Hitchcockian
Hitchcockian films are those made with the styles and themes similar to those of Alfred Hitchcock's films.
Characteristics
Elements considered Hitchcockian include:
- The cool platinum blonde.
- The presence of a domineering mother in her child's life (e.g. Psycho).
- An innocent man accused.
- Restricting the action to a single setting to increase tension (e.g. Lifeboat, Rear Window, Rope).
- Characters who switch sides or who cannot be trusted.
- Tension building through suspense to the point where the audience enjoys seeing the character in a life-threatening situation (e.g. Vertigo, the windmill scene in Foreign Correspondent).
- Average people thrust into strange or dangerous situations (e.g. North by Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much).
- Bumbling or incompetent authority figures, particularly police officers.
- Use of darkness to symbolise impending doom (dark clothing, shadows, smoke, etc.)
- Strong visual use of famous landmarks (Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, Forth Rail Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge, Albert Hall, British Museum, Piccadilly Circus, etc.)
- Mistaken identity (e.g. North by Northwest, The Wrong Man).
- The use of a staircase as a motif for impending danger or suspense.
- Use of a macguffin or plot device that remains unexplained (e.g. the microfilm in North by Northwest).
- Referring to crime for mystery rather than presenting it explicitly (e.g. Dial M for Murder, Alfred Hitchcock Presents).
Films not directed by Hitchcock
Aside from Hitchcock's own films, some films or scenes considered Hitchockian include:
Year | Film |
---|---|
1944 | Gaslight[1] |
1956 | 23 Paces to Baker Street[2] |
1957 | Witness for the Prosecution[3][4] |
1960 | Midnight Lace[5] |
1963 | Charade[6] |
From Russia with Love[7] | |
1988 | The Vanishing[8][9] |
1992 | Basic Instinct[10] |
1995 | 12 Monkeys[11][12] |
2002 | Panic Room[13] |
2010 | Buried |
2011 | Unknown[14][15][16][17] |
2013 | Stoker |
Side Effects[18][19][20] | |
The films of Brian De Palma[21] | |
See also
Notes
- ↑ http://trueclassics.net/2012/07/09/gaslights/
- ↑ http://www.moviemail.com/film/dvd/23-Paces-to-Baker-Street/
- ↑
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051201/trivia
- ↑ TCM
- ↑ Decent Films Guide: Charade
- ↑ Gilligan, Patrick. Alfred Hitchcock: A Light in Darkness and Light. New York City: HarperCollins, 2004. Print.
- ↑ http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=10707&reviewer=416
- ↑ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/thevanishingrhinson_a0a9db.htm
- ↑ we're fighting back on Basic Instinct: "Basic Instinct owes a lot to Hitchcock's Vertigo, and the homage is so obvious as to be a bit embarrassing."
- ↑ "…Hitchcockian…" — 12 Monkeys review from Time Out Film Guide
- ↑ 'A time-travel thriller that dares to compare itself to Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo."… actually pays back its debt to Hitchcock…' — Salon.com
- ↑ Review: 'Panic Room' Screams Hitchcock
- ↑ 'Unknown' review: Liam Neeson brings gravitas to pulpy Alfred Hithcock-style action thriller, Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News, February 17, 2011
- ↑ The great ‘Unknown’, Lou Lumenick, New York Post, February 18, 2011
- ↑ Unknown review, Roger Ebert, February 16, 2011
- ↑ Neeson wakes up 'Unknown', Steven Rea,The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 18, 2011
- ↑ http://www.emanuellevy.com/comment/side-effects-making-of-hitchcockian-thriller/
- ↑ http://insidemovies.ew.com/2012/11/07/soderbergh-side-effects/
- ↑ http://honeycuttshollywood.com/sideeffects-review-2/
- ↑ http://www.avclub.com/articles/brian-de-palma,52964/
References
- Michael Walker (2005), Hitchcock's motifs, Amsterdam University Press, ISBN 978-90-5356-773-9