Alfred Hitchcock Rear Window

it is the start of the story. The window fills the whole frame of the

Alfred Hitchcock’s film North by Northwest (1959) is famed as a classic man-on-the-run thriller, following protagonist Roger Thornhill as he flees across state lines in a mad dash to save his life and unravel the mystery to his extraordinary predicament. However, mid-way through the film Thornhill’s quandary is further complicated by the introduction of Eve Kendall, a beautiful yet mysterious woman he encounters on a train during his escape from the authorities and people trying to kill him. During the dining room scene on the train, Hitchcock expertly uses the camera to convey the characters thoughts and feelings. Interestingly, in a film that has several sequences with complicated cinematography and editing, the dining car scene is

The mise-en-scene of this shot hints at important information about Jeffries, his neighbors, and the neighborhood in general. But what the camera does tells us something much stronger: Rear Window is a film about voyeurism, and a commentary on audiences watching drama on a screen.

Like Alice, the camera warbles before it goes through the glass. The realization is made that the camera is no longer a view of the reflection, but is now inside the strange parallel world through the mirror. Text at the bottom of the screen announces six months have passed since the night at the motel. Mort is asleep on the couch. The silence of the film adds an uncomfortable eeriness. Also, every sound there is seems to be emphasized and startling. A confident knock on the door wakes Mort. Mort puts on his glasses and stares out the door. A lanky man wearing a wide brim black hat stares back as Mort opens the door. “You stole my story.” Mort dismisses the strange southerner as another crazy reader before shutting the door in his face. Hiding, Mort hears shuffling on his porch before the stranger revs his engine and drives off. Mort reopens his door to find a well-loved manuscript on his porch weighed down by a large rock.

This technique momentarily suspends the omniscient gaze of the camera, and evokes the spectator’s—as well as Hitchcock’s—desire to “capture” the female protagonist as she escapes off-screen. In this context, the seemingly objective tracking shot may in fact reveal itself as a violent, subjective

Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window is a uniquely captivating film that is an exemplary style of cinematic craftsmanship. Reaching into the minds of the characters, as well as the audience, Alfred Hitchcock is the master at utilizing the juxtaposition of images to bring us into the minds of the characters. In Rear Window, the story is so distinctively executed that it allows us to relate to our own curiosities, question our identities, and ponder our closest relationships. What is happening on the screen is merely a projection of our own anxieties, our own existence, and our self-ambiguity as portrayed by the characters in this wonderful film.

In Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, L.B. Jeffries, played by Jimmy Stewart, becomes completely obsessed with spending all of his waking hours watching his neighbors from his wheelchair. He even uses a camera to better his view and thus enhances his role as both a spectator and a voyeur. This contributes to the creation of a movie being played right outside Jeffries’ window. In this “movie within the movie” his neighbors’ lives become the subject for the plot. Each window represents a different film screen, each which is focused upon only when Jeffries directs his attention to it. He witnesses both the anxieties associated with the beginning of a marriage and the heartache of relationships ending. The

The film Rear Window, released in 1954, and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, portrays the shift of power in the relationship between the central characters of Lisa Freemont and L.B. "Jeff" Jeffries throughout the film. As the characters are introduced in the beginning of the film, Jeffries is shown to have control of the relationship between himself and Miss Freemont, the power later shifts to Lisa as the film progresses and she takes an interest in the suspected murder. However, the film ends with relative equality within the relationship, after Lisa's intelligence is discovered by her partner.

In Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 classic thriller Rear Window, Jimmy Stewart stars as L.B. Jeffries, a world traveling magazine photographer accustomed to living a fast pace active lifestyle. When Jefferies injures himself taking a risky picture he is immobilized, confined to a wheelchair inside his apartment for two months. Bored with his uneventful life he becomes completely obsessed with the lives of his neighbors spending the majority of his waking hours watching them from his window. To obtain a better view he begins using a telescopic lens from one of his cameras. By watching his neighbors through the camera he assumes the role of both a spectator and a voyeur. This contributes to

Gender ideologies are apparent in all areas of life. Whether it be online, in TV shows, movies or in person, this idea of a specific role for each gender is almost inescapable. The stereotypes of both what women and men should aspire to be and follow are ever changing in today’s current society. However, in 1954, gender roles were very specific and it is shown throughout the film, Rear Window directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Through this film, gender ideologies are challenged but ultimately remain unshattered. The film produces an obvious view of women as the caretakers, and fragile in comparison to men who are the main providers. As the plot of Rear Window develops, characters continue to maintain the time periods gender ideologies despite the challenges they overcome.

