To Catch a Thief: Alfred Hitchcock

[Revisit Review]

Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief is pure popcorn fluff in the best way imaginable. Beautiful people doing wonderful things in luscious locations aided by one of the smartest, snappiest, memorable, and clever screenplays of the era. Hitchcock's visual prowess was at its height here; you could practically watch it with the sound turned off. But why would you want to? You'd miss all the incredible dialogue!

8/10

The Lady Vanishes: Alfred Hitchcock

[Revisit Review]

The brilliance of Alfred Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes reveals itself with repeated viewings: the strength of its narrative construction. The film is a meat-and-potatoes mystery film--an elderly woman has seemingly disappeared from a crowded train. In a sense it almost predicts Hitchcock's later single-set thriller Lifeboat (1944). But this time around I was amazed with how little I liked the leading man, musician Gilbert Redman (Michael Redgrave). I used to find him charming and self-assured. But now I just find him annoying, self-centered, and bratty. Side note: I could find no Hitchcock hiccup here.

8/10

I Confess: Alfred Hitchcock

[Revisit Review]

To read this review, go to: http://theblackmaria.org/2015/03/17/b-rolls-alfred-hitchcocks-i-confess-1953/.

8/10

Sabotage: Alfred Hitchcock

To read this review, go to: http://www.theyoungfolks.com/review/the-film-canon-sabotage-1936/46022.

8/10

Alfred Hitchcock: The Birds

[Revisit Review]

You know, for a "masterpiece," Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds has some atrocious pacing and absurdly clunky scenes of exposition. It's a good thing that I adore static shot reverse shot dialogue scenes that last upwards of 5 minutes or else I would think that the film was visually bankrupt whenever special effects aren't involved! Listen, Howard Hawks once said that the definition of a good movie is three good scenes and no bad ones. THE BIRDS definitely has three good scenes. It might even have more. But the film fails as a whole. I can't forgive the film for the fact that the majority of its run-time is consumed with static, visually uninteresting, uninspired dialogue and bizarre characters who look and behave like plastic dolls instead of human beings.

5/10

Frenzy: Alfred Hitchcock

[Revisit Review]

I don't have much to say about Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy that hasn't already been said a dozen times by more prominent and intelligent scholars and critics. But I do have one observation: this film represents one of the only times that I have ever seen a serious thriller incorporate blatant comedic relief without either ruining the tension or derailing the narrative. The reason is that the comedic relief centers around food: squishy food, slimy food, food that bursts when squeezed and crunches when touched. This adds a layer of nauseous repulsion to the proceedings that enhances the fear and disgust felt by the audience towards the horrific crimes being committed onscreen.

9/10

Spellbound: Alfred Hitchcock

[Revisit Review]

While re-watching Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound, my sister (who had never seen the film before) mentioned how much Dr. Constance Petersen reminded her of Clarice Starling from The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Both were young female professionals in male-dominated fields who become intimately involved with a mentally disturbed man. The romantic angle in The Silence of the Lambs was of course merely suggested, but in Spellbound it was very blatant. After all, this is a Hitchcock film where people fall in love when the music tells them to. But I immensely enjoyed Spellbound. George Barnes' rich cinematography adds sinister textures to a film diving into fractured minds and psyches. I would love to read a feminist evaluation of the film, particularly concerning how all of the male medical professionals claim to know more about Dr. Petersen than she knows about herself. I was disappointed with how the film handled the infamous dream sequences designed by Dalí. I hate how they were broken up with cuts back to reality and drowned out with dull narration courtesy of Gregory Peck. But, of course, this was Selznick's fault, not Hitchcock's.

8/10