Rear Window Should be the First and Last Hitchcockian Film Everyone Watches

Jerald 2022-04-21 09:01:02

If you ever wonder, "is Hitchcock a good artistic director," just watch the first four shots in Rear Window. It is done in such a meticulous way that it informs the audience of so much information without any trace of effort: the neighborhood and neighbors, the time of the year, the name of hero, his broken leg and why it got hurt, his occupation, his masculinity (the negative picture of a magazine model)...Yet everything is told visually, without any awkward voice- over.

If you ever wonder, "who shapes Hitchcock into a director as he is,", watch the sequence when Lisa first shows up. She is introduced in such a eerie way that resembles German expressionism.

If you ever wonder, "what is the common motif in Hitchcockian films," Rear Window will make you think of the term voyeurism and audience as a voyeur. Looking is power, is pleasue, and sometimes is a sin.

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Extended Reading
  • Eloise 2021-10-20 19:00:08

    If you don’t kill the viewer, you will be complicit in voyeurism and conspiracy. It’s more interesting.

  • Emilio 2021-10-20 18:59:56

    Grace Kelly's five outfits (one of them is pajamas) are so beautiful. . . This was nearly 60 years ago, not worse than the current Couture. With golden curly hair and red lips, she is graceful and she is a goddess

Rear Window quotes

  • Lisa Fremont: I'm not much on rear window ethics.

  • Stella: Every man's ready to get married when the right girl comes along.