North by NorthWest

The movie North by NorthWest directed by Alfred Hitchcock, is a hapless New York advertising mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and is pressured across the country while he looks for a way to survive.

• The movie is 136 minutes long.
• Director: Alfred Hitchcock
• Writers: Ernest Lehman

Thrillers are characterized by fast pacing, frequent actions. Some of these features may include; Cliff hangers towards the end, the action in the auction, when Cary Grant is drunk and driving the car and a few more.   

"Resourceful heroes who must thwart the plans of more powerful and better equipped villains" 

• This is true when Cary Grant tries to track Mr. Kaplan who didn't exist, during the auction and a few more scenes. 

"Devices such as suspense, red herrings and cliff hangers are used extensively"

• Red herring takes place by the blonde lady, also when the girl/miss leads the man, finding Mr. Kaplan and a few more. 

Mac Guffin

• A MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin or maguffin) is a plot device in the form of some goal. It is a desired object, or other motivator that the protagonist is willing to do and sacrifice almost anything to pursue. This is often with little or no narrative explanation as to why it is considered so desirable. A MacGuffin, therefore, functions merely as a plot element that catches the viewers' attention or drives the plot of a work of fiction.

Is this a successful thriller?

From what I have watched, I think that this film is a successful thriller. Reasons being is that it contains all elments of what should be contained in a thriller. For example; a cliff hanger ending.