In the film Rear Window, voyeurism is the most prominent theme. Hitchcock presents this theme by using different effect such as sound and camera angles and suspenseful characters and scenes. In Rear Window, Hitchcock reveals to the audience that Jeffries', Lisa and Stella are not the only voyeurs in the film, the audience are involved as well in the events that unfold in the movie and we are caught observing them. As a director, Hitchcock believes that being voyeurs can end in a tremendous disaster and it is best to not get ourselves involved. The audience experience the emotions Jeffries', Lisa and Stella feel throughout this film because of how Hitchcock has used effects and the theme of voyeurism.

The film Rear Window addresses cinematic themes throughout the entire film, specifically throughout the last fifteen minutes. The movie ultimately uses cinematography to heavily describe the dramatic plot regarding Jeff, Mr. Thorwald, and the intense discoveries found when eavesdropping from the rear window. Film making techniques such as cinematography, mise en scene, sound, and more are all cinematic elements included in the film that influence aspects of the films stylistic system. The last fifteen minutes of Rear Window are heavily focused on the cinematic elements, specifically the movement, angles and shot duration of the camera during the suspenseful moments during Jeff’s plan to prove Mr. Throwald is a murderer. Mise en scene plays an important role in the entire film, Hitchcock uses mise en scene to symbolize many things; and is also heavily included in the last fifteen minutes of the film regarding lighting, props and more. Rear Window is a tremendously suspenseful film and uses both diegetic and non-diegetic sounds throughout; Hitchcock used more diegetic sounds through the

Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film “Rear Window” demonstrated a suspenseful and terrifying storyline, which captured the attention of a variety of audiences. The film focuses on James Stuart (Jeff) and ultimately his neighbors who live around him. Stuart is crippled from the beginning of the movie and is unable to leave his apartment. Due to his immobility, he remains confined in his home with a broken leg and begins to watch his neighbor’s particular behaviors and routines. The film progresses into drama and suspense that is seen through music, lighting, film editing processing and extensive detail to the neighborhood being watched. Rear Window exhibits these details in the scene where Grace Kelly who plays the role of Lisa, attempts to

Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller ‘Rear Window’ (Hitchcock, 1954) begins with the immediate use of mise-en-scène in order to establish a sense of atmosphere, equilibrium and the mundane, soon to be disrupted as the events of the film unfold and are observed through the eyes of the voyeuristic protagonist, Jeff. Setting, cinematography and various other expressive mise-en-scène techniques work together to influence the overall appearance of the film. Though, by taking a closer look, these techniques reveal the significance of the narrative and characters. In the opening sequence, Hitchcock’s original visual style provides signposts for the audience to recognize what will be significant in the future: instead of establishing what is only happening in the moment in time; mise-en-scène is used to suggest what is to come. This arrangement of the “Classical Hollywood” narrative - starting with the setting and characters in a state equilibrium - acts as a seemingly all-purpose, archetypal opening by establishing location and introducing character. Simultaneously we can see that this sequence is vastly different from the rest of the film: it is leading the viewer into a false sense of security – the calm before the storm – as Jeff soon happens to piece together information leading to the possibility that one of his neighbors murdered their wife. This sequence is one of the only moments in the film we see things the protagonist does not, thus this carefully constructed opening is preparing

Alfred Hitchcock’s attention to detail in his films is one of the many things that makes him one of the most recognized film auteurs of all time. He was very particular what about he wanted seen on screen and how he wanted to get those shots. From camera movements to the things found in the mise-en-scène, Hitchcock was very precise about every little thing that is seen in his on screen worlds. He would strategically place objects throughout the mise-en-scène and have characters wear certain clothing. By doing this, Hitchcock is able to let the audience know things about the characters and the plot without it having to be said on camera. Hitchcock once said that “If it's a good movie, the sound could go off and the audience would still have a perfectly clear idea of what was going on” (Tiffin). That’s why there’s no surprise that when Hitchcock finally made his first color film, he began to use color as another way of communicating with his audience.