Vienna wrote: Not a fan particularly, although one of my favourite films is Rear Window, but that is because James Stewart is for me a brilliant actor, and i will watch any film with him in it.

I also have a copy of The Birds in my collection, but sadly haven't watched it since discovering the lengths Hitchcock went to in order to capture the look of profound terror on the face of his leading actress Tippi Hedren.
It's really disturbing, and so was his 'relationship' with Hedren.

As a director he was quite brilliant, but as a human being - that appears to be another matter.



If you ever get a chance to watch a British film/drama called The Girl which came out around ten years ago, and is about his relationships with his leading ladies, particularly Hedren, then it will make you feel uncomfortable.

It also made me wonder if Hitchcock was mentally ill.

Lot of people have a sexual interest in people who they should leave alone. Psychiatrists sleep with patients. Professors sleep with students. Hitchcock may have had a sexual interest in Tippi Hedren, but that doe not indicate a mental illness.

Roadie wrote:

Vienna wrote: Not a fan particularly, although one of my favourite films is Rear Window, but that is because James Stewart is for me a brilliant actor, and i will watch any film with him in it.

I also have a copy of The Birds in my collection, but sadly haven't watched it since discovering the lengths Hitchcock went to in order to capture the look of profound terror on the face of his leading actress Tippi Hedren.
It's really disturbing, and so was his 'relationship' with Hedren.

As a director he was quite brilliant, but as a human being - that appears to be another matter.



If you ever get a chance to watch a British film/drama called The Girl which came out around ten years ago, and is about his relationships with his leading ladies, particularly Hedren, then it will make you feel uncomfortable.

It also made me wonder if Hitchcock was mentally ill.

Lot of people have a sexual interest in people who they should leave alone. Psychiatrists sleep with patients. Professors sleep with students. Hitchcock may have had a sexual interest in Tippi Hedren, but that doe not indicate a mental illness.

No it doesn't.
But i wasn't referring to his sexual interest in Hedren, although he was obsessed with her.
Not sure any other director would have used the method Hitchcock insisted on using to get Hedren so terrified during the filming of The Birds.

Bordering on sadism is putting it mildly.

But it got results.

Never heard of them, sorry.

The one I thought risible was The Rope. I know it was originally a stage play so the setting was very static, but to use grown men who looked mid thirties to depict students? Ridiculous. Jimmy Stewart was very good though.

I just watched Hitchcock's "The Trouble With Harry". I must say it seems to me that it was rather an odd movie. The characters in the film do NOT act at all like people would act if they stumbled upon a dead body , lying in a field, that had been shot. They seem to act like such happens every day.

Roadie wrote:

Vienna wrote: Not a fan particularly, although one of my favourite films is Rear Window, but that is because James Stewart is for me a brilliant actor, and i will watch any film with him in it.

I also have a copy of The Birds in my collection, but sadly haven't watched it since discovering the lengths Hitchcock went to in order to capture the look of profound terror on the face of his leading actress Tippi Hedren.
It's really disturbing, and so was his 'relationship' with Hedren.




As a director he was quite brilliant, but as a human being - that appears to be another matter.

It also made me wonder if Hitchcock was mentally ill.

I read about how Hitchcock used live birds to "attack" Hedren and I wanted to see the actual movie again. Today I re-watched The Birds so I could see the scene where Tippi Hedren was attacked by live birds. Yes, Hitchcock was effective in using live birds in that scene, BUT I think Hitchcock could have used some other method. From what I read, Tippi Hedren was quite traumatized by that use of live birds.

Everyone knows that Alfred Hitchcock always appears in each of his movies. However, in the film "Lifeboat", which was filmed entirely in a lifeboat , but he was NOT one of the 'boaters'. Yet, Hitchcock DOES make an appearance.
Do you know how he did it ?

They seem very dated and not particularly scary when I’ve watched them more recently, I suppose we’re not easily shocked anymore.
My favourite one was Vertigo.

Roadie wrote:

Roadie wrote:

Vienna wrote: Not a fan particularly, although one of my favourite films is Rear Window, but that is because James Stewart is for me a brilliant actor, and i will watch any film with him in it.

I also have a copy of The Birds in my collection, but sadly haven't watched it since discovering the lengths Hitchcock went to in order to capture the look of profound terror on the face of his leading actress Tippi Hedren.
It's really disturbing, and so was his 'relationship' with Hedren.




As a director he was quite brilliant, but as a human being - that appears to be another matter.

It also made me wonder if Hitchcock was mentally ill.

I read about how Hitchcock used live birds to "attack" Hedren and I wanted to see the actual movie again. Today I re-watched The Birds so I could see the scene where Tippi Hedren was attacked by live birds. Yes, Hitchcock was effective in using live birds in that scene, BUT I think Hitchcock could have used some other method. From what I read, Tippi Hedren was quite traumatized by that use of live birds.

Yes Hitchcock could have relied on Tippi Hedren's acting skills - most directors would have done this.
As i said, using live birds to 'peck' at her, was in my opinion, sadistic and unnecessary.

Yo wrote: They seem very dated and not particularly scary when I’ve watched them more recently, I suppose we’re not easily shocked anymore.
My favourite one was Vertigo.

Yes, you may be correct about Hitchcock films being 'dated' , but at the time they broke new ground. In Psycho. the shower murder scene scared the day lights out people.

In any event, Hitchcock was a master of camera use. He often created new and unexpected camera angles.