I highly recommend "Repulsion" by Roman Polanski (he and Hitchcock were creeps in real life so maybe that's why they're both so good at making creepy movies). I'd also recommend "Gas Light" by George Cukor from 1944 as another fantastic psychological thriller. It's where the term "gaslighting" comes from (well, really the play the movie is based on).
"Simple" but also very cleverly written and conceived. Most of the neighbors represent different aspects or possible futures of Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly's relationship. Jimmy Stewart sits in a chair like a movie director while watching stories play out in front of him in little windows (often through the lens of his camera) and directing others (Lisa and Stella) to help him. When Lisa breaks into Thorwald's apartment and slips the ring on her finger it is both evidence of the murder and also a sort of marriage proposal to Jeffries having "proven herself" brave and daring enough to be his wife. Thorwald tries to kill Jeffries by literally throwing him through the window that he had been staring out of for weeks. It's one of those movie that works on several different levels all at once. A Classic!
This film was shot in color, like so many 50's films. The vibrant image that you see in restorations like this one is actually a lot like what the original audiences saw in the theater. We tend to have a misconception about the image quality of old films based on seeing old, time-worn prints and video copies. The fact is that old-fashioned 35mm film is equivalent in resolution to today's 2K and 4K video resolution. Remastering and restoration uncover that truth.Great reaction, btw.
Those technicolor films from the 40s-50s were absolutely gorgeous. Even the lesser remembered films like Joan of Arc 1948 or Picnic starring Kim Novak were so vibrant. It's a shame 3-strip technicolor died out when it did. I feel like a lot of movies today would 'pop' more if they had the workings of technicolor behind them. Now it's a lot of drab, dreary colors or uninspired moody lighting that has affected cinematography aplenty.
You're so right. I've seen some movies from the 30s that look like they were filmed yesterday, only in black and white. The really bad ones are the ones where it's a 35th generation copy of the original.
Especially three strip technicolor films for colour, where it effectively used 3 black & white film strips to independently record red,green,blue light values. Likewise there are some very early(~1907-1915) russian colour still photos made in the same way. They were projected at the time, but now with alignment done on a computer, there's some great colour photos. eg: www.loc.gov/exhibits/empire/ethnic.html 35mm film did generally keep improving overall with time though.
Thelma Ritters line, “We have become a race of peeping Toms” has never seemed truer to me, as I stare at my iPad watching your faces as you stare at your screen watching Jimmy Stewart while he stares out his window watching his neighbors. “Rear Window” was ahead of its time.
That set was built on a soundstage! One of the largest sets ever built. When you don't have air conditioning, a night on the fire escape is refreshing.
Absolutely love this movie. One of the best parts of this movie is that there is no actual soundtrack. The "soundtrack" is the ambient noise of the neighborhood. This is seriously my favorite Hitchcock movie.
The man in the background of the man playing the piano is Hitchcock himself. He always plays a cameo in all of his films (a bit like Stan Lee in the MCU).
@@batmanvsjoker7725 In "Psycho", he's standing outside Marion Crane's office building as she's walking in; in "The Birds", he's seen leaving the pet shop walking two terriers as Melanie is going in to buy the lovebirds.
Fun Fact: By most accounts, everyone was crazy about Grace Kelly. According to James Stewart, "Everybody just sat around and waited for her to come in the morning, so we could just look at her. She was kind to everybody, so considerate, just great, and so beautiful." Stewart also praised her instinctive acting ability and her "complete understanding of the way motion picture acting is carried out."
It's weird that Grace Kelly was only about 24 here... if I didn't know better, I would think more like 35. Not saying she looks old or anything like that, it's that she seems quite a bit more mature than her real age. Of course, maybe she was playing it like this deliberately to give that vibe because the large age difference between Jeff and Lisa.
Such a fantastic film, one of my favorites. I've always felt like this movie was a film about relationships (every window represents a different variation of what Jeff and Lisa could be), wrapped in a murder-mystery. Though, I never believe anyone could resist "perfect" Grace Kelly in this movie. I always yell at the screen, "It's Grace Kelly, you moron!" Her introduction is my favorite cinema screen kiss of all time.
While I wouldn’t classify it as great, it’s worth noting that it was the first film to use the technique to make it look like it’s shot in one continuous take, which really adds to the plot/story.
An important thing to remember is that at this time, most apartments didn't have air conditioning, hence all the open windows and the couple sleeping out on the fire escape during a sweltering NY summer.
@@guymorris6596 The Borscht Belt. A bunch of hotels/dinner theaters that catered most to a Jewish clientele who were emigres from Russia, where many Jewish comics, singers and musicians got their start. Henny Youngman, Jerry Lewis, Milton Berle.
North by Northwest would be a good next Hitchcock, because in some ways it's the opposite of Rear Window. In contrast to a "simple" film shot from one apartment, it's an epic chase across the country! Probably the most fun and action packed film Hitchcock ever made.
Films like that one they'll definitely just need to watch themselves because it'll never get voted adding it to a poll, it's not one of the few 'in" classics that all modern audiences know & would vote for like a Rear Window. I mean, Notorious in their Hitchcock poll got 2% of votes ffs, that's criminal.
@@Bfdidc Absolutely. The remake has its moments I guess, but not a scratch on the original. There are many unsung older films, such as, "The Bedford Incident", great Cold War drama.
One of the great classics. You can find elements of Rear Window in movie after movie. What I truly love about it the way it defines a early moment of time: no a/c, no computers, land lines, rare TV, the first limits on police powers, no experience with serial killers, hints of the beginning of sexual liberation, the privacy and lack of privacy, etc.
33:20 "No thanks I don't want any part of it" she says, speaking about a case where the victim was dismembered! I think you guys missed the look on her face when she realizes her accidental pun lol
Before AC everybody in NYC slept on the fire escapes, my grandparents in Maryland had a whole separate house set up in their basements for the family to sleep in the summer.
Oh no, local wildlife would be crawling and landing on you. I remember having fans in windows of our house in the 1970s before we were able to get any kind of air conditioning.
Although it is simple in a way it is shot from one apartment, it is quite massive and intricate. The set is huge, even by todays standards. They had this whole courtyard build and most of the "hero apartments" were really functional, with running water etc. This allowed them to control the time of day, light, weather with unprecedented accuracy. It meant they could film a twilight shot for a whole day. In that way it's kinda a of a blockbuster filmmaking, even tough the story and perspective is intimate.
Seeing this with an audience on a huge screen is even better. When Thorwald sees the ring on Lisa's finger, and finally looks strait at the audience..... the audience Screams.... every time, we as the audience are caught in the act of spying. I've seen Rear Window 3 times in the theater, and every time the audience freeks out. Such a perfectly constructed swiss watch of a film.
