The Hitchcock Classics

On this page you will find descriptions and images from what I consider to be the "must see" Hitchcock films. If you're looking for a decent representation of his works, these are excellent choices. They range from edge of your seat suspense, to leave the lights on terror. So, if you're in a slump and need a good suggestion for the rental counter, consider these!

Rebecca (1940) An incredibly haunting tale of a wealthy widower, Maxim deWinter, and a lovely young woman (whose name we never learn) which he meets while vacationing. The two have a whirlwind romance and are soon married. Upon returning to Manderley, Maxim's estate, the new Mrs. deWinter is confronted by Mrs. Danvers. A sufficiently creepy housekeeper whose obsession with the former Mrs. deWinter is quite unsettling. We learn that Maxim's previous wife's name was Rebecca and that her death came about as a result of a tragic accident. Whenever Mrs. deWinter tries to discuss this with Maxim, he seems strangely distant and detached. His demeanor suggests that he may still be deeply in love with Rebecca. The situation is complicated even further as Mrs. Danvers takes great pains to inform Mrs. deWinter that she is in no way needed or wanted at Manderley. Even to the point of trying to influence her into a suicidal leap from the house. But the mood changes when there is new light shed on to the circumstances surrounding the accident which claimed Rebecca's life. After several startling revelations the film completes with a fiery end.

Suspicion (1941) One of Hitchcock's many films where he relies on   psychological fear to provide the suspense. This story introduces us to Lina MacKinlaw, a shy somewhat introverted girl whose biggest desire is to escape her current homelife. She meets a suave playboy named Johnny Aysgarth whom, despite some viscous rumors regarding his past, she marries. As the two begin their life together, she becomes aware of circumstances which causes her to believe that he is responsible for the murder of a close friend. It is soon after this that she also begins to suspect him of planning to kill her. All of this combined with Johnny's mysterious nature paralyzes her life with fear. It is only when the two take a ride together in a car along a rocky cliff that Lina finally learns the truth.

Saboteur (1942) Playing on the paranoia of World War II America, Hitchcock wove this suspenseful tale about a falsely accused man trying to clear his name and bring the real villain to justice. It centers around Barry Kane, an employee of an aircraft manufacturing plant who becomes the prime suspect when his factory is mysteriously destroyed by fire. As he is being arrested, he realizes that he knows who the real saboteur is and that finding him is the only way to exonerate himself. He is able to escape his captors and begin a perilous trek to find the real saboteur. Along the way he takes a female hostage, Patricia Martin, who at first is reluctant to believe his story but eventually is swayed to trust him. The plot thickens as the two discover a conspiracy of saboteurs and their plans to wreak further havoc on the United States war machine. All of which culminates into a truly awesome finale atop the Statue of Liberty in New York.

Shadow of a Doubt (1943) This is a great film because Hitchcock shows perfectly how even the most evil person can be someone whom we thought we knew and trusted. Charlie Cokley is a fugitive from the law. He is being hunted by police for a series of murders committed by a fiend the press has dubbed "The Happy Widow Killer". Charlie finds the perfect hiding place, with his sister and her suburbanite family. They of course welcome Charlie into their home and are glad to have his company. Especially his teenage niece, "Charlie"( lovingly named after her uncle ). But a series of certain incidents causes "Charlie" to become suspicious of her uncle and his motives for wanting to stay with the family. This is confirmed when one of the detectives who had been trailing Cokley arrives in town and has the chance to speak with her. Unfortunately, this does not go unnoticed by her uncle who in turn realizes that the only way to keep himself safe is to eliminate "Charlie" and her prying questions. Now she must struggle  to stay alive before the police are able to close the case.  

Spellbound (1945) Based on the novel The House of Dr. Edwardes, we begin here in a mental hospital where there is to be a 'changing of the guard' of sorts. The staff meets Dr. Edwardes, the physician  charged with becoming the successor of the recently resigned director, Dr. Murchison. As Dr. Edwardes settles into his new position, he meets Dr. Constance Peterson ( notably played by the always beautiful Ingrid Bergman ). Intrigued, she quickly falls in love with him. But the relationship takes a nasty spin when it is learned that the person that they believe to be Dr. Edwardes, is in fact a mental patient who had been stricken with a memory lapse and had assumed the identity of the real doctor. And after it is discovered that the actual Dr. Edwrades had fallen victim to murder, the patient is convinced that he is the killer with no recollection of the event. Refusing to believe this scenario, Constance harbors him from the authorities until she is able to delve into his past and his real identity. With her help, and the aid of a trip to the ski slopes, the man is able to recover his memory and it is discovered who Dr. Edwardes' actual killer is. 

