Fave Hitch

..and why not?

Which Hitch?

Strangers On A Train
0
No votes
Dial 'M' For Murder
0
No votes
Rear Window
2
15%
To Catch A Thief
0
No votes
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
1
8%
Vertigo
6
46%
North By Northwest
3
23%
Psycho
0
No votes
The Birds
1
8%
 
Total votes: 13

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Matt Wilson
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Postby Matt Wilson » 30 Jan 2007, 23:37

I'm going to go ahead and say Vertigo since it's my default answer to this question but North by Northwest is just as good but for different reasons. And the funny thing is Psycho is rapidly becoming (if it hasn't already) the highest-placing Hitch movie on most film polls lately.

When I was in college my professor told me Hitchcock's British films had just as many admirers as the American ones yet now I find it difficult to even find Brits who champion them. Shouldn't The Thirty Nine Steps or The Lady Vanishes be included on your list? Surely they're better than Dial M for Murder.

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Postby The Write Profile » 30 Jan 2007, 23:42

= marios = wrote:
The RightGraduate Profile wrote:Where's Shadow of A Doubt, one of Hitch's own fave films? I think if I'm honest that would come pretty close to being my favourite

My top three would be Rear Window, North by Northwest and Vertigo, I think.


:lol:


There's not much in it, in the end! But yes, it does look like I contradicted myself there :lol:

Those are the ones that had the greatest impact on me, particularly Rear Window, which is probably the film I've watched more than any other, but Shadow of A Doubt comes damn close in the end- if there's something that stops it getting in the top three, it's this weird sense that it feels somewhat minor, perfect as it is.

I can't put my finger on it, perhaps it lacks something, be it the alluring sexiness that Grace Kelly brings to the screen everytime she appears during Rear Window, the emotional devestation of Vertigo's midsection, or the brilliant, inventive setpieces and wicked final shot that closes North by Northwest. There's not a single frame or performance out of place in Shadow of A Doubt but it seems more significant for what influenced in its own way.
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Postby Sneelock » 30 Jan 2007, 23:45

well, 'Shadow of a Doubt' is one HELL of a moral problem for our hero. the person she loves the most is probably a monster. the fact that Hitch does this and makes it so entertaining is really something.

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Postby Matt Wilson » 30 Jan 2007, 23:47

One could probably write a hell of an essay describing Shadow of a Doubt as the Blue Velvet of the '40s.

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Postby The Write Profile » 30 Jan 2007, 23:54

Matt Wilson wrote:One could probably write a hell of an essay describing Shadow of a Doubt as the Blue Velvet of the '40s.


I actually got my highest mark in Uni on an essay that dealt with just that! :-)

I think Shadow of A Doubt and It's A Wonderful Life are the two Hollywood 'classics' that Blue Velvet owes the most to, particularly during the later's nightmarish "Pottersville" sequence. As a film, Blue Velvet is Lynch's finest not because it pulls in different directions but that it's actually grounded in something resembling a tight narrative, which is clearly what Lynch learned from the two films.

And sneelock's right, Shadow of A Doubt continues to sympathise with the monster right up to the very end, even his demise has this odd regret to it- bear in mind young Charlie wanted him to bring 'excitement' to her sleepy little town and that's exactly what she got. The way Cotten and the young actress bounce off oneanother's quite something to watch, because they do have a connection. In her own way I guess she damns herself in the end. But it's a very entertaining film that looks great.
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Postby Matt Wilson » 31 Jan 2007, 00:00

The RightGraduate Profile wrote:
Matt Wilson wrote:One could probably write a hell of an essay describing Shadow of a Doubt as the Blue Velvet of the '40s.


I actually got my highest mark in Uni on an essay that dealt with just that! :-)

I think Shadow of A Doubt and It's A Wonderful Life are the two Hollywood 'classics' that Blue Velvet owes the most to, particularly during the later's nightmarish "Pottersville" sequence. As a film, Blue Velvet is Lynch's finest not because it pulls in different directions but that it's actually grounded in something resembling a tight narrative, which is clearly what Lynch learned from the two films.

And sneelock's right, Shadow of A Doubt continues to sympathise with the monster right up to the very end, even his demise has this odd regret to it- bear in mind young Charlie wanted him to bring 'excitement' to her sleepy little town and that's exactly what she got. The way Cotten and the young actress bounce off oneanother's quite something to watch, because they do have a connection. In her own way I guess she damns herself in the end. But it's a very entertaining film that looks great.


