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| Fig. 1. Original Rope Poster (1948) |
This review of Alfred Hitchcock's 1948 drama, mystery murder film: Rope. This was Hitchcock's first film in colour and his style of filmmaking shines through. Rope was based on a stage play, which was based on a 1920's murder case where two homosexual lovers murdered a 14-year-old boy. The film was adapted to be more of an American taste in order feel more authentic for Hitchcock's Hollywood audience. This review will be looking at how Hitchcock is an auteur based around the style of Rope.
An auteur is defined as: the consistent style of a director of which can easily be recognised by an audience. This includes distinct recurring themes or styles unique to that director, who leaves their mark on the film through these features. (Similar to a recognisable style from an artist that uses a certain medium or draws in a particular way.) Some of Hitchcock's most recognisable features include; over the shoulder shots, major tension building with music and knowledge to the audience, letting the picture show the story instead of telling it, 180-degree rule, cameoing in his own films, elaborate editing and mystery and suspense throughout.
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| Fig 2, The Chest [Film Still] 1948 |
In terms of how Hitchcock builds suspense in his films, he tends to implant the idea in the audiences head before any of the characters know about it, so the audience is left waiting for something to happen that nobody else is aware of. 'In Hitchcock's film 'Rope', he constantly switches focus between the chest and dinner party proceeding behind it, to continuously remind the viewer that one of the main characters has been murdered in the box.' (Mitchell, 2011). This is because as an audience, the spectator knows what's in the box (a dead body) while none of the characters know about it, other than the killers themselves. This builds suspense and tension for the audience, making them on edge, waiting for the characters to get caught out. This is described by Hitchcock as a 'ticking time bomb', mastering the art of cinematic tension.
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| Fig, 3. Over the Shoulder Shot [Still] Rope (1948) |
Hitchcock uses a lot of over the shoulder shots in his films, including Rope. These shots 'help to establish the position of each person, and get the feel of looking at one person from the other's point of view.' (MediaCollege, N/A). An over the shoulder shot can help a spectator see what the character is seeing while also being reminded that they are not seeing through the characters eyes (this would be a point of view shot), so while they are following the character it gives emphasis that as an audience they are following the story. It allows a spectator to almost feel like part of the world they are viewing.
Basing the film around the chest is Hitchcock's way of giving extreme importance to an inanimate object, which he also does in Psycho (1960) and Blackmail (1929) with the knives. This may seem small but when scenes begin to be based around something like an object, it can make the audience feel uneased or on edge because they know what the object represents while characters may not.
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| Fig, 4. Psycho Cameo (1960) |
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| Fig, 5. Rope Cameo (1948) (In the window) |
In a Hitchcock film, he always makes room for a cameo of himself. This can be seen in all of his films, he is almost literally signing his works by always being a part of his creations. Despite being the director, he always made room for himself to be involved in at least one shot of every single film he made.
Hitchcock also uses a film theory called the 'Macguffin'. This is the technique of using something to catch the viewers attention or drive the plot forward. In Rope this 'something' is the challenge to not be caught out by the guests that come to the dinner party. The film is almost solely based around the chest with a dead body in it, making the dead body and the goal to get away with murder Rope's Macguffin, the major plot of the film. (Mitchell, N/A)
In terms of visual auteurism, Hitchcock really focused on showing over telling. He grew up in the era of silent film, 'The silent pictures were the purest form of cinema' (Hitchcock, 1935) where directors had to show everything because they couldn't use sounds. To Hitchcock, dialogue and sound should come second to the visual aids on screen, and with a Hitchcock film, most people will remember iconic shots and parts of the film rather than sounds because his shots are so iconic and favourable.
In conclusion, Hitchcock can be considered an auteur because he has many little and large consistent features that make up his films. The many characteristics that he includes with all of his films, like over the shoulder shots, tension building, macguffins, suspense and cameos really support the idea that Hitchcock was an auteur. Lots of people recognise these features of a Hitchcock film, which is part of what made him such a successful director and definitely an auteur.
Illustrations:
Fig, 1. Original Rope Poster. At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040746/mediaviewer/rm449449472 Accessed on: 17/01/19
Fig, 2. The Chest. [Still] At: http://media-studies-thriller.blogspot.com/2011/03/hitchcocks-film-theories-in-rope.html Accessed on: 17/01/19
Fig, 3. Over the Shoulder Shot [Still] At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPFsuc_M_3E Accessed on: 17/01/19
Fig, 4. Psycho Cameo (1960) [Still] At: https://the.hitchcock.zone/wiki/1000_Frames_of_Psycho%20(1960)_-_frame_51
Accessed on: 17/01/19
Fig, 5. Rope Cameo (1948) [Still] At: https://the.hitchcock.zone/wiki/Hitchcock_Gallery:_image_6790 Accessed on: 18/01/19
Bibliography:
Hutcherson, P. (2012). My favourite Hitchcock: Rope. At: https://www.theguardian.com/
Mitchell (2011). Hitchcock's Film Theories in 'Rope'.. At: http://media-studies-thriller.
Richman, D. (2017). Movies You Might Have Missed: Alfred Hitchcock's Rope. At: https://www.independent.co.uk/
American Film Insititute (2008). Alfred Hitchcock On Mastering Cinematic Tension At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPFsuc_M_3E Accessed on: 17/01/19
MediaCollege (N/A). Over The Shoulder Shot. At: https://www.mediacollege.com/video/shots/over-shoulder.html Accessed on: 17/01/19
Hitchcock, A. (1935) At: http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tours/hitch/tour2.html Accessed on: 17/01/19
2 Comments
Hi Ren,
ReplyDeleteStraight back into it...that's what I like to see!
A couple of little things - when you say, 'This is because as an audience, the spectator knows what's in the box (a dead body) while none of the characters knows about it,' you probably should have added 'apart from the killers', so
'This is because as an audience, the spectator knows what's in the box (a dead body) while, apart from the killers, none of the characters know about it'.
Don't use exclamation marks; it takes away from the academic tone, so here, for example -
'...he always made room for himself to be involved in at least one shot of every single film he made!'
While we are on the subject of the cameo appearances, it might have been more relevant to include an image of the cameo from 'Rope' rather than 'Psycho'? Or both, as an example...
I see what you're saying- and I agree, thank you for the feedback :) I'll make some tweaks
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