Family Plot
The medium Madam Blanche Tyler is engaged by the elderly millionaire Julia Rainbird who believes she is a spiritualist. After a séance, Blanche discovers that Julia is tormented by her past, when she forced her sister and unmarried mother Harriet to deliver her baby for adoption to avoid a family scandal. Julia promises the small fortune of ten thousand-dollars to Blanche if she finds her nephew and heir of her fortune using her physic powers. Blanche and her boyfriend George Lumley, who is an unemployed actor working as cab driver, investigate the whereabouts of Julia's nephew. Meanwhile, the greedy jeweler Arthur Adamson kidnaps wealthy people with his girlfriend Fran and requests diamonds for the ransom. When George's investigations conclude that Arthur Adamson might be the heir of Julia Rainbird, the reckless Blanche gets in trouble with the kidnappers.
Despite its modest budget of $4.5M, Family Plot became a box office success, earning $13.2M worldwide—a 193% return.
2 wins & 6 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Family Plot (1976) demonstrates strategically placed story structure, characteristic of Alfred Hitchcock's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours. With an Arcplot score of 7.7, the film showcases strong structural fundamentals.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Blanche Tyler
George Lumley
Fran
Arthur Adamson
Julia Rainbird
Main Cast & Characters
Blanche Tyler
Played by Barbara Harris
A fake psychic medium who becomes involved in searching for a missing heir while unknowingly crossing paths with criminals.
George Lumley
Played by Bruce Dern
A cab driver and Blanche's boyfriend who helps investigate the missing heir case with amateur detective work.
Fran
Played by Karen Black
A sophisticated jewel thief and kidnapper who operates with her partner Arthur, hiding behind a respectable veneer.
Arthur Adamson
Played by William Devane
A jeweler who is secretly a kidnapper and extortionist, working with Fran to ransom wealthy victims for diamonds.
Julia Rainbird
Played by Cathleen Nesbitt
A wealthy elderly woman who hires Blanche to find her deceased sister's illegitimate son to ease her guilty conscience.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Blanche Tyler conducts a fake séance in her Victorian parlor, demonstrating her life as a fraudulent spiritualist medium working with boyfriend George to con wealthy clients.. Of particular interest, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 14 minutes when Julia Rainbird offers $10,000 to find her long-lost nephew Eddie Shoebridge - a fortune that could change Blanche and George's lives, disrupting their small-time routine.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 29 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This reveals the protagonist's commitment to George actively commits to the search, tracking down the first lead - Harriet (the woman who handled the adoption) - entering the world of detective work and leaving behind simple cons., moving from reaction to action.
At 59 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 49% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat False defeat: George and Blanche's car brakes fail on a mountain road (sabotaged by Arthur Adamson). They barely survive a terrifying downhill crash, raising stakes - someone wants them dead., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 89 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Blanche is kidnapped by Arthur Adamson and imprisoned in his garage. George doesn't know where she is. The search has led to capture - apparent failure and mortal danger., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 96 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. George discovers the Adamsons' address through detective work. Blanche uses genuine cleverness (not fake spiritualism) to find the hidden diamonds. Both find real capabilities beyond their con-artist personas., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Family Plot's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping Family Plot against these established plot points, we can identify how Alfred Hitchcock utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Family Plot within the comedy genre.
Alfred Hitchcock's Structural Approach
Among the 20 Alfred Hitchcock films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.6, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Family Plot represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Alfred Hitchcock filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional comedy films include The Bad Guys, Ella Enchanted and The Evening Star. For more Alfred Hitchcock analyses, see The Birds, Vertigo and Rear Window.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Blanche Tyler conducts a fake séance in her Victorian parlor, demonstrating her life as a fraudulent spiritualist medium working with boyfriend George to con wealthy clients.
Theme
Julia Rainbird tells Blanche: "I want to do the right thing before I die" - establishing the theme of deception versus truth, guilt and redemption.
Worldbuilding
Introduction to both parallel worlds: Blanche and George's small-time con operation, and the Rainbird case about a missing heir. Cross-cut with Fran and Arthur Adamson's sophisticated kidnapping scheme involving diamond ransoms.
Disruption
Julia Rainbird offers $10,000 to find her long-lost nephew Eddie Shoebridge - a fortune that could change Blanche and George's lives, disrupting their small-time routine.
Resistance
George reluctantly agrees to investigate despite doubts about finding a 40-year-old lead. The duo debates methods and stakes. Meanwhile, Fran and Arthur execute a bishop kidnapping, establishing the deadly opposition.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
George actively commits to the search, tracking down the first lead - Harriet (the woman who handled the adoption) - entering the world of detective work and leaving behind simple cons.
Mirror World
Parallel relationship introduced: Fran and Arthur Adamson mirror Blanche and George as a criminal couple, but with real stakes and deadly consequences. Their relationship carries the dark reflection of the theme.
Premise
The fun of the amateur detective story: George and Blanche follow clues from Harriet to the Maloney gravedigger to Mrs. Maloney, piecing together Eddie's trail while narrowly missing connections to the Adamsons.
Midpoint
False defeat: George and Blanche's car brakes fail on a mountain road (sabotaged by Arthur Adamson). They barely survive a terrifying downhill crash, raising stakes - someone wants them dead.
Opposition
The Adamsons close in: Arthur realizes Blanche and George are getting too close to discovering his true identity as Eddie Shoebridge. Multiple attempts to stop the investigation. Tension escalates between both couples.
Collapse
Blanche is kidnapped by Arthur Adamson and imprisoned in his garage. George doesn't know where she is. The search has led to capture - apparent failure and mortal danger.
Crisis
Blanche alone in darkness, genuinely terrified. George desperately searches. Both face their darkest moment separately - the fake psychic must rely on real intuition to survive.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
George discovers the Adamsons' address through detective work. Blanche uses genuine cleverness (not fake spiritualism) to find the hidden diamonds. Both find real capabilities beyond their con-artist personas.
Synthesis
Final confrontation at the Adamson house: George arrives to rescue Blanche. The couples clash. Blanche uses the chandelier crystal (containing diamonds) as a weapon. Arthur is captured, Fran crashes her car. Justice prevails through actual wit.
Transformation
Blanche and George drive away with the reward money, but Blanche gives a genuine wink - transformed from fraudulent psychic to someone who discovered real intuition and courage. They've earned an honest reward through honest heroism.