Alfred Hitchcock

Article Summary With over a hundred years of watching movies, audiences have come to expect a certain formula their films should follow, and when they don’t there can be some unseen outcomes. One film that is famously known for breaking this formula is Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. When Psycho first released film goers and movie critics alike were shocked and (for many cases) appalled by the twist shower scene in Hitchcock’s movie. Although it is no argument that Psycho’s shower scene, and the…

Daphne du Maurier’s “The Birds”, is well known for its apocalyptic plot and the idea of nature turning against humanity. It is her original work that is eventually used in the famous film, The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock. Although it was a bestseller, Daphne du Maurier never got much credit for writing “The Birds” or anything in general. She “enjoyed great popular success over the years, but during her lifetime she received comparatively little critical esteem” (theguardian). Unfortunately,…

unique to their own. Through lighting, musical score, and cinematography, both Alfred Hitchcock and Truffaut exhibit the true definition of auteur theory. Specifically, Psycho and The 400 Blows demonstrate the true craft of a signature style that influences and defines a certain genre of film. Truffault spearheaded the French New Wave movement with his use of film stock, mood, and unique character perspective, whereas Hitchcock ushered in the use of suspense and surprise in the Horror movie…

In the Alfred Hitchcock Film “Psycho”, Norman Bates, a motel desk receptionist, is living with his “mother” in a giant house close to his family’s motel. The lovely Marion Crane, who is very disturbed and looks as if she has a dirty secret, greets him one stormy night. In the “parlor scene”, Norman and Marion are talking and eating dinner late at night. This scene shows the first clues of how crazy Norman actually is by showing a glimpse of his anger. Marion comments on his mother saying he…

directors and writers get to choose from; however, the classical Hollywood narrative structure stuck to one consistent narrative structure that follows a linear timeline through 3 basic steps: equilibrium, disruption, restoration. Shadow of a doubt (Hitchcock 1943) follows these three steps throughout the timeline of the movie. The first step of the classical Hollywood narrative structure is equilibrium, all is well. The equilibrium phase is when the viewer jumps…

Alfred Hitchcock has always been considered a misogynous by critics, for his ethereal blonde hair and blue eyes women characters, portrayed as distant and sexually cold creatures, who very often end up to be evil and manipulator. In The Women Who Knew Too Much: Hitchcock and Feminist Theory (1977) Tania Modleski interprets Notorious according to the female point of view, as the film theorist Laura Mulvey had already done in her essay, Visual pleasure and narrative cinema (1975). Mulvey argued…

The Girl On The Train is written similar to a Hitchcock movie. Lacking the typical thrill of Psycho, the book still manages to use the key element of suspension. In true Alfred Hitchcock fashion, Paula Hawkins uses her imagination to conjure up a tightly woven plot that constantly shifts with every perspective change. Due to Rachel's constant blackouts, every time…

Psycho. A movie that will never really leave your mind and may possibly haunt you for the rest of you life. This 1960 thriller/horror film was directed and produced by Alfred Hitchcock. If you are a fan of interesting, suspenseful, and just plain good movies, this is a wonderful choice. It is full of twists, turns, and unexpected events one after another. Psycho was one of the best films I have watched because it kept my attention the whole time, and I was never bored. The storyline centers…

Peering down from hundreds of feet above, the shimmering waves dance and move effortlessly across the horizon. Boats zoom along as small cool breezes pass by. The palm of a hand brushing against the rust of the bridge and one inhales the scenery. The salty breeze, amazement, desire, hope, acceptance, loneliness, helplessness, humiliation, pain; a swirl of feelings overpowering and clashing with your inner self. No longer able to escape from reality, they’ve concluded that they’ve endured enough…

North by Northwest, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1959 thriller, features a handsome lead, a beautiful love interest, a charming villain, and exciting action scenes that led to it being called “the first James Bond film,” as noted by The Guardian’s John Peterson (Peterson). Even if it is one’s first time viewing the film, it is easy to pick up on moments that are obviously iconic, including the moving text in the opening credits, the crop duster attack, and of course the final scene on the face of Mount…