Wednesday, October 23, 2024

OMM2024 - Night 21: Rear Window (1954)

I've seen this movie referenced so many times I had to watch it- what better chance than during my #OctoberMovieMarathon?

Night 21
Rear Window (1954)
7/10

Photographer L.B. Jefferies is recovering from a broken leg and has one week left trapped in his apartment. To stave off boredom, he watches his neighbors through their windows, until he sees that something is wrong with one of them...

Don't get me wrong, this was a solid movie. The visuals are top-notch, I love how we can figure out what's happening even though many scenes are witnessed from far away. The acting is fun and the characters are great! I really enjoyed Lisa's character, it's kinda rare to have the love interest be so intelligent and proactive. She and Stella were my favorite parts of the movie! I was expecting this to be a bit more... dramatic? It was a lot funnier than I thought, and much more focused on the people watching than the neighbors being watched. A very fun movie with a slow build. But honestly, the director being Alfred Hitchcock should tell you the quality of the movie is up there.

SPOILERS START BELOW THE POSTER!


SPOILERS START HERE!

The only reason I didn't give this movie a higher score is because I thought it was going to be much scarier. When I think about it though, I think that's a hallmark of Hitchcock's films, they're not "scary" per say, they're more tense. Although I also found this one to be quite humorous. It's a lot more lighthearted until the climax at the end. I'd say that's the only point where it felt traditionally scary.

I did not expect this movie to focus so much on the photographer. I expected everyone to buy into his story even less. I think most of the references to this movie make it seem like no one believes anything was witnessed. However, in the movie, lots of people buy in almost immediately. Perhaps they don't think it's as serious, but they think something weird is happening if nothing else. Lisa especially bought in almost instantly, (and had a lot of good insights because of her knowledge of women).

I also really enjoyed how everyone got a happy ending. Though it is a bit heteronormative/romantic focused (almost everyone ends up as a couple), it's still a really sweet way to end the movie- showing that the neighborhood comes together to help and then find connection between them. I like it.

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