@@AD98. Rear Window has a predictable plot with no twists and turns. Psycho is much better. Psycho is predictable too but it's more gripping and thrilling.
The brilliance of Rear Window lies with the slow but full pace of the movie. Hitchcock gives you the time to relax and become part of the scenes, the long conversations, the various characters and their moral dilemmas (fear of commitment, fear of stagnation, personal incompatibilities and common interests etc.) and the busy neighbourhood which give the characters room to discuss their world views. In the end it is about the two main characters finding common ground as they are absolved by the "adventure at home" to evolve their relationship.
Indeed. In the end, it's Jeff and Lisa's story; the murder mystery is the backdrop, the event that finally allows them to see that they belong together. It brings out her adventurous side to match his, and brings out his previously-unknown desire for safety & security (compared to the danger of being attacked by a murderer) to match hers.
Without moving from the same setting, Hitchcock reached some of the most intense moments in the thriller genre ever. The key is to have us in the position of the James Stewart character from beginning to end: we can only watch, but never act. The ending, unfortunately, should have been tragic
One of the brilliant things Hitchcock does with this film is that the camera basically never leaves his apartment. We are always seeing everything from the same perspective as Stewart. It implicates the audience as an accomplice to what he’s doing and we feel a sense of guilt because we don’t think we should be allowed to see what we’re seeing. If you wanna analyze that even further, that’s kind of what cinema itself is. We go to the theater and watch other people on the screen, who don’t know they’re being watched.
@myfootyuniverse Absolutely true between Vertigo & Rear Window, Vertigo is better than Rear Window. But however for Me Psycho still The Masterpiece and My Favourite Movie of All The Time until now (Sorry if My English bad)
I wanna hear you talk about why. Personally it was the one major Hitchcock movie that didn't resonate with me but I'm guessing everyone else is right and I'm wrong. Maybe when i watch it again I'll like it more
Totally agree with Marty. I remember watching this fairly recently with an audience and was surprised at how well it played to them. The audience was totally in to it even going so far as to start yelling at the screen. I've always loved it and still do to this day but I'd never realized how contemporary it really is.
Hitchcock forced the viewer to become a voyeur, and we got to analyze all the moral and ethical implications from the pov of the guilty. Directors did those things before Hitchcock and after Hitchcock, but I'd argue nobody did it better.
@@abertasso1298 I stated anyone who CALLS him “James Stewart.” I’ve never heard anyone refer to him as James Stewart in conversation. Oh, it states James Maitland Stewart on his grave at Forest Lawn. People say Jimmy Stewart to let you know exactly who they are talking about.
@thebobscott 1. Oscars mean nothing... they never have, and they never will 2. If I had to guess, you probably haven't even seen Dances with Wolves anyway which is a fantastic movie in its own right
By making more than ten great films. Or by becoming a pasta monk and taking a solemn vow of eating only pasta for the rest of their days on this wretched piece of land.
Hithcock's must watch movies 1. Psycho 1960 2. Notorious 1946 3. Rear Window 1954 4. Vertigo 1958 5. Dial M for Murder 1954 6. North by Northwest 1959 7. The Wrong Man 1956 8. Strangers On A Train 1951 9. The Birds 1963 And 10. Rope 1948
@thebobscott Dances with wolves is very good film also and you can't say it's not deserved Oscar, though it wouldn't be undeserved if Goodfellas got it. Anyway, that is not one of the shames in history of Oscar, but still that list is too long.
They owe him ONLY 2 Oscars? It's closer to 7, my friend: Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Last Temptation of Christ, Gangs of New York, The Aviator, Hugo.
I highly doubt you’re still active on this account anymore, but on the off chance that you are, what do you think of scorseses newer films? (new meaning, from when you wrote your comment - present day)
Jimmy Stewart's apartment is the only one without a fire escape, and what's with the Raymond Burr character leaving his apartment to go make a phone call, and eventually showing up at Stewart's apartment, all the while the police are still at Raymond Burr's apartment? All Stewart had to do was yell out the window, over to the cops, "He's on his way over here to get me you morons!!!"
Actually, Jeff was not all that likable, Martin. It's fine that he had reservations about a future with Lisa, but he said some things to her that really cut below the quick.
"Morally, he's on the edge. Should he be doing this? It's none of his business" he has reason to suspect there was a fucking murder. Of course he should be doing it. Anyone who thinks he shouldn't or that "it isn't any of his business" is over the edge morally.
He was snooping long before the suspected murder. It was during that he caught him. The film actually says that it might be none of his business. So he is on the edge
#spoileralert Watched the movie few times. My honest opinion is. Pros: Gripping movie Cons: Pointless story Well built suspense with a flat and abrupt ending. More of a drama/indie film than a thriller/mystery. It's like watching a movie where a suspect from the very begining turns out to be the criminal. That's basically it.
Hitchcock uses the murder plot as a way to drive the narrative when in reality the main focus/theme of he film is Jeff's troubled relationship with Lisa. Thats likely why the conclusion felt flat because Hitchcock was likely far more intrigued with the bond formed between the protagonists than the resolve of Lars Thorwlad's murder case.
I agree. He doesn't start using his binoculars and camera to do full-on spying until AFTER he heard a scream, the wife disappeared, and he happened to notice the husband going in and out of his place in the middle of the night and then wrapping knives and saws. DEFINITELY suspicious and worth looking into.
