‘Nowadays, the work of Alfred Hitchcock is admired all over the world’ (Truffaut, 1986, p.9). Although this was stated in 1966 in the original copy it still applies today as Hitchcock’s body of work consists of fifty-three films some of which are worldwide phenomena. Young audiences who consume his films today assume that Alfred Hitchcock’s work has always been at its prime; this however was not always the case, it is only now after his passing that more people are beginning to understand how truly masterful some of his films are but in subjectivity of course as his films cannot please everyone. In 1962, in New York Truffaut was asked the question ‘Why do the critics of cahier du cinema take Hitchcock seriously? He’s rich and successful, but …show more content…
This picture follows a female lead named Charlie Newton who receives a message that her uncle is coming to visit, unfortunately for her the visit will not turn out as expected. There are many themes and techniques/styles to explore in this film, Driscoll (2014, p.14) states ‘Shadow of a Doubt is a film in which Hitchcock uses perspective to manipulate what his audience perceives’. When watching this picture, you can see that Hitchcock finds a way to allow the audience to see more than what the characters know at times or in reverse allow the characters to know more than the audience. For example, when young Charlie is walking down the stairs she steps on a faulty step which almost made her fall over and break her neck, we find out later that uncle Charlie set out this trap meaning that he knew more than the audience which ultimately created suspense as they did not see this crucial moment coming. Another example would be when uncle Charlie locks Charlie in the garage to suffocate from exhaust fumes when uncle Charlie is in the house the mother asks where young Charlie is and he acts if he doesn’t know but the audience knows this and it again creates tension and suspense for the audience because they know young Charlie is in danger. This relates to Hitchcock’s use of a consistent style as this technique is used in most of his films to create suspense and tension for viewing
In fact, this was Hitchcock’s first major American film, and he was able to explore the true American family of the time. Thornton Wilder was chosen to expand the treatment into a screenplay, and he was the one who proposed the opening of Shadow of a Doubt, which was a nod to Hemingway’s well-known story “The Killers.” Together, Wilder and Hitchcock meticulously crafted the plot and how each piece of information in the story would be revealed to the audience. Later, Hitchcock believed that the structure of the intense story was solid but that the characters and dialogue needed to be improved. Sally Benson was recruited for this task to add humor, modern touches, and freshness to the family
Some key topics the class discussed about for Shadow of a Doubt Hitchcock’s use of Dutch angle when Charlies was in his room as he’s freaking out about being discovered. This was compared to the Dutch angle used in The 39 Steps and the scene with Mr. Memory. Also discussed was how Uncle Charlie’s arrival in Santa Rosa lead to the emasculating of Joe. How he was reduced to sitting at the kid table while Uncle Joe got to read his paper along with Charlie humiliating him at his work.
In this textual analyses, I will be analyzing a 5-minute excerpt of Hitchcock’s Psycho. (Minutes 36:25 to 42:00) Cinematography (such as colour, composition, exposure, framing, focus scale, movement, shot type, and so on): Alfred Hitchcock once said; ‘The point is to draw the audience right inside the situation instead of leaving them to watch it from outside, from a distance.’ This was his style of film, visual storytelling whilst attaching the viewer to the film. Alfred liked visuals; he conveyed lots of emotion through the faces of characters and told the story through their expression, helping build the audiences interpretations of the given situation.
“Shadow of a Doubt” was directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1943 (IMDb). The film introduces the excitement of Young Charlie (Teresa Wright) because of her Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) arrival. Young Charlie was sure that her uncle would break the monotony in the house because he had been crushing for him. After that night two people named Jack Graham a questioner man and a photographer Fred Saunders comes their house conducting survey of newton’s family but Charles refuses to be interviewed. After spending a day, Jack takes Charlie on a date where she finds out Jack Graham who is pretending to be an interviewer is police detective investigating her uncle Charlie.
Introduction: The film "Don't Be a Sucker" employs various techniques to effectively persuade its audience. By examining elements such as cinematography, imagery, rhetorical modes, evidence presentation, appeals to logic, emotions, and credibility, fallacies, figurative language, moral framing, narrative voice, subjectivity, characters, and overall stylistic choices, we can gain insight into how the film seeks to influence and persuade viewers. Cinematography and Imagery: Through the use of cinematography and imagery, "Don't Be a Sucker" creates a powerful impact on the audience.
Alfred Hitchcock successfully performs suspense and shock in a number of ways. One way was when he reveals that the cop is following her, making us think that he found out concerning the money she stole. Another way is when we see Norman staring through the hole, examining her as if he is waiting to make his move. The last technique that Hitchcock constructed suspense is when we identify a shadowy character gazing at her take a shower, making us wonder who it could
He was known as the master of suspense which was gained from his suspenseful choices of music, special effects, camera angles and sound effects. As well as these features Hitchcock films also had other defining characteristics which can be seen in His 1954 Rear Window and 1958
The film 13th directed by Ava DuVernay targets an intended audience of the Media and the three branches of the United States government with an emphasis that mass incarceration is an extension of slavery. It is intended to inform viewers about the criminalization of African Americans and the United States prison boom. 13th uses rhetorical devices in its claim to persuade the viewers by using exemplum in the opening seconds of the film. President Barack Obama presents statistics, saying “the United States is home to 5% of the world’s population but is home to 25% of the world’s prisoners.” Also the film uses a hyperbole in talking about the movie Birth of a Nation produced in 1915 which portrays a black man as a violent savage who will kill white women.
When most people feel like they are close to God; they usually make good moral decisions. In Doubt by John Patrick Shanley; Sister Aloysius tells Sister James that “In the pursuit of wrongdoing, one steps away from God. Of course, there’s a price.” When stepping away from God someone is committing sins and they are