In my opinion, the last shot of Grace Kelly putting down the Himalayas magazine when she noticed Stewart was sleeping and picking up Bazaar was Hitchcock’s humorous way of showing us that at the end of the day she hadn’t actually changed and they were probably going to be in the same predicament they were in at the beginning of the movie
I love how Sam and TBR go back and forth, coming up with theories, and counter theories. Speculating on different actions and motivations of the different characters. YOu both joined Jefferies and Lisa to become the ultimate nosey neighbors. I love it. YOur murder mystery case-solving powers were at full strength tonight. It made for a super endearing and awesome reaction to this amazing Hitchcock classic.
@@MercurianFunk nice analogy. Wasn't Mary Jane the one to make all the mystery deductions and Scooby-Doo would stumble into all the answers? HA I do get where you are coming from.
Stella is played by Thelma Ritter. She was nominated for six Oscars for supporting actress, and four in a row. She never won. One of my favorites of hers is The Mating Season. It's something you probably don't want to do a reaction for because it's such a little know film, but she is just amazing in it.
omg yess, that "mating season " was a sweet and well scripted film with the gorgeous Gene Tierney as a housewife and Its a perfect showcase for Thelma R and her down to earth acting skills. Maybe when these reactors have exausted their reviews of Big deep films or the marvel crap, we may get them to see gritty or just well written films from the 40's thru 50's
This movie is a film-school favorite. It's a perfect lesson in the principle of "show, don't tell." Watch the opening sequence again, and see how without a word of exposition you're told everything about Jeffries, what he does for a living, the kind of man he is, and his situation and the setting. Then the phone call from his editor, and how that parallels and comments on everything he's seeing with the neighbors. Because we only see what Jeffries sees and observes, we're almost tricked into paying close attention, watching and observing along with him. His reactions, and his conversations with Stella and Lisa, subtly influence us into thinking along the same lines. Then Doyle comes in with his exposition and "we" discuss the plot along with the characters, and end up feeling just as morbidly disappointed as Jeffries and Lisa do. It's a brilliant piece of economic, organic storytelling.
I love this movie, enjoy it every time I watch it. It was filmed in Technicolor on a huge soundstage. His home health nurse is played by the wonderful Thelma Ritter who always made any movie she was in better. A non Hitchcock movie I recommend is Charade (1963).
Happy you both got to see such a wonderful classic. Alfred did a cameo. He was in the blue suit standing behind the guy at the piano at 8:23 messing with the clock.
This may be my favorite Hitchcock film, and Grace Kelly's entrance takes my breath away every time. I love how at first Jeff doesn't think she is that exciting adventurous girl that he desires that will go on his world-bound trips. Then she gets into the action along with his masseuse to find out if there is a murder and to get the evidence to put the neighbor away.
@@samantha_schmitt Sam another movie to check out is "Catch me if you can" and "Shutter Island". It's a crime mystery with Leo DeCaprio. YOu will love it.
Great reaction guys, as always. This movie is almost a bottomless pit of interesting details and fun facts. Indeed it was filmed in Technicolor so there is no black and white version, it always looked like that. Hitchcock was actually pretty all in on color, he started making his films in color with Rope in 1948. Psycho was actually the anomaly in being B&W. The apartment complex was a huge set inside a soundstage, the roof of the studio didn't go high enough for the set so they actually dug down into the floor to build this movie's set. The apartments were so detailed you could actually use the bathrooms in the sets. The villain is played by Raymond Burr, famous later for playing Perry Mason, and the musician/songwriter was played by Ross Bagdasarian, aka David Seville, the creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks. I'm a huge Hitchcock fan and I'm glad you're finally getting back to him.
I watched this as a 10 year old little kid and was so immersed into it. I had to wait 30 mins to go out somewhere and started watching this on local tv channel. Ended up watching the whole thing and was late to whatever it was. Worth it.
As others have noted, Rear Window was filmed in Technicolor. One thing about Technicolor is that the colors in the negatives can't fade, because they're black and white. The Technicolor system used a complicated camera that would split the image into three images that it would pass through three different-colored filters that would then expose frames on black and white film. To make a print, they would use the three black and white negatives in a dye transfer process to reproduce the original colors. A new print will have saturated, well-balanced colors no matter how old the negatives.
That’s not actually correct. Rear Window was shot in single-strip Eastman color, not three-strip Technicolor. The production of color positive prints from the single-strip color negative was handled by Technicolor Labs. The original release used single-strip color printing, producing less vivid color than was possible using a three-color, dye-transfer printing process. The 1962 re-release used dye-transfer printing, but the process had technical flaws, so the color still wasn’t great. The 1990s restoration used newer, better dye-transfer printing technology, so the restoration actually has better color than was ever seen before for this movie.
IF you want more HItcock suspenseful flicks I would say that “North by Northwest” is a good follow-up to this one, followed by Stewart’s “The Man who knew too much". I also think you'll really like "To Catch a Thief", another Hitchcock film with Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. I wish you could react to his TV series, but it's too many episodes to cover. He was the original True Detective.
The iconic Grace Kelly! Gave up her actressing career for love at the age of 26. Married Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956. These are 3 of my other favourites of Grace. To Catch a Thief High Society Dial M for Murder
Love Rear Window! You'll likely get around to them eventually but I highly recommend North By Northwest and my personal favourite, Vertigo. The latter was the 4th and last film James Stewart made with Hitchock, and North By Northwest the third one he did with Cary Grant, and a style forerunner to the 007 films!
@@samantha_schmitt I’m almost in a euphoric state after seeing this one, i agree with the commenter. Just a little more condensed than my original lengthy eye destroyer-homage comment (r.i.p) on it and the channel
@@samantha_schmitt I'm probably not alone in ubsubbing from other reaction channels, leaving just you two, because you're the best at this. 8) Likewise, what I really like are your post-watch discussions, it was these for your viewings of "Band of Brothers" and "Pacific" that sealed it for me.
Jimmy Stewart has many other great classic films I recommend that you guys check out......... 1. Rope 2. Anatomy of a murder 3. It's a wonderful life 4. Vertigo 5. Harvey
This is my favorite Hitchcock film, it's filmed in a unique way it's almost a Broadway stage but not, and there's little story's within the story, I was happy to see you guys watch this, it's a good one.
One of the best classic mystery movies is Laura (1944). It'll have you guessing, second guessing, and third guessing. It has some fabulous twists and turns. And FYI... it is in black and white. It is one of my top ten favorite movies of all time and I would love to see you two reacting to it. And then there are The Thin Man movies. Starting with The Thin Man (1934), they are mysteries with comedy liberally sprinkled in. Most of the comedy will fit todays modern sensibilities. The two lead characters are just sublime. I can't recommend them enough. More people need to react to these movies.
To we the old people who saw this (I was a kid in the sixties watching on a blurry tv, so yay, computers!) We say, oh, I loved Thelma Ritter, and Jimmy Stewart this and that, and she did it all in heels! You guys are up for fun and games: Rope, Dial M for Murder, oh, you got it.
Hitchcock and Stewart continued their association with Vertigo. Many consider it the best suspense film ever, Anne my personal favorite North by Northwest. For a great Hitchcock satire look into Mel Brooks High Anxiety.
