Every week, we in Her.ie towers will provide you with a blast from the past, a film that you cannot live without but nor should you, the classic film that you simply need to watch.
This week, given that Grace of Monaco hits cinemas tomorrow, we take a look at the wonderful Rear Window.
There is no denying that Alfred Hitchcock was the master of supsense, the proof is simply in Rear Window. Released in 1954, the film is often considered to be one of Hitchcock's best with an amazing performance from leading man Jimmy Stewart. The film is technically brilliant, a fact that was honoured by the Academy Awards where it picked up Best Director, Best Cinematographer, Best Sound Recording and Best Screenplay.
The film centres on L.B. 'Jeff' Jefferies, a photographer who finds himself apartment-bound after breaking his leg severely. Jeff is visited every day by his girlfriend and his housekeeper, Stella but besides these two, he basically spends the rest of his days staring out his rear window. While investigating the neighbourhood around him, Jeff becomes suspicious of an older couple in the next apartment block, particularly the husband. When his wife disappears, Jeff is convinced that her husband has murdered her.
Rear Window is simply an education in brilliant cinema. Not only does it work as a human story depicting some fraught relationships but it is an almost a horror in tone along with being an investigation into the mind of someone who looks to be experiencing cabin fever. Jeff is convinced that the man in question has committed the murder, so convinced that he is entirely willing to involve his girlfriend in the danger of searching the couple's apartment.
The scene in particular that really keeps you on the edge of your seat is when Lisa is sent to the apartment to search it but while Jeff keeps a watch out, the husband returns with Lisa still stranded in the apartment. Cue tonnes of tension.
This is simply a movie you must see, a wonderfully tense film.