Notorious (1946) An absolute must if you wish to see an example of Hitch at his finest. It is the end of World War II where the daughter of a convicted Nazi criminal is residing in the United States. She wishes no connection with her past. That is until she is approached by an FBI agent named Devlin who requests that she undertake a special mission. A man named Alexander Sebastian, who was an acquaintance of her father's, is suspected of harboring Nazi war criminals and aiding them in eluding the authorities. If possible, she is to try and find out what she can about these activities. She goes to Brazil and meets Sebastian and to gain total access to his life, she makes an incredible sacrifice. She marries him. During a swank party thrown by Sebastian, Devlin is able to gain access to the home and along with Alicia, they begin to explore the house. The trek takes them to a wine cellar where Devlin discovers a plot much deeper than originally suspected. Soon Sebastian becomes aware that Alicia is more than she appears, and to hide his activities and what she knows, he begins to slowly poison her. It is only when Devlin, who has become quite fond of Alicia, does not hear from her, that he realizes that something has gone wrong and that he must save her.

Strangers on a Train (1951) Truly this film must be mentioned when discussing any Hitchcock classic. An aspiring professional tennis player named Guy Haines is commuting on a train when he meets Bruno Anthony ( brilliant performance by the late Robert Walker ) who seems to know a great deal about Guy and his personal life from reading the society column in the newspaper. Guy has been estranged from his wife, Miriam and is now romantically linked with Ann Morton, a Washington D.C. senator's daughter. During the course of the conversation, Bruno mentions how much he hates his father and suggests how convenient it would be if he were dead. This prompts him to explain his theory of the perfect murder to Guy. Two strangers who have never met, which both have a person they wish to do away with, agree to swap murders therefore eliminating any motive and allowing the other to provide an alibi. Guy takes this as nothing more than an outrageous fantasy when he leaves Bruno, until his wife turns up murdered at an amusement park. It is then that Bruno gives Guy a gift. Miriam's cracked glasses which he took from her face. Guy comes to the shocking realization that he is dealing with a maniac. From then on he is constantly harassed by Bruno wanting to know when he intends to keep his half of the "bargain". When it is clear to Bruno that Guy will do no such thing, he plans to frame him by planting an incriminating piece of evidence in the amusement park where Miriam was killed. The question is, can Guy stop him before he does and inform the police of the actual events which took place.

Rear Window (1954) A magazine photographer and man of the world, L.B. Jeffries, is confined in his apartment by a broken leg. His only method of mobility is a wheelchair which doesn't take him far. He soon finds that he is able to occupy himself by playing voyeur and peek in on the lives of his neighbors via his telephoto camera lens. An odd assortment of folk occupy his building. A newlywed couple, a music writer, a woman and her rather annoying little dog, and a delicious blonde. But out of all, one neighbor in particular catches his attention. A man and his wife who seem to have a less than perfect relationship. After a heated argument between the two, Jeffries believes that the man has in fact murdered his wife and is now disposing  of the evidence. When he relates his tale to his fiancée, Lisa, she is skeptical at first but soon comes to believe what he has said. To try and prove their case, Lisa daringly breaks in to the other mans apartment in an attempt to find evidence of the murder. When she is caught, the man realizes that he has been witnesses by Jeffries and now intends to make him his next victim.

Dial M for Murder (1954) Tony Wendice is a wealthy high society type who enjoys the luxuries that life has to offer him. The only catch is that the sum of Tony's wealth is provided by his wife, Margot. And he feels that the lifestyle in which he has become so accustomed to is now in jeopardy now that she has taken to another man, Mark Halliday. Motivated solely by his greed and the fear of losing his financial status should he lose his wife to Mark, Tony enlists the assistance of Lesgate, a man who had attended the same college as Tony and now runs criminal activities. When Lesgate proves to be unwilling, Tony resorts to blackmail from which Lesgate has no choice. The plot to murder Margot so that Tony may benefit from her inheritance is quickly hatched. The specifics are provided and Tony even allows himself an alibi. But the murder itself goes amiss when Margot is able to kill her assailant in self defense. To avoid suspicion and still benefit from his plan, Tony is able to switch the blame to Margot to make it appear as though this was a premeditated murder. It is then that Mark, desperate to help the woman he loves, steps in and assists the police in trying to uncover the actual events of the case.