North by Northwest, guys-amazing. Also, Vertigo, The Birds. All classics. Oh, and Hitchcock is usually known for his consummate use of color. The reason for your confusion may be because the first of his films you saw, Psycho, was done in Black and White. This was because Paramount wouldn't give him his usual budget to finance such a story, so he offered to do it cheaply, in B&W, with his television crew. They still refused, so he wangled a deal to finance it himself, and give up his director's fee for 60% ownership of the negatives, so long as they distributed (a very shrewd move, by any accounting).
14:07: The scary awful thing about this is that something like that happened for real in New Zealand a few years ago. They caught the guy who did it because of all the security cameras.
Grace Kelly became a real-life princess, she married prince Ranier of Monaco. You might like Vertigo. Jimmy Stewart plays a detective who suffers from vertigo after a traumatic event. His costar in that movie was Kim Novack. He did another movie with Kim Novack called Bell, Book, and Candle where she plays a witch. It is an amusing movie.
Samantha said at the start it was like playing Where's Waldo. Part of the enjoyment of watching Hitchcock films is spotting his cameos, in this one he's the man in the musicians apartment winding the clock.
Pre-air conditioning it was quite common for people in the cities to sleep out on the fire escape in warm weather. Her head was under the flowers, and he had put it in a hatbox in his apartment after the dog was investigating. The actress, Grace Kelly, who played Lisa in reality became Her Serene Highness, Princess Grace of Monaco when she married Prince Rainier. You should watch "Laura" next - an amazing mystery in the same genre as Rear Window, with an outstanding cast.
I'm a big Hitchcock fan and this is one of my favorite movies from him. I actually like a lot of Hitchcock's earlier movies too that don't always get as much mention as his later work like Rebecca, Stage Fright, Foreign Correspondent, the 39 Steps, and Strangers on a Train (Although I've heard more movie buffs mention Rebecca & Strangers on a Train). Others I like that are more well known are Psycho, the Birds, Vertigo, the Man Who Knew too Much, & the Wrong Man. I know North by Northwest is considered a classic and I know the one plane scene is considered a classic scene which was impressive but I just never really cared for the movie even though I really tried to like it, I just didn't. But I'm really glad you guys like Rear Window. It's hard sometimes for younger movie audiences to appreciate the context of the times for some older movies as there is certain things that are just so different from today also because movies of today draw inspiration from past films so you may already see similar things or things that may have been extreme back then seem tame by today's standards.
The brightness you are seeing is Technicolor and heavy duty film. Lots of things can be done in the digital age, what it can not do is give the warmth, depth and feel of film. There is a physical aspect to old filming and recording methods. The actual physical heat of the cameras the heat of the actual film inside the cameras, the heat of the tapes music was recorded on, the heat of the process of transferring that music into grooves on a vinyl disc. All those physical, tangible things create a feeling not possible in a sterile digital process.
One of my favorites! Thank you. It's important to understand the living conditions during the time depicted. TV was not widely available, in home air conditioning was not available.
True , some places still dont have air conditioning in homes. Say Europe heat wave in summer elderly people die . ( heat ) i remember the marilyn monroe movie the seven year itch had from that period August in new York.
TBR Schmitt , If you like Hitchcock mysteries you will absolutely love North By Northwest. It's Hitchcock's best Action, Thriller, Mystery and Cary Grant is the best 1950s version of Indiana Jones.
You're the first reactors I've seen who realised at once why the Newlyweds blinds were always down and it didn't go over your heads what they were up to 😄
My pops was born in 1940, in brooklyn Ny and would mention that during really hot summers, people would go sleep on the roofs of apartment and tenement buildings because it was so hot inside their apartments
In theaters the movie played even more intesely. It's just you with whatever L.B. Jeffries sees. You are really there. I bought the DVD and showed it to my two sons when they were young. (8 or 10 years old?) and my older son was going up the walls with the suspense. It was heartening to see how well Hirchcock plays even today.
We watched this in my 10th grade English class. I loved it so much. Hitchcock is such a genius. This was the second movie I ever saw Jimmy Stewart in, other than The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, which we watched earlier in the year. It always amazed me as a teenager, how I never wanted to watch older movies, and then ended up loving them.
It is so fun watching you two watch these movies we love. My wife and I really enjoy these reactions and your convos afterward. We often pause and have our own discussions, between things you bring up as well. Much love, from our home to yours!
"Rear Window" and "North By Northwest" are Hitchcock's best two films. "Witness for the Prosecution" is also excellent with the superb performances by Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester.
@@paintedjaguar The acting in that film by Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester is absolutely phenomenal. (In real life they were a married couple.) (BTW: Elsa Lanchester was the "Bride" in the original "Bride of Frankenstein". I didn't quite get it until she said that she played the role as a comedy.)
I know this reaction came out a long time ago, and this is my first time reacting to this, but at 8:24, we see the legend himself Alfred Hitchcock, in the blue suit.
Yes. There are a few films that I think all film makers should have to watch to show you how to make movies. Like you don't always need high budget and explosions and cgi. You need talent and a good story. Good direction, good acting, good script, and you can pull off a good movie. I think there's a place for the high budget and explosions, but you don't always need that. My other one is The Good, The Bad and The Ugly! Anybody who make three guys stare at each other for 5 minutes exciting knows how to make a film. LOL.
Really glad that you enjoyed this movie. If memory serves, North By Northwest is another thriller in the same vein as Rear Window. Vertigo is also a classic which also starts James Stewart. In fact you could even do a "James Stewart" run of movies, because he always gave an outstanding performance.
Wouldn't say that NbyNW is in the same vein as Rear Window, tho, but that's just IMHO. I do know that people who dislike either of those movie are wrong, wrong, wrong, LOL.
I'm surprised that your patrons did not vote much at all for North by Northwest- it is listed among the greatest films of all time, and chosen in 1995 for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"
Rear Window is a much better film, though I agree that North by Northwest was the most fun . And the latest critics polls are ranking Vertigo as the best film ever (ridiculous, IMO).
You're kinda right about the windows being like TV channels. I think they were more meant to be cinema screens and this is a movie made by a director about cinema. There is a musical, a dance, a romance, and of course a murder mystery. Most of it watched through a lens.
An inflation calculator is a crude measure of the history of the cost of living but $1,100 in 1954 equals $11,500 today! And the actress who wore it is Grace Kelly, a Hollywood legend!
That set through the window (Rear Window) was actually built by Hitchcock on Paramount Movie Stage (They dug down twenty feet into the floor) It HAS been renewed but was always color and very, very vibrant (Even my Video Cassette looks fresh) In 1954 it was unusual to lock your door - anywhere This movie was designed to make you question yourself - are you a voyeur? The funniest line comes at the end Detective - "You wanna come along?" Nurse - "No thanks. I don't want no part of her" Recommendation for a show with a REAL twist - Den of Thieves
This is one of the very best from Hitchcock. I’m a bit shocked that North By Northwest didn’t poll well with your Patreon group because that’s equally a classic if not moreso. Please add it to your list. You won’t regret it.