It is a great film and possibly Hitch's finest of the '40s.
Do I like it more than Blue Velvet? I dunno... Possibly because Blue Velvet came out in the '80s and had less problems with the production code it seems to get down and dirty more than a film from 1943. Plus, I used to show that video to friends of mine in college and it would actually disturb them (no matter how tame it seems today). It's a great picture to get drunk and plop on the couch and watch despite the fact that I haven't done this in years...

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Postby Jimbly » 31 Jan 2007, 00:02

I cant pick a favourite Hitchcock, too many classics, too many greats, not many averages and hardly any duds
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Postby Carl's Son » 31 Jan 2007, 00:26

The one with Will Smith in it.

Only joking, although I'm not going to vote because I've only seen two.

Of those Pyscho was better than Vertigo. The bit at the end when his mum is revealed, and the final scene with him still talking to himself are still incredibly creepy.
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Postby echolalia » 31 Jan 2007, 13:49

Vertigo or Rear Window if I had to vote from the list, shame Rope isn't in there though.

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Postby jimjim » 31 Jan 2007, 14:24

The Trouble With Hitch....is....that 90% of his work is grade A+. Even the one I've just alluded to. Eons ago I remember watching one of his movies one grey afternoon and remarking on how good it was and it was not one of his 'known' movies. For the record it had Tallulah Bankhead in it and was set entirely on a stranded lifeboat in the middle of the sea. The building, unnerving tension that something was going to kick off was superbly done.

I voted Rear Window as it still works on repeat play after all these years. And because of Grace...... :wink: hubba hubba! But aside from the 2 I haven't seen - 'Theif' and 'To Have..' - the rest are all fine fare.

And 39 Steps would be #2 on my Hitch list.
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Postby Count Machuki » 31 Jan 2007, 17:11

i'm surprised that there isn't a single vote for The Birds so far. commie metaphor? fear of hysteria? animation? i think it's a great one.

vertigo is sort of the default answer.
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Postby James R » 01 Feb 2007, 11:56

Vertigo is indeed the default "great" Hitchcock film but something about it leaves me cold.

I have always had an exceedingly soft spot for Sabotage. I know Hitch himself said it was a mistake for him to have let the bomb actually go off on the bus in that film, but that's why the film lingers in the memory, i.e. because he let himself go that far, which most filmmakers would not have done.

The Lodger is the only one of the silent films I've seen, and I've always been under the impression I'm not missing a lot by not having seen the others. The Lodger is great, though. The opening montage is really stunning even now.
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Postby The Write Profile » 01 Feb 2007, 22:52

Dances With Difficulty wrote:I'd go for 'The Trouble With Harry'....because of the young Shirley MacLaine...and it's a fine piece of dark humour from Hitch...


Yes! I like that one, too! I don't think it's 'classic' Hitch or anything, but it's a wonderfully dark little yarn that revels in its own absurdities throughout. I mean, how many times do they dig up that body in the end? Apparently, the studios freaked when the scriptwriter and Hitch pitched it as a comedy, but when you look at it now, it's probably influenced all sorts of gentle, 'pastoral' macarbe flicks (think Waking Ned Devine and the like). And Shirley MacLaine is lovely in it, too.
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Postby Ranking Ted » 01 Feb 2007, 23:31

I remember years ago the BBC showed a number of Hitchcock films in a season and I lapped them all up - until it came to Vertigo. It was too much for my young mind. Where was the everyman Jimmy Stewart I loved from the Capra films, even Rear Window, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Rope - you know, all-American decency? It was disturbing and I decided it was not for me.

Forward, er, a number of years to 2006; I buy Vertigo on a whim. And am blown away. It's a stunning piece of work, much deeper (darker?) than the others (which are all 5 star - other faves are North By Northwest and Rear Window) and there's not an ounce of fat. It's modern as hell and worth every line of praise it receives.

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Postby Sneelock » 02 Feb 2007, 00:25

I think a lot of Jimmy Stewart's films in the 50's and 60's are like that. He made a lot of movies where he's just wearing the weight of the world on his face. it was a good look for him!

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Postby Jimbly » 02 Feb 2007, 00:32

Sneelock wrote:I think a lot of Jimmy Stewart's films in the 50's and 60's are like that. He made a lot of movies where he's just wearing the weight of the world on his face. it was a good look for him!


I watched Anatomy of a Murder last week another sterling Jimmy performance, one of my favourite actors 8-)
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