Reactions, Historical Context, and Spectrality in Stage Fright
The film Stage Fright is often overlooked in viewers canons of Alfred Hitchcock’s work. It’s easy to see why, released in 1950 in the middle of Hitchcock’s career as a filmmaker it was received negatively and is neither one of his early works nor one of his later masterpieces. Critics on the other hand have clung to the film, but tend to present “what” Stage Fright did as an example of the unreliable narrator and the use of flashbacks in film, sometimes reduced to no more than a title reference, neglecting how and why Hitchcock’s choice was important in its historical context. In this paper I will reexamine the role of Stage Fright in the canon of Hitchcock films for the audience, critics, and even Hitchcock …show more content…
Less than forty seconds after the film begins, Johnny begins an explanation of why the police are hot on his trail for a murder he did not commit, and the film fades to a flashback over thirteen minutes long, explaining what he did to help his lover Charlotte Inwood cover up her murder of her husband and how he by mischance became the object of police suspicion himself. Toward the end of the film, however, we learn that this explanation is untrue, that Johnny murdered Charlotte’s husband, has murdered before and gotten away with it, and that he intends to murder Eve, who only escapes by her quick wits. (23)
Stage Fright has remained a focal part of critical reflections on Hitchcock's work because it provides the prototype for unreliable narration and a springboard for discussions of the “lying” flashback in film. It took on the narrative expectations of audiences and critics about truth and reliability that had not yet been challenged. When asked about the structure of Stage Fright during his 1962 interview with François Truffaut, Hitchcock
The film Stage Fright is often overlooked in viewers canons of Alfred Hitchcock’s work. It’s easy to see why, released in 1950 in the middle of Hitchcock’s career as a filmmaker it was received negatively and is neither one of his early works nor one of his later masterpieces. Critics on the other hand have clung to the film, but tend to present “what” Stage Fright did as an example of the unreliable narrator and the use of flashbacks in film, sometimes reduced to no more than a title reference, neglecting how and why Hitchcock’s choice was important in its historical context. In this paper I will reexamine the role of Stage Fright in the canon of Hitchcock films for the audience, critics, and even Hitchcock …show more content…
Less than forty seconds after the film begins, Johnny begins an explanation of why the police are hot on his trail for a murder he did not commit, and the film fades to a flashback over thirteen minutes long, explaining what he did to help his lover Charlotte Inwood cover up her murder of her husband and how he by mischance became the object of police suspicion himself. Toward the end of the film, however, we learn that this explanation is untrue, that Johnny murdered Charlotte’s husband, has murdered before and gotten away with it, and that he intends to murder Eve, who only escapes by her quick wits. (23)
Stage Fright has remained a focal part of critical reflections on Hitchcock's work because it provides the prototype for unreliable narration and a springboard for discussions of the “lying” flashback in film. It took on the narrative expectations of audiences and critics about truth and reliability that had not yet been challenged. When asked about the structure of Stage Fright during his 1962 interview with François Truffaut, Hitchcock