22:02 He didn't tell him about the scream because he was sleeping when it happened. This is my favorite Hitchcock film, great reaction as always guys. Please do more Hitchcock.
If you want a mystery that will tie you up in knots (and why wouldn't you) then you must, must, must do Mulholland Drive. Without saying too much - you may believe you are close to solving some of it, and then all of a sudden things collapse in on eachother. Its one of the best films of all time. I once watched it four times in a week, it got better each time.
For my wife and I, this is our favorite Hitchcock movie. We watch this all the time. Once, we did get to see a special screening at a movie theater and it blew our minds. You can really see into the other windows on a giant screen. Grace Kelly was so gorgeous! Anyway, our favorite of Hitch's thrillers. Great movie.
This film was originally shot in color. It's the 4th Hitchcock film shot that way. Jimmy Stewart also starred in Hitchcock's "Vertigo", "Rope" and "The Man Who Knew Too Much". In addition to this, Hitchcock also cast Grace Kelly in "Dial M for Murder" and "To Catch a Thief". Raymond Burr would star in the TV series "Perry Mason" and "Ironside".
I'm pretty sure that Rear Window was originally shot in Technicolor. I used to watch this film a lot when I was younger and I've never seen a black-and-white or bad rendition. I think it has always looked this pristine. Not that it would have mattered, but given that you've already reacted to Psycho, my all-time favorite and best Hitchcock film, from the list I would have chosen North by Northwest and Strangers on a Train even ahead of Rear Window.
Psycho was made black and white because it was made with a TV budget basically. That sometimes throws people off when older movies of his are in color.
You can't go wrong with James Stewart, so I recommend anything he is in. High Noon with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly is really good. If you remember High Noon was referenced in Die Hard.
Just recently found your channel. Loving the content. This is my all time favorite movie. Its so great that you both watch older movies. Keep up the great work !
Just a highly technical/nit pick clarification. Rear Window was not shot in Technicolor. I was shot on Eastman 5248 color negative film with an iso speed rating of 100. After filming was completed, release prints were made from the Eastman negative by Technicolor in their dye transfer process. This process was done by Technicolor from the early 1950s until the mid 70s.
This is a great movie though my favorite Hitchcock movie is North by Northwest. To Catch a Thief, Spellbound and Notorious are also great. I really hope you both watch more classics like this.
Extremely simple yet wildly creative at the same time! Excited to watch more Hitchcock films on the channel!
Thank you all for your support!
Looking forward to Vertigo and North by Northwest. Thanks for the reaction!
Btw, this movie was always in color.
I highly recommend "Repulsion" by Roman Polanski (he and Hitchcock were creeps in real life so maybe that's why they're both so good at making creepy movies).
I'd also recommend "Gas Light" by George Cukor from 1944 as another fantastic psychological thriller. It's where the term "gaslighting" comes from (well, really the play the movie is based on).
"Simple" but also very cleverly written and conceived. Most of the neighbors represent different aspects or possible futures of Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly's relationship. Jimmy Stewart sits in a chair like a movie director while watching stories play out in front of him in little windows (often through the lens of his camera) and directing others (Lisa and Stella) to help him. When Lisa breaks into Thorwald's apartment and slips the ring on her finger it is both evidence of the murder and also a sort of marriage proposal to Jeffries having "proven herself" brave and daring enough to be his wife. Thorwald tries to kill Jeffries by literally throwing him through the window that he had been staring out of for weeks. It's one of those movie that works on several different levels all at once. A Classic!
You'll have to do a couple more from him because his movies are all relatively simple but they're incredibly well thought out and suspenseful.
This film was shot in color, like so many 50's films. The vibrant image that you see in restorations like this one is actually a lot like what the original audiences saw in the theater. We tend to have a misconception about the image quality of old films based on seeing old, time-worn prints and video copies. The fact is that old-fashioned 35mm film is equivalent in resolution to today's 2K and 4K video resolution. Remastering and restoration uncover that truth.Great reaction, btw.
Those technicolor films from the 40s-50s were absolutely gorgeous. Even the lesser remembered films like Joan of Arc 1948 or Picnic starring Kim Novak were so vibrant.
It's a shame 3-strip technicolor died out when it did. I feel like a lot of movies today would 'pop' more if they had the workings of technicolor behind them. Now it's a lot of drab, dreary colors or uninspired moody lighting that has affected cinematography aplenty.
The film got a loving restoration and re-release in the 1980s.
You're so right. I've seen some movies from the 30s that look like they were filmed yesterday, only in black and white. The really bad ones are the ones where it's a 35th generation copy of the original.
gotta love the old technicolor look
Especially three strip technicolor films for colour, where it effectively used 3 black & white film strips to independently record red,green,blue light values.
Likewise there are some very early(~1907-1915) russian colour still photos made in the same way. They were projected at the time, but now with alignment done on a computer, there's some great colour photos. eg:
www.loc.gov/exhibits/empire/ethnic.html
35mm film did generally keep improving overall with time though.
Thelma Ritters line, “We have become a race of peeping Toms” has never seemed truer to me, as I stare at my iPad watching your faces as you stare at your screen watching Jimmy Stewart while he stares out his window watching his neighbors. “Rear Window” was ahead of its time.
Not really...its time was then...it has just become moreso.
Rear Window is Voyeurism to the 4th Power. We watch you watch him watch them
Voyeurism was a major trait of Hitchcock's movies. The peeping hole in psycho, this one - it also was a commentary on movie watching itself.
@@Cau_No Ah, well. I guess everyone has has their kinks.
It's not wrong to say that voyeurism has become something of a way of life. It's equally true that we've become exhibitionists.
That set was built on a soundstage! One of the largest sets ever built.
When you don't have air conditioning, a night on the fire escape is refreshing.
That lovely dress she bought for $1100 in 1954 would be worth almost $11,000 now... 🤯 Edith Head was one of the most renowned designers in Hollywood!
When Thorwald discovers who's watching him, that was one of the great moments in film history.
Absolutely love this movie. One of the best parts of this movie is that there is no actual soundtrack. The "soundtrack" is the ambient noise of the neighborhood. This is seriously my favorite Hitchcock movie.
Oh wow, I didn’t even realize that!
@@samantha_schmitt Same here. I've seen this film several times over a few decades. 😀. In fact, I also own the DVD.
for those interested: that’s called diegetic music
"No country for old men" has no musical soundtrack, as well.
@@nachoxm Also a great movie. The lack of soundtrack adds suspense, as if it could actually be happening in the real world.
It's a good thing Raymond Burr knows a good lawyer who never lost a case. Perry Mason
🫡👍❣️🇬🇧
The man in the background of the man playing the piano is Hitchcock himself. He always plays a cameo in all of his films (a bit like Stan Lee in the MCU).