Vertigo (1958) Not originally accepted by audiences, this film has secured a place as one Hitchcock's greatest works and it's is still intense and captivating. The story begins with a heart-racing chase across the roofs of San Francisco. Scottie Ferguson, a police officer, is in pursuit of a criminal with two fellow officers. When he missteps, he finds himself hanging from the roof several stories above the street. When one of the other officers attempts to aid him, he falls to his death with Scottie witnessing the horrible event. He develops a crippling fear of heights which forces him to leave the police force. During this time, an old school friend asks him to take on a peculiar assignment. He would like for Scottie to follow his wife, Madeline, for fear that she may commit suicide because of delusions that she has been having. He agrees. While following her she throws herself into the icy water near the Golden Gate Bridge. Scottie is able to save her and soon falls for her. In an attempt to free her from the delusions that she has been suffering, Scottie takes her to a church Mission in Mexico that she claims to have strong visions of. When they arrive, Madeline impulsively climbs the steps to the bell tower and leaps to her death. Racked with guilt at his inability to save her because of his acrophobia, Scottie returns to San Francisco. After some time passes, he sees a girl that is the remarkable likeness of Madeline. Her name is Judy Barton. He introduces himself and convinces her to go to dinner. After spending several days together, Scottie becomes obsessed with making Judy the exact image of Madeline. It is then that he notices a locket which Judy is wearing which supposedly was a gift from Madeline's great-grandmother to her. Scottie realizes that Judy was indeed the woman he knew to be Madeline and he had been setup to conceal a murder.

North by Northwest (1959) Once again we revisit the scenario of your average everyman thrust into a precarious situation from which he must escape. This time it is Roger Thornhill, an advertising executive who is mistaken to be George Kaplan. A man who has drawn the attention of some extremely shady characters. Upon being drugged and framed for a murder he did not commit, Thornhill realizes that he must discover who the real George Kaplan is and that he must do it alone. That is until he meets Eve Kendall on board a train during one of his escapes from the authorities. Eve agrees to arrange a meeting with Kaplan upon their arrival in Chicago. However when Thorhill arrives at the meeting, he finds that it is a deception meant to take his life. Fortune smiles upon him once again and he is able to escape. After tracking down Eve back in Chicago, he finds her with Phillip Vandamm, the mastermind behind the sorted plot which has been playing havoc with his life. Vandamm believes that Thornhill is Kaplan, a government agent that has been spying on his organization for the past several months ( Click HERE to hear a sample of their conversation ). When it is clear that Vandamm intends to have his thugs kill Thornhill, he uses a clever bit of comedy to escape the public place in which they are in and be taken into police custody. It is only then that he learns from a character named the Professor, that Eve has also been an unwilling participant in this game and that her life is now in equal danger. In an attempt to save her, he must go to North Dakota and Mount Rushmore to face the baneful Vandamm gang once more!

Psycho (1960)                           Click here to listen to Norman!   In my opinion, Hitchcock's finest work as well as a cinematic masterpiece by any standard. This story begins by introducing us to Marion Crane and her lover Sam Loomis. Although it is apparent that these two are very much in love, the relationship is somewhat strained because of  the distance which separates them and the financial difficulty he has in his business. They both discuss how much they wish to marry but also of how infeasible it is. Marion returns to the real estate office where she works just as a large cash transaction is taking place. Her employer asks her to deposit it in the bank immediately. But on the way, she develops a slightly more different plan. She takes the cash and heads towards Fairvale, California and Sam. But during her journey she loses her way and ends up at the Bates Motel, a quiet out of the way place which is run by Norman Bates and his invalid mother. This is all I am going to offer for this particular synopsis because I believe that you have to truly experience this film in order to receive its full impact. I can only relate to you that it is complete genius and it is one of the wildest rides ever offered by a film.

                                                                        Click HERE to hear Norman discuss his Mother!

The Birds (1963) A visual masterpiece by any standard and a film that will prevent you from feeding another bird your entire life. In it we meet Melanie Daniels, a rather amorous lady who meets Mitch Brenner while in a pet shop in San Francisco. After a flirtatious encounter and conversation, Melanie decides to follow Mitch to Bodega Bay, where he said his mother and sister reside and he was on his way to visiting. Upon arriving, she is attacked ,what appears to be randomly, by a seagull. She dismisses the incident and decides to stay the night in Bodega Bay. But the following morning, the attacks and the birds numbers increase. Soon they are wreaking havoc on the schoolhouse, the town, and the residents. While trying to seek refuge at Mitch's home, the birds' attacks grow more frequent and viscous. Coming down through the chimney and even pecking through the roof they are able to gain entrance. Finally, Melanie, Mitch, and his family realize that they are unable to battle this onslaught and decide to leave Bodega Bay. But as they pull away in the car, a horrifying sight awaits them. For miles upon miles, thousands of birds can be seen sitting and waiting. 

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