Alfred Hitchcock

[Avaitor]

He made some of the best movies ever. He almost single-handedly created the modern horror picture (Psycho) as well as the modern blockbuster (North by Northwest), done black comedy (The Trouble With Harry), screwball (Mr. and Mrs Smith), and has touched on, messed with, and done everything imaginable to suspense films (pick any three movies). Hitch always picked the best actors to portray his characters and typically has a great script and a top-notch score to compliment it. By the end of his lifetime, his films became a little weaker, but at the best, no one was close to Hitch.

/serious opening

I guess I don't know anything about film, since  I don't know who this Hitchcock fellow is. Since these sound like horror movies, I don't plan to watch any of his movies, since that will get in the way of my Superman and Pokemon films.

/Paschal reply

[Pharass]

A fantastic director, no doubt about it. I haven't seen that many Hitchcock movies but those I've seen would all rank among my favorite movies.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

There isn't much that I could say about Hitchcock that everybody with any taste at all for films doesn't already know. The guy is the definition of a genius of film-making, plain and simple.

My personal favorite film of his would be Dial M for Murder, which was adapted from a play (and its pretty clear to see), but I wouldn't be surprised if Hitchcock's version was even better than any of the play iterations of the story. I am also very keen to Rear Window. Psycho is obviously a classic that everyone should see, and North by Northwest is a fantastic film that deviates from the usual genre of films he made, and told a clever tale with both comedic and adventure elements to it, while still feeling every bit as amazingly well-crafted as you'd expect a Hitchcock film to feel.

Calling him the greatest director of the 20th century would probably be an understatement.

[Avaitor]

Recently I decided to rewatch both Notorious and Psycho, both being great decisions.

I've talked enough about Psycho in the past so I'll skip going into why I like it here (although I've been piling up reasons today), but Notorious is one I don't think I've gone into as much. I think it's classic Hitch all in all, since it's a tightly plotted thriller with typically great acting with a sweet, sexy romantic storyline. Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman have great chemistry with each other and make their characters believable, while Claude Rains pulls off a very effective villain. You can believe that Grant's character does what does for the best, and his love for Bergman's is apparent throughout.

Then there's that ending. Easily one of the most effective I can think of.

I have a few other Hitch films on my Netflix queue, some I'll see for the first time (Rope, Shadow of a Doubt), some I'm going to rewatch (The Birds), and some I'm giving another chance (Frenzy). I have a wait for most of these though, but I'm looking forward to them coming in.

[Angus]

I get some of his S movies confused. Suspicion, Spellbound, Sabotage, but I'll probably need to watch them over.

[Veggie]

I'm ashamed to say I've only seen The Birds.

I gotta say, while it's a decent movie on it's own, I can't believe people are actually scared of it. I mean, for one, they're fucking birds. And no group of birds would go ornery and actually work together to become cold, calculating killers. It's really kinda ridiculous when you think about it.

That said, I really should get around to watching his other works.

[Avaitor]

The Birds isn't one of Hitch's best, but I think it's a great movie, and probably the last very good one he's made. Granted, I say this not having seen any of his films since, aside from Frenzy which I had to turn off after about a half hour, but going from general opinions, this is a fair claim.

It's ridiculous, yes, but I think that's part of it's appeal- the birds attack for no reason but end up being the most endearing characters from the movie. The humans are two-dimensional at best, and that's only talking about the main characters. While you may feel sorry for the humans having to suffer their onslaught, it's all placed so well that their attacks are appealing, and there seems to be a message towards Hitchcock's views on humankind in there as well. I'll get more into this when I get the movie from Netflix.

As for getting into his movies, Psycho, Vertigo, Rear Window, and North by Northwest are his popular and essential viewing. They're also great movies, even if I think Vertigo is a little overrated. Besides these, EK's favorite is Dial M for Murder, which is a damn fine film, so I'll add that and Strangers on a Train, one of my own favorites, to your list if you care to.

[No-Personality]

As I said on UD, Psycho wasn't totally for-me, but I think The Birds and The Trouble with Harry are cinematic perfection. I should really check out more of his films. And... maybe I will.

[Avaitor]

True, I can't help but feel like you made that thread to get some recommendations for non-horror films to check out.

Am I right to assume that?

[Lord Dalek]

Greatest filmmaker ever. I've seen Vertigo it must be like 2000 times and I still see things that are new about it.