The guy playing the piano is Ross Bagdasarian Sr., the creator of the cartoon band Alvin & The Chipmunks.
Really? Cuz I didn’t see him either in Psycho or The Birds
@@batmanvsjoker7725 In "Psycho", he's standing outside Marion Crane's office building as she's walking in; in "The Birds", he's seen leaving the pet shop walking two terriers as Melanie is going in to buy the lovebirds.
My favorite of his cameos was in "Lifeboat." The whole theater burst into laughter when it came on.
@@falcychead8198 Some newpaper ad about "reducing" your weight, before & after pics?
Fun Fact: By most accounts, everyone was crazy about Grace Kelly. According to James Stewart, "Everybody just sat around and waited for her to come in the morning, so we could just look at her. She was kind to everybody, so considerate, just great, and so beautiful." Stewart also praised her instinctive acting ability and her "complete understanding of the way motion picture acting is carried out."
Wish she had stayed in Hollywood & made a few more pics.
It's weird that Grace Kelly was only about 24 here... if I didn't know better, I would think more like 35.
Not saying she looks old or anything like that, it's that she seems quite a bit more mature than her real age.
Of course, maybe she was playing it like this deliberately to give that vibe because the large age difference between Jeff and Lisa.
Such a fantastic film, one of my favorites. I've always felt like this movie was a film about relationships (every window represents a different variation of what Jeff and Lisa could be), wrapped in a murder-mystery. Though, I never believe anyone could resist "perfect" Grace Kelly in this movie. I always yell at the screen, "It's Grace Kelly, you moron!" Her introduction is my favorite cinema screen kiss of all time.
yes, all i can ever think is It's Grace Kelly...what are you thinking???
@Miles Doyle TL; DR
Thing is relationships aren't about looks
@@johndoe6260 They are if it's Grace Kelly
But she is such a princess! 🤣
I would definitely recommend "Rope" from the Hitchcock catalogue. Such a great film.
Yes please! “I think i will stay for another drink” 😰 Cat and mouse game deluxe
While I wouldn’t classify it as great, it’s worth noting that it was the first film to use the technique to make it look like it’s shot in one continuous take, which really adds to the plot/story.
,, and can Anyone get Someone, to watch either,
Saboteur (1942),, or Torn Curtain (1966) 🗽🚀
Yes please
I said this, it’s a great film no matter how many times you watch it, it gets you, you feel so incredibly sad for the young man ‘missing’.
"Dial 'M' For Murder" is a great Hitchcock movie and is an inverse mystery. It would be cool to see a reaction to that.
LOVE that movie! And it also has this claustrophobic feel to it; I would love to see a double-feature of Rear Window and Dial M on the big screen
I just recommended this one! It’s one of my favorites!!
I forgot about that movie. It is a good one. Lot of suspense.
@@YankeeCountess Tony sets up the whole crime in that little living room of his.
An important thing to remember is that at this time, most apartments didn't have air conditioning, hence all the open windows and the couple sleeping out on the fire escape during a sweltering NY summer.
True. If you could afford it, you'd head upstate to the Catskills resorts at the time.
@@Madbandit77 Didn't they call the Catskills Borscht Valley or something similar at that time ?
@@guymorris6596 The Borscht Belt. A bunch of hotels/dinner theaters that catered most to a Jewish clientele who were emigres from Russia, where many Jewish comics, singers and musicians got their start. Henny Youngman, Jerry Lewis, Milton Berle.
North by Northwest would be a good next Hitchcock, because in some ways it's the opposite of Rear Window. In contrast to a "simple" film shot from one apartment, it's an epic chase across the country! Probably the most fun and action packed film Hitchcock ever made.
Thelma Ritter. You can't NOT love her. She has the best lines in the movie.
If you're investigating classic thrillers, 1962's _The Manchurian Candidate_ is an essential one for the list.
Would love to see someone do a Manchurian Candidate reaction. Classic!
Added to the list!
Films like that one they'll definitely just need to watch themselves because it'll never get voted adding it to a poll, it's not one of the few 'in" classics that all modern audiences know & would vote for like a Rear Window. I mean, Notorious in their Hitchcock poll got 2% of votes ffs, that's criminal.
I will third The Manchurian Candidate (the original, not the remake). It is chilling.
@@Bfdidc Absolutely. The remake has its moments I guess, but not a scratch on the original. There are many unsung older films, such as, "The Bedford Incident", great Cold War drama.
One of the great classics. You can find elements of Rear Window in movie after movie. What I truly love about it the way it defines a early moment of time: no a/c, no computers, land lines, rare TV, the first limits on police powers, no experience with serial killers, hints of the beginning of sexual liberation, the privacy and lack of privacy, etc.
Great comments
@@mikemccabe6258 And nothing has sent us back into repression like sexual liberation.
And people not locking their doors.
33:20 "No thanks I don't want any part of it" she says, speaking about a case where the victim was dismembered! I think you guys missed the look on her face when she realizes her accidental pun lol
She actually says "I don't want any part of her." !!!
Before AC everybody in NYC slept on the fire escapes, my grandparents in Maryland had a whole separate house set up in their basements for the family to sleep in the summer.
Oh no, local wildlife would be crawling and landing on you. I remember having fans in windows of our house in the 1970s before we were able to get any kind of air conditioning.
Although it is simple in a way it is shot from one apartment, it is quite massive and intricate. The set is huge, even by todays standards. They had this whole courtyard build and most of the "hero apartments" were really functional, with running water etc. This allowed them to control the time of day, light, weather with unprecedented accuracy. It meant they could film a twilight shot for a whole day. In that way it's kinda a of a blockbuster filmmaking, even tough the story and perspective is intimate.
Seeing this with an audience on a huge screen is even better.
When Thorwald sees the ring on Lisa's finger, and finally looks strait at the audience..... the audience Screams.... every time, we as the audience are caught in the act of spying.
I've seen Rear Window 3 times in the theater, and every time the audience freeks out.
Such a perfectly constructed swiss watch of a film.
In my opinion, the last shot of Grace Kelly putting down the Himalayas magazine when she noticed Stewart was sleeping and picking up Bazaar was Hitchcock’s humorous way of showing us that at the end of the day she hadn’t actually changed and they were probably going to be in the same predicament they were in at the beginning of the movie
I love how Sam and TBR go back and forth, coming up with theories, and counter theories. Speculating on different actions and motivations of the different characters. YOu both joined Jefferies and Lisa to become the ultimate nosey neighbors. I love it. YOur murder mystery case-solving powers were at full strength tonight. It made for a super endearing and awesome reaction to this amazing Hitchcock classic.
💯 I got so surprised how they kept nailing it. Real life Scooby Doo team
@@MercurianFunk nice analogy. Wasn't Mary Jane the one to make all the mystery deductions and Scooby-Doo would stumble into all the answers? HA
I do get where you are coming from.
