May 20 2022 82 mins 3
In this bonus episode, Alex and Steven explore Alfred Hitchcock's examination of the American psyche and of the nature of cinema in his 1954 masterpiece, Rear Window. Topics discussed include: is Jeffries' voyeuristic behaviour 'normal' or 'unhealthy' (or perhaps both!) and what is its ethical status?; what does Jeffries' desire to watch his neighbours' private lives say about the nature of cinema?; and does the film portray romantic relationships in a cynical fashion or does it allow for the possibility of love?
Further Resources:
- A DVD copy of the movie can be purchased at Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rear-Window-DVD-James-Stewart/dp/B078FHJKPJ/ref=sr_1_7?crid=ZPH09396BM59&keywords=rear+window&qid=1652990571&sprefix=rear+window%2Caps%2C157&sr=8-7
- The film critic Robin Wood was one of the first to take Hitchcock seriously as an artist. Here is his insightful and stylishly written analysis of the master of suspense's oeuvre: https://www.amazon.co.uk/HitchcockS-Films-Revisited-Robin-Wood/dp/0231914482/ref=sr_1_19?Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0&__mk_en_GB=%C3%85M%C3%85Z%C3%95%C3%91&qid=1652991177&refinements=p_27%3Arobin+wood&s=books&sr=1-19&unfiltered=1
- A series of thoughtful essays on Rear Window specifically: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alfred-Hitchcocks-Window-Cambridge-Handbooks/dp/0521564530/ref=sr_1_1?Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0&__mk_en_GB=%C3%85M%C3%85Z%C3%95%C3%91&qid=1652991294&refinements=p_28%3Arear+window&s=books&sr=1-1&unfiltered=1
- Hitchcock's TV interviews were, like his movies, always entertaining, even if he never gave much of himself away. Here is an interview he did with the gentle, yet insistently curious interviewer Dick Cavett: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpiLi40I_eE
