4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 27, 2018

If Alfred Hitchcock had any contribution to the war effort then Foreign Correspondent would no doubt be it. Nazi Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels was purported to have admired its qualities as a work of propaganda and that’s high praise coming from someone who was quite familiar with in   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 25, 2018

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again…” ~ Joanne Fontaine in Rebecca  In normal circumstances, voice-over introductions rarely resonate but for some reason, the ethereal tones of Joan Fontaine opening Rebecca leave a lasting impact and that’s after well nigh 80 year   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 23, 2018

At first glance, this doesn’t seem like the type of picture suited for Steve McQueen and Natalie Wood. He was “The King of Cool.” She was a major player from childhood in numerous classics. Neither was what most people considered a serious actor. They were movie stars. They had cha   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 21, 2018

Bull Durham is actually a fairly religious film. The only catch is the fact that the religion in question is baseball with its multitude of superstitions, curses, annual rituals, and rites of passage performed daily by all those playing in the games or sitting in the bleachers cheering on their...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 20, 2018

For all intent and purposes, Psycho could be an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Hitchcock knew that better than anyone else. Foregoing the more lavish Technicolor tones he had used in Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959) and lacking the same type of studio backing, he shot this...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 18, 2018

There’s little doubt that To Catch a Thief is Hitchcock at his breeziest and with the once-in-a-lifetime pairing of Cary Grant and Grace Kelly the picture could coast on looks and charm alone. Not simply based on the attributes of its stars either but the extensive on location shooting boasti   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 18, 2018

There’s little doubt that To Catch a Thief is Hitchcock at his breeziest and with the once-in-a-lifetime pairing of Cary Grant and Grace Kelly the picture could coast on looks and charm alone. Not simply based on the attributes of its stars either but the extensive on location shooting boasti   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 18, 2018

We are met with the scourge of Hitler overrunning mainland Europe. It’s about that time. American isn’t involved in the war. Britain’s getting bombed to smithereens and the rest of Europe is tumbling like rows and rows of tin soldiers. Carol Reed always proved astute at setting the   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 16, 2018

Though he would make Jamaica Inn the following year, it’s undoubtedly The Lady Vanishes that situated Hitchcock for the move to Hollywood as his last great British film showcasing once more his immense aptitude as a storyteller no matter the resources on hand. At the beginning of the proceedi   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 15, 2018

It’s easy to assume that Picnic is a film that time had not been very kind to. If you do a cursory glance at contemporary reviews, the majority appear far from glowing and my own reason for returning to this romance was based on a mild interest in a cultural...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 12, 2018

We meet the faces of a man and a woman bickering furiously. Another young man finds a limp body awash on the beach. He runs to get help but two young girls see his response of fleeing across the sand and believe what any normal person would believe. He’s leaving...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 10, 2018

Sabotage: Willful destruction of buildings or machinery with the object of alarming a group of persons or inspiring public uneasiness. It’s not exactly a titillating introduction but since this is precisely where this 1930s Hitchcock thriller commences so will I. Again, Hitch is collaborating   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 9, 2018

There’s little doubt that To Catch a Thief is Hitchcock at his breeziest and with the once-in-a-lifetime pairing of Cary Grant and Grace Kelly the picture could coast on looks and charm alone. Not simply the attributes of its stars but the extensive on location shooting boasting Cannes shorel   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 7, 2018

There are such a vast number of levels to appreciate Rear Window on and one of those is its impeccable use of sound as well as a score courtesy of Franz Waxman. In fact, it is quite easy to consider it as a film with a wholly diegetic soundtrack but it’s...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 6, 2018

Dial M for Murder is talky and more dialogue-driven than a great many Hitchcock films but that’s partly because the environment is more conducive to that kind of storytelling as much as the fact that this murder story is adapted from a popular British stage production. Like Rope (1948) or eve   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 4, 2018

It’s so easy to quickly brush off early works of Hitchcock with admittedly bland titles like Blackmail, Murder, Secret Agent, Sabotage, etc. But if you actually dare to dust one of these films off for a viewing, you do see Hitchcock spinning his wizardry even if the edges are a...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on April 2, 2018

With The 39 Steps, it’s possible to witness Alfred Hitchcock coming into his own and one of the most obvious markers are numerous motifs, character archetypes, and techniques that would crop up in his work again and again. But it’s also conceivable to trace the influences of this film i   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on March 30, 2018

Strangers on the Train is conceived in its first few minutes of dialogue when the charismatic bon vivant Bruno (Robert Walker) ingratiates himself on tennis player Guy Haines (Farley Granger). Bruno is a big idea-man, constantly talking and thinking and wheedling his way into other people’s l   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on March 28, 2018

Although Hitchcock did many riffs off the same themes, he very rarely tried to do the same film twice over. The Man Who Knew Too Much might be the one exception and even then if you place these two thrillers from 1934 and 1956 up next to each other, they’re...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on March 26, 2018

Alfred Hitchcock captures the pure bedlam that overtakes a neighborhood when their peaceful dreams are rudely disrupted by an awful din. As is customary everyone is in a foul mood, peers out their windows, bickers with everyone else, and moves into action. Then in a split second, everything’s   read more