Rating of
2.5/4
Stewart n' Hitch.
memento_mori - wrote on 07/08/13
Alfred Hitchcock truly is a master of suspense, because this movie has a lot of it… almost too much of it… it's interesting, but it gets boring.
Rear Window is one of the first Hitchcock movies I saw, and I have mixed thoughts about it.
To name a few positives: I love Jimmy Stewart. The guy is purely charismatic and funny, and he makes his character stand out in this movie. He has so little to work with and so many limitations due to his character's physical state, but he pulls it off.
Grace Kelly and Thelma Ritter were likable side-characters, but they mainly served the purpose of helping Stewart.
The direction is also a definite stand-out, with many wide-angle scopes of a Greenwich Village neighborhood block.
I mentioned limitations before, and this movie truly is full of them. The fifties were a time where next-to-nothing was allowed in a movie. No sexual references, no improper violence and such.
So really, all the actors had to do in this movie is read lines, and read them well, and they do.
What really gets to me is the climax of the movie. I won't spoil it, but just know: It is terrible.
It was just down-right laughable, especially the one special effect that followed it. I couldn't believe they put that in a thriller and not for comedic relief. I was laughing in my seat way after it was over.
I mean seriously, even for its time, that was a pretty bad finale.
I may come off as if I didn't enjoy it, but I did. I am impressed by how little these actors had to work with and still pulled off big performances. I of course adore the suspense, even if it gets lengthy at times. It's just the finale that gets to me. A movie of this category needs a strong finale, and I am positive that it did not get one.
Other than that, I enjoyed myself in this Hitchcockian suspense movie. It's not his best work, but it's something.
