornhill (Cary Grant) is mistaken for George Kaplan, a man who we find out doesn’t even exist, and is thrown into a cross-country rat race to clear his name and uncover the truth of his situation.
But how Thornhill gets mistaken for Kaplan in the first place is something that, if the viewer isn’t paying very close attention, is easy to miss.
Just a few minutes into the film, Thornhill is riding in a taxi with his secretary. Just before exiting, he asks her to call his mother. As he leaves the taxi, he realizes she won’t be able to reach his mother at the number he gave her, and shouts back at the cab too late for her to hear. Thornhill then enters a hotel where he’s to have a meeting with some marketing men and decides to telegram to his secretary to let her know the situation. This is when the mistaken identity happens.
A bellhop is nearby whom Thornhill signals, trying to get his attention to inquire about sending a wire. However, if you listen, the bellhop is in the room shouting the name “George Kaplan,” trying to find someone by that name. The reason why he’s looking for a George Kaplan isn’t entirely important - what’s important is that Thornhill effectively answers to the name without knowing. The two goons employed by Vandamm therefore assume Thornhill is Kaplan, stuff him in a car, and the movie is underway.