Stella is played by Thelma Ritter. She was nominated for six Oscars for supporting actress, and four in a row. She never won. One of my favorites of hers is The Mating Season. It's something you probably don't want to do a reaction for because it's such a little know film, but she is just amazing in it.
omg yess, that "mating season " was a sweet and well scripted film with the gorgeous Gene Tierney as a housewife and Its a perfect showcase for Thelma R and her down to earth acting skills. Maybe when these reactors have exausted their reviews of Big deep films or the marvel crap, we may get them to see gritty or just well written films from the 40's thru 50's
This movie is a film-school favorite. It's a perfect lesson in the principle of "show, don't tell." Watch the opening sequence again, and see how without a word of exposition you're told everything about Jeffries, what he does for a living, the kind of man he is, and his situation and the setting. Then the phone call from his editor, and how that parallels and comments on everything he's seeing with the neighbors.
Because we only see what Jeffries sees and observes, we're almost tricked into paying close attention, watching and observing along with him. His reactions, and his conversations with Stella and Lisa, subtly influence us into thinking along the same lines. Then Doyle comes in with his exposition and "we" discuss the plot along with the characters, and end up feeling just as morbidly disappointed as Jeffries and Lisa do.
It's a brilliant piece of economic, organic storytelling.
To answer Sam's question, a dress costing $1100 in 1954 would cost you $11,496 dollars in 2022 according to Google.
Yep, inflation definitely sucks.
For 2022 that 2nd sentence probably needs to be on tshirts. :}
7 months later it would be over $12k
In 1954 the average salary was $2300/year.
I love this movie, enjoy it every time I watch it. It was filmed in Technicolor on a huge soundstage. His home health nurse is played by the wonderful Thelma Ritter who always made any movie she was in better.
A non Hitchcock movie I recommend is Charade (1963).
Charade is tip-top quality cinema! So is Witness For The Prosecution and Wait Until Dark.
Happy you both got to see such a wonderful classic. Alfred did a cameo. He was in the blue suit standing behind the guy at the piano at 8:23 messing with the clock.
Was about to comment that, but knew that someone would have done it earlier! Damn! Hahaha! x
@@feelingpaulie3943 And loading a Bass Violin onto the train in Strangers On A Train.
I think dial m for Murder is Hitchcock’s most underrated masterpiece. Definitely a must watch.
This may be my favorite Hitchcock film, and Grace Kelly's entrance takes my breath away every time. I love how at first Jeff doesn't think she is that exciting adventurous girl that he desires that will go on his world-bound trips. Then she gets into the action along with his masseuse to find out if there is a murder and to get the evidence to put the neighbor away.
Thanks for the reaction. I love Grace Kelly so please react to the the Hitchcock film "To Catch a Thief" with Cary Grant Thanks
Grace Kelly is perfection!
@@samantha_schmitt her dresses in this film are amazing, that 50s style is sooooooooooo sexy
Yeah, it’s tough for me to pay attention to the story when she’s onscreen, because she’s just so distracting. 😍
@@samantha_schmitt Sam another movie to check out is "Catch me if you can" and "Shutter Island". It's a crime mystery with Leo DeCaprio. YOu will love it.
Great reaction guys, as always. This movie is almost a bottomless pit of interesting details and fun facts. Indeed it was filmed in Technicolor so there is no black and white version, it always looked like that. Hitchcock was actually pretty all in on color, he started making his films in color with Rope in 1948. Psycho was actually the anomaly in being B&W. The apartment complex was a huge set inside a soundstage, the roof of the studio didn't go high enough for the set so they actually dug down into the floor to build this movie's set. The apartments were so detailed you could actually use the bathrooms in the sets. The villain is played by Raymond Burr, famous later for playing Perry Mason, and the musician/songwriter was played by Ross Bagdasarian, aka David Seville, the creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks. I'm a huge Hitchcock fan and I'm glad you're finally getting back to him.
Burr was made up to look like David O Selznick, who produced some of Hitchcock's films. Psycho was shot in B&W to keep the costs down.
The piano player was played by Ross Bagsardan, who became best known for creating (and doing the voices and singing for) ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS
I watched this as a 10 year old little kid and was so immersed into it.
I had to wait 30 mins to go out somewhere and started watching this on local tv channel.
Ended up watching the whole thing and was late to whatever it was. Worth it.
As others have noted, Rear Window was filmed in Technicolor. One thing about Technicolor is that the colors in the negatives can't fade, because they're black and white. The Technicolor system used a complicated camera that would split the image into three images that it would pass through three different-colored filters that would then expose frames on black and white film. To make a print, they would use the three black and white negatives in a dye transfer process to reproduce the original colors. A new print will have saturated, well-balanced colors no matter how old the negatives.
That’s not actually correct. Rear Window was shot in single-strip Eastman color, not three-strip Technicolor. The production of color positive prints from the single-strip color negative was handled by Technicolor Labs. The original release used single-strip color printing, producing less vivid color than was possible using a three-color, dye-transfer printing process. The 1962 re-release used dye-transfer printing, but the process had technical flaws, so the color still wasn’t great. The 1990s restoration used newer, better dye-transfer printing technology, so the restoration actually has better color than was ever seen before for this movie.
26:21 my favourite shot in the film! Jeff is really 'seeing' Lisa for the first time, and he loves what he sees!
IF you want more HItcock suspenseful flicks I would say that “North by Northwest” is a good follow-up to this one, followed by Stewart’s “The Man who knew too much". I also think you'll really like "To Catch a Thief", another Hitchcock film with Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. I wish you could react to his TV series, but it's too many episodes to cover. He was the original True Detective.
My favorite I agree
The iconic Grace Kelly! Gave up her actressing career for love at the age of 26. Married Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956.
These are 3 of my other favourites of Grace.
To Catch a Thief
High Society
Dial M for Murder
Love Rear Window! You'll likely get around to them eventually but I highly recommend North By Northwest and my personal favourite, Vertigo. The latter was the 4th and last film James Stewart made with Hitchock, and North By Northwest the third one he did with Cary Grant, and a style forerunner to the 007 films!
You 2 really are the best movie/Tv show reactors on UA-cam IMO… and Cassie on PIB is great as well. 👍🏼👍🏼
Wow thank you! ❤️
@@samantha_schmitt I’m almost in a euphoric state after seeing this one, i agree with the commenter. Just a little more condensed than my original lengthy eye destroyer-homage comment (r.i.p) on it and the channel
@@samantha_schmitt I'm probably not alone in ubsubbing from other reaction channels, leaving just you two, because you're the best at this. 8) Likewise, what I really like are your post-watch discussions, it was these for your viewings of "Band of Brothers" and "Pacific" that sealed it for me.
@@samantha_schmitt you’re welcome 👍🏼😁
Hitchcock's "The trouble with Harry" is one of my favorites. It's a dark comedy and Shirley MacLaine's first movie. Badly underrated.
agreed! i watch it every year at the beginning of autumn. so perfect.
