What would you do if you saw something you weren’t supposed to see? Would you investigate further? Would you pretend that you hadn’t seen anything? Starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 mystery flick Rear Window takes amateur sleuthing to an entirely new level.
Stewart’s character L.B. ‘Jeff’ Jefferies is a magazine photographer whose love of adventure and risk-taking has confined him to eight weeks in a wheelchair. In order to pass the time, he observes his neighbors from his apartment window. As he struggles between settling down with his girlfriend Lisa (Kelly) or living a life dedicated to work and travel, he sees something strange at his neighbor’s apartment across the courtyard. With the help of Lisa and his nurse Stella, played by Thelma Ritter, he begins an investigation that serves as a key to finding out the truth about his neighborhood and about what he wants out of life.
Unlike most mystery films, there is no sudden inciting incident, which functions as both a strength and weakness for the movie. Because there is no distinct beginning to the mystery, the story seems to develop slowly. However, this made me that much more intrigued to watch the story unravel.
Hitchcock does an incredible job utilizing action and reaction shots. For example, in many of the scenes, the neighbors are shown doing various things in their apartments, and the camera cuts back with a close-up of Jefferies’ face. Sometimes, he’s blushing at the sight of the pretty dancer, other times he’s frowning at the woman who dines alone.
Unlike most mystery films, there is no sudden inciting incident, which functions as both a strength and weakness for the movie. Because there is no distinct beginning to the mystery, the story seems to develop slowly. However, this made me that much more intrigued to watch the story unravel.
Hitchcock does an incredible job utilizing action and reaction shots. For example, in many of the scenes, the neighbors are shown doing various things in their apartments, and the camera cuts back with a close-up of Jefferies’ face. Sometimes, he’s blushing at the sight of the pretty dancer, other times he’s frowning at the woman who dines alone.
In one of the strongest points of this film, Stewart and Ritter have a great chemistry that makes the dialogue between them seem very natural. Ritter is a no-nonsense woman who has no problem telling Stewart what she thinks he should do with his life. In one of the best lines of the movie, she says, “We’ve become a race of peeping toms. What people ought to do is get outside their own house and look in for a change.” This theme carries throughout the entire movie.
Another strength is the role of the women within the story. Although they play mostly a supporting role to Stewart’s character, they make large contributions to the solving of the mystery, something that was not typical of the male-dominant era in which this film was made. For instance, Lisa makes one of the largest character arcs in the movie, moving away from the apparently self-involved socialite to an adventurous detective.
Another strength is the role of the women within the story. Although they play mostly a supporting role to Stewart’s character, they make large contributions to the solving of the mystery, something that was not typical of the male-dominant era in which this film was made. For instance, Lisa makes one of the largest character arcs in the movie, moving away from the apparently self-involved socialite to an adventurous detective.
The strengths of the writing and cinematography are quite conducive to the minimal amount of sets used. It can be difficult to tell a story that occurs in one or two settings, but for this movie, it worked well. The only information that the audience needed was provided right there in the neighborhood.
Perhaps as a nod to Hitchcock, this plot of watching your neighbors and making sense of their lives can be seen in other movies and television shows, including the popular sitcom Friends.
Check back here next week for more film reviews!
Film Grade: B+
Until Next Time,
Kathryn (The Redhead Behind the Reviews)
1/24/18
Perhaps as a nod to Hitchcock, this plot of watching your neighbors and making sense of their lives can be seen in other movies and television shows, including the popular sitcom Friends.
Check back here next week for more film reviews!
Film Grade: B+
Until Next Time,
Kathryn (The Redhead Behind the Reviews)
1/24/18