Rear Window (1954)

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Starring: James Stewart

****1/2

There are a lot of things that make Rear Window work which is a good start when attempting to make a great movie. Aside from the obvious suspense and intrigue within the acclaimed Hitchcock picture, Rear Window possesses some things that show up very rarely in films.

First and foremost is the performance of James Stewart. While he's good in the film, its not the jaw-dropping performance you usually see from an actor or actress put in the position to carry a film mostly by his or herself. What it is however, is consistent, poised and fitting for the film. Stewart plays L.B. Jeffries, a photographer who's on the job injury has put him in a leg cast and wheelchair for seven weeks. Being confined to his home, he takes an interest in watching his neighbors out his back (or rear) window. I'll expand on this activity later as I find that simple premise simply fascinating. As he entertains himself with the activities of his neighbors, he convinces himself that something terrible has happened involving his neighbor Mr. Thorwald and his wife. The clues add up but the culprit seems to have covered all his bases, to the point where Jeffries' detective friend is convinced nothing unusual has happened at all.

While watching Rear Window, I found myself wishing I had a front facing apartment so I could spend more time people watching. I'd also like the time and freedom to spend all day everyday staring out at those people. The idea of watching and studying people's routines and dissecting their lives without hearing anything they say or being exactly sure of what they do is not just brilliant but something people do all the time, often without even realizing. The genius that Hitchcock exhibits by creating such a compelling movie all from the confines of one room is second to the genius of this story in my opinion. There's likely only a handful of filmmakers ever who could make this movie what it was but the source material is so good the movie in some ways practically makes itself.

Where Hitchcock shines is what he chooses to show and what to hide. I could sit and watch the single shot of Mr. Thorwald sitting in the dark, smoking a cigar all day long. All we see is the glowing of the cigar beating like a heart. The first time we see this shot, it seems harmless, but it soon becomes frightening. We, like Jeffries, don't know what he knows. The use of lighting and shadows, still shots, pans, closeups and wide shots are work perfectly for the benefit of a brilliantly crafted film.

**SPOILERS**

What keeps this movie from being a five-star classic for me is its ending. As everything begins to come together, Mr. Thorwald confronts Jeffries. With no way to escape, Jeffries relies on blinding Thorwald with flashbulbs until the police very conveniently arrive. I appreciate using the fact that Jeffries is a photographer and that a camera/flashbulb is his weapon of choice but it was less than believable. Not only that, it was anticlimactic. To expand, the ending of this film was far from anticlimactic. On the contrary, it was edge of the seat type of climactic but this moment within that climax brought things down significantly and it was disappointing.

Rear Window works in a lot of ways. In addition to the story the movie surrounds, the built in suspense and intrigue, it also has a very significant, real, conflict driven love story between Jeffries and his girlfriend Lisa (Grace Kelly). Despite her beauty and success, Jeffries describes Lisa as too perfect for him. That, however, is just an excuse for something unsure of where he is in life and whether or not he's is willing to give up what he does for any particular woman. Lisa has the same dilemma as she's not the type to hit the beaten trail on a photography expedition. The two of them care enough about each other to discuss their problems and Lisa knows what she wants enough to hint at doing whatever she has to do to be with Jeffries. And so everything isn't random, the way Lisa takes risks to solve the potential murder not only impresses Jeffries but it brings the two together in a unique and important way.

This movie has layer upon layer upon layer all of which work together for the good of the final product. In the hands of Hitchcock, everything comes off as seamless. Its almost not fair to knock off a half star from this films rating considering all it does so well. Almost everything about this movie is perfect thus it becomes and almost perfect movie.