Elements Of Mise-En-Scene In The Film To Catch A Thief

A Suspicious Bandit and an Inquisitive Beauty Alfred Hitchcock was a brilliant director of the mid-twentieth century directing very famous films such as Psycho (1960), Rear Window (1954), and To Catch a Thief (1955). The film To Catch a Thief, starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly, is a suspense-thriller about an ex-jewel thief accused of committing crimes parallel to his work in the past. In the film, the main characters John Robie (Cary Grant) and Frances Stevens (Grace Kelly) were illustrated to be very different from each other. Despite John’s innocence, he was depicted to suspicious and introverted, yet all the while is quite confident. Frances was depicted to be about money, beauty, and sex appeal, yet underneath is inquisitive and nonmaterialistic. The depiction of John Robie and Frances Stevens in the film To Catch a Thief can be accredited to three elements of mise-en-scene, costume and makeup, sets and props, and figure expression and movement. In film, part of cinematic style is the elements of mise-en-scene. A key part of …show more content…
In To Catch a Thief, there are multiple sets and props in the movie that helped the depiction of the characters be further exhibited. Early in the film, the location of John’s house was shown. The set is a huge, extremely expensive looking villa that overlooks the French Rivera. By using this set as John’s home, it contributes to the depiction of him being a guilty thief because only someone that has money could afford to live in a home at a location such as that one. It also helps portray him as an introvert because the set of his home was secluded and the only company he had was a maid. Another set used in the movie is the beachfront hotel that Frances stayed in. The actual hotel set used appeared to be upscale and luxurious with marble columns and lavish décor. This set depicts that Frances is very open about the money that she has and does not mind using