One of my absolute favorite Hitchcock movies. Along with Psycho, Vertigo, and Rope.
Jimmy Stewart has many other great classic films I recommend that you guys check out.........
1. Rope
2. Anatomy of a murder
3. It's a wonderful life
4. Vertigo
5. Harvey
Please don’t forget “The Man Who Knew Too Much”.
You missed Philadelphia Story with Cary Grant and Kate Hepburn. But thanks for leaving Mr. Smith off the list, overrated and overacted, IMO.
The leading lady is Grace Kelly, who became a real life princess a few years after this.
This is my favorite Hitchcock film, it's filmed in a unique way it's almost a Broadway stage but not, and there's little story's within the story, I was happy to see you guys watch this, it's a good one.
North by Northwest is my favorite Hitchcock film but I also think y’all would enjoy the birds, thanks again
One the all-time great screenplays. Every line of dialog sparkles. A joy from one end to the other.
Such clever dialogue, and Hitch was the best at keeping you interested when you're stuck in the same location (apartment, lifeboat, train, etc.)
One of the best classic mystery movies is Laura (1944). It'll have you guessing, second guessing, and third guessing. It has some fabulous twists and turns. And FYI... it is in black and white. It is one of my top ten favorite movies of all time and I would love to see you two reacting to it.
And then there are The Thin Man movies. Starting with The Thin Man (1934), they are mysteries with comedy liberally sprinkled in. Most of the comedy will fit todays modern sensibilities. The two lead characters are just sublime. I can't recommend them enough. More people need to react to these movies.
Nick and Nora! Love them!
To we the old people who saw this (I was a kid in the sixties watching on a blurry tv, so yay, computers!) We say, oh, I loved Thelma Ritter, and Jimmy Stewart this and that, and she did it all in heels! You guys are up for fun and games: Rope, Dial M for Murder, oh, you got it.
Hitchcock and Stewart continued their association with Vertigo. Many consider it the best suspense film ever, Anne my personal favorite North by Northwest. For a great Hitchcock satire look into Mel Brooks High Anxiety.
Yes, please watch HIGH ANXIETY after watching the Hitchcock films.
North by Northwest, guys-amazing. Also, Vertigo, The Birds. All classics. Oh, and Hitchcock is usually known for his consummate use of color. The reason for your confusion may be because the first of his films you saw, Psycho, was done in Black and White. This was because Paramount wouldn't give him his usual budget to finance such a story, so he offered to do it cheaply, in B&W, with his television crew. They still refused, so he wangled a deal to finance it himself, and give up his director's fee for 60% ownership of the negatives, so long as they distributed (a very shrewd move, by any accounting).
14:07: The scary awful thing about this is that something like that happened for real in New Zealand a few years ago. They caught the guy who did it because of all the security cameras.
A Great All-Time Classic !!! ☺🎥🎞
Grace Kelly the actress who left Hollywood at the height of her fame to become a real life Princess 👑
well, she already looked like a princess before that anyway :)
Thelma Ritter (Stella) was nominated for an Oscar six times, the most for anybody in the best supporting performance category.
Fun Fact: the chubby bald man, who you referred to having 'nice windows', was Hitchcock himself.
Grace Kelly became a real-life princess, she married prince Ranier of Monaco. You might like Vertigo. Jimmy Stewart plays a detective who suffers from vertigo after a traumatic event. His costar in that movie was Kim Novack. He did another movie with Kim Novack called Bell, Book, and Candle where she plays a witch. It is an amusing movie.
Samantha said at the start it was like playing Where's Waldo. Part of the enjoyment of watching Hitchcock films is spotting his cameos, in this one he's the man in the musicians apartment winding the clock.
Pre-air conditioning it was quite common for people in the cities to sleep out on the fire escape in warm weather. Her head was under the flowers, and he had put it in a hatbox in his apartment after the dog was investigating. The actress, Grace Kelly, who played Lisa in reality became Her Serene Highness, Princess Grace of Monaco when she married Prince Rainier. You should watch "Laura" next - an amazing mystery in the same genre as Rear Window, with an outstanding cast.
I'm a big Hitchcock fan and this is one of my favorite movies from him. I actually like a lot of Hitchcock's earlier movies too that don't always get as much mention as his later work like Rebecca, Stage Fright, Foreign Correspondent, the 39 Steps, and Strangers on a Train (Although I've heard more movie buffs mention Rebecca & Strangers on a Train). Others I like that are more well known are Psycho, the Birds, Vertigo, the Man Who Knew too Much, & the Wrong Man. I know North by Northwest is considered a classic and I know the one plane scene is considered a classic scene which was impressive but I just never really cared for the movie even though I really tried to like it, I just didn't. But I'm really glad you guys like Rear Window. It's hard sometimes for younger movie audiences to appreciate the context of the times for some older movies as there is certain things that are just so different from today also because movies of today draw inspiration from past films so you may already see similar things or things that may have been extreme back then seem tame by today's standards.
I can't believe i came across a channel that reacted to this amazing simple masterpiece
The brightness you are seeing is Technicolor and heavy duty film. Lots of things can be done in the digital age, what it can not do is give the warmth, depth and feel of film. There is a physical aspect to old filming and recording methods. The actual physical heat of the cameras the heat of the actual film inside the cameras, the heat of the tapes music was recorded on, the heat of the process of transferring that music into grooves on a vinyl disc. All those physical, tangible things create a feeling not possible in a sterile digital process.
🫡👍❣️🇬🇧
Did Hitchcock predict reaction channels? We love to watch Jeff/Lisa and Daniel/Sam react!
Dang that’s just weird to think about!
😂😂
One of my favorites! Thank you. It's important to understand the living conditions during the time depicted. TV was not widely available, in home air conditioning was not available.
True , some places still dont have air conditioning in homes. Say Europe heat wave in summer elderly people die . ( heat ) i remember the marilyn monroe movie the seven year itch had from that period August in new York.
TBR Schmitt , If you like Hitchcock mysteries you will absolutely love North By Northwest. It's Hitchcock's best Action, Thriller, Mystery and Cary Grant is the best 1950s version of Indiana Jones.
You're the first reactors I've seen who realised at once why the Newlyweds blinds were always down and it didn't go over your heads what they were up to 😄
My pops was born in 1940, in brooklyn Ny and would mention that during really hot summers, people would go sleep on the roofs of apartment and tenement buildings because it was so hot inside their apartments
In theaters the movie played even more intesely. It's just you with whatever L.B. Jeffries sees. You are really there. I bought the DVD and showed it to my two sons when they were young. (8 or 10 years old?) and my older son was going up the walls with the suspense. It was heartening to see how well Hirchcock plays even today.
Quality never fades. 8)
Hmm, perhaps give them some time before viewing "The Birds" though? ;D
@@mapesdhs597 Same with Psycho. Hold off on that one for awhile too.
At 8:23 you can see Hitchcock standing behind the piano player, wearing the blue suit. Hitchcock always made a cameo appearance in all of his films.
