My man Hitchcock

Probably one of the most entertainment-based directors, and definitely one of my personal favorites, Alfred Hitchcock was pure genius. Just looking at his filmography there's no way but feeling, at the very least, amazed by the man's capacity to create masterpieces, still staying steady in his own genre, and still keeping his own style.


However... I do feel Hitch did his best when he left that style. Not that the usual identity crisis's his characters went through didn't work, but it was when he ventured in the unknown where he excelled.


You've got reincarnation, phobias and obsession in Vertigo; Oedipal complex and repressed sexual desire in Psycho; fear of the uncontrollable aspects of nature in The Birds; wicked desire to excel while using rather experimental character positioning in Rope; and probably ennui in Rear Window - coincidentally, some of his most acclaimed work, and some of my favorites by him (Rope in particular)


Still, he was wonderful at all times, and the style that made him famous most certainly deserved the recognition. The whole obsession with identities, missed opportunities, the accused innocent man - what made Hitchcock the man he was. And it worked so well in so many films - a particular favorite being North by Northwest, which quite obviously shaped a lot of upcoming ideas of espionage, most notably the characterization of James Bond (also making Cary Grant a serious competitor for the role, come adaptation time)

However anyone might prefer him, in his wildness or keeping it safe, there's no doubt as to how much more fun it is to be a movie buff thanks to Alfred Hitchcock. All hail the master of suspense!