Tuesday, October 13, 2009

birds scare me.

For my #20 pick I decided to go with perhaps the BEST thriller ever... from the king of thrills himself.  I am, of course, speaking about The Birds (Hitchcock, 1963).  This movie is definitely a classic in the genre and still holds up today.  I personally find it terrifying, perhaps due to a childhood experience of being hit in the head by a flying crow.  But even if you did not have a traumatic experience like my own, I'm sure you will still enjoy this Oscar-nominated film about a wealthy San Francisco playgirl who pursues a potential boyfriend in a small California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds suddenly begin to attack people.  Interestingly, the film has no musical score but rather an electronic soundtrack with simulated bird cries and wing flaps.  The technical aspects of the film are amazing and the symbolic and thematic undertones are not to be missed - this is Hitchcock, after-all.  The film can easily be interpreted as an allegory for nature's ability to threaten mankind with Freudian themes, allusions to blindness, and a critique of society sprinkled throughout.  But even on a basic level, this film is pure entertainment - thrilling, suspenseful, scary, and fun.  You won't look at birds the same again.




If you have never seen this movie you are missing out! Rent it now... I guarantee you will not be disappointed.  A remake is also supposed to be released in 2011 (although there have been some issues..) and will star Naomi Watts and George Clooney.  Perhaps it will be good, but definitely not as good as the original.

2 comments:

  1. Um... I'm pretty sure it was a big black bird that decided to hit you in the head. Not a crow. A crow would've knocked you out. You were little at the time. But... still a very scary experience and I can understand why you are scarred.

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  2. You don't know me! It was a crow. And it has nothing to do be being little. Pretty sure even an adult would be freaked out. Nature is revolting.

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