We watched this in my 10th grade English class. I loved it so much. Hitchcock is such a genius. This was the second movie I ever saw Jimmy Stewart in, other than The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, which we watched earlier in the year. It always amazed me as a teenager, how I never wanted to watch older movies, and then ended up loving them.
It is so fun watching you two watch these movies we love. My wife and I really enjoy these reactions and your convos afterward. We often pause and have our own discussions, between things you bring up as well. Much love, from our home to yours!
"Rear Window" and "North By Northwest" are Hitchcock's best two films. "Witness for the Prosecution" is also excellent with the superb performances by Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester.
"Witness for the Prosecution" is an excellent mystery/courtroom movie, story by the famous mystery writer Agatha Christie.
@@paintedjaguar The acting in that film by Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester is absolutely phenomenal. (In real life they were a married couple.)
(BTW: Elsa Lanchester was the "Bride" in the original "Bride of Frankenstein". I didn't quite get it until she said that she played the role as a comedy.)
Dietrich carried Witnes for the Prosecution, and the vastly underrated Tyrone Power helped.
@@4CardsMan Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester (his wife in real life) carried the film.
I know this reaction came out a long time ago, and this is my first time reacting to this, but at 8:24, we see the legend himself Alfred Hitchcock, in the blue suit.
I'm going to suggest a Hitchcock movie almost no one ever mentions, Lifeboat. That is absolutely one of his best films.
Notorious is also horribly underlooked! It's also really hard to find, I got a really rare DVD from a used book store.
Yes. There are a few films that I think all film makers should have to watch to show you how to make movies. Like you don't always need high budget and explosions and cgi. You need talent and a good story. Good direction, good acting, good script, and you can pull off a good movie. I think there's a place for the high budget and explosions, but you don't always need that. My other one is The Good, The Bad and The Ugly! Anybody who make three guys stare at each other for 5 minutes exciting knows how to make a film. LOL.
Really glad that you enjoyed this movie. If memory serves, North By Northwest is another thriller in the same vein as Rear Window. Vertigo is also a classic which also starts James Stewart. In fact you could even do a "James Stewart" run of movies, because he always gave an outstanding performance.
Wouldn't say that NbyNW is in the same vein as Rear Window, tho, but that's just IMHO. I do know that people who dislike either of those movie are wrong, wrong, wrong, LOL.
I definitely recommend Vertigo! Hitchcock and James Stewart together again.
I'm surprised that your patrons did not vote much at all for North by Northwest- it is listed among the greatest films of all time, and chosen in 1995 for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"
Agreed. And Cary Grant and James Mason were amazing in that movie.
It’s my favorite!
Rear Window is a much better film, though I agree that North by Northwest was the most fun . And the latest critics polls are ranking Vertigo as the best film ever (ridiculous, IMO).
You're kinda right about the windows being like TV channels. I think they were more meant to be cinema screens and this is a movie made by a director about cinema. There is a musical, a dance, a romance, and of course a murder mystery. Most of it watched through a lens.
An inflation calculator is a crude measure of the history of the cost of living but $1,100 in 1954 equals $11,500 today!
And the actress who wore it is Grace Kelly, a Hollywood legend!
If it’s worn by Grace Kelly, then it’s worth every penny! 😎
love the look of the colour films from the 50's.
That set through the window (Rear Window) was actually built by Hitchcock on Paramount Movie Stage (They dug down twenty feet into the floor) It HAS been renewed but was always color and very, very vibrant (Even my Video Cassette looks fresh)
In 1954 it was unusual to lock your door - anywhere
This movie was designed to make you question yourself - are you a voyeur?
The funniest line comes at the end
Detective - "You wanna come along?"
Nurse - "No thanks. I don't want no part of her"
Recommendation for a show with a REAL twist - Den of Thieves
This is one of my favourite old time movies. I'm glad you took the time to watch it :)
This is one of the very best from Hitchcock. I’m a bit shocked that North By Northwest didn’t poll well with your Patreon group because that’s equally a classic if not moreso. Please add it to your list. You won’t regret it.
Rear Window is in my top 5 favourite movies of all time. A true classic.
22:02 He didn't tell him about the scream because he was sleeping when it happened.
This is my favorite Hitchcock film, great reaction as always guys. Please do more Hitchcock.
Thelma Ritter, such a fun character actress.
Absolutely classic film. Easily a top 50 American film ever made. The American Film Institute ranks it the #45 greatest film of all time.
If you want a mystery that will tie you up in knots (and why wouldn't you) then you must, must, must do Mulholland Drive. Without saying too much - you may believe you are close to solving some of it, and then all of a sudden things collapse in on eachother. Its one of the best films of all time. I once watched it four times in a week, it got better each time.
For my wife and I, this is our favorite Hitchcock movie. We watch this all the time. Once, we did get to see a special screening at a movie theater and it blew our minds. You can really see into the other windows on a giant screen. Grace Kelly was so gorgeous! Anyway, our favorite of Hitch's thrillers. Great movie.
My favorite because the level of suspense is ramped about as high as can be.
Another good movie to review is Charade, which is known as the best Hitchcock style movie that Hitchcock didn’t direct
This film was originally shot in color. It's the 4th Hitchcock film shot that way.
Jimmy Stewart also starred in Hitchcock's "Vertigo", "Rope" and "The Man Who Knew Too Much". In addition to this, Hitchcock also cast Grace Kelly in "Dial M for Murder" and "To Catch a Thief".
Raymond Burr would star in the TV series "Perry Mason" and "Ironside".
I'm pretty sure that Rear Window was originally shot in Technicolor. I used to watch this film a lot when I was younger and I've never seen a black-and-white or bad rendition. I think it has always looked this pristine. Not that it would have mattered, but given that you've already reacted to Psycho, my all-time favorite and best Hitchcock film, from the list I would have chosen North by Northwest and Strangers on a Train even ahead of Rear Window.
It was shot using VistaVision.
Psycho was made black and white because it was made with a TV budget basically. That sometimes throws people off when older movies of his are in color.
You can't go wrong with James Stewart, so I recommend anything he is in. High Noon with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly is really good. If you remember High Noon was referenced in Die Hard.
Just recently found your channel. Loving the content. This is my all time favorite movie. Its so great that you both watch older movies. Keep up the great work !
Just a highly technical/nit pick clarification. Rear Window was not shot in Technicolor. I was shot on Eastman 5248 color negative film with an iso speed rating of 100. After filming was completed, release prints were made from the Eastman negative by Technicolor in their dye transfer process. This process was done by Technicolor from the early 1950s until the mid 70s.
Oddly enough, my step-Dad had a Kodak book which explained this process (he worked for Kodak all his life).
Masterpiece of Hitchcock!
You should watch Vertigo next!
This masterpiece was filmed in colour.
This is a great movie though my favorite Hitchcock movie is North by Northwest. To Catch a Thief, Spellbound and Notorious are also great. I really hope you both watch more classics like this.