Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window

Undoubtedly one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most well-known efforts, Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window casts James Stewart as L.B. Jefferies – a photographer who finds himself confined to a wheelchair following a work-related injury. L.B.’s newfound hobby of peeping on his neighbors eventually leads him to suspect the mysterious man (Raymond Burr’s Lars Thorwald) across the way of murder, though his loyal girlfriend Lisa (Grace Kelly) and cop buddy Thomas (Wendell Corey) initially remain unconvinced. There’s little doubt that Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window takes an awfully long time to get going, as Hitchcock – working from John Michael Hayes’ screenplay – has infused the proceedings with an exceedingly deliberate sensibility that admittedly proves effective in fleshing out the various characters. And while the relentlessly stagy and undeniably inauthentic atmosphere occasionally does threaten to become oppressive – particularly during sequences of a distinctly melodramatic nature – it does become increasingly clear that the sporadically kitschy vibe remains an indelible part of the film’s enduring success. It’s only with the nail-biting third act that Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window finally becomes the compelling piece of work that one might’ve anticipated, with the inevitable confrontation between L.B. and Lars benefiting substantially from Hitchcock’s expectedly masterful directorial choices (ie the short-lived battle plays out in silence as L.B. attempts to disorient his attacker with repeated hits from a flashbulb). While there’s no denying that Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window is very much a product of its time, the film surely remains one of the most memorable and downright essential examples of the slow-burn thriller genre.

***1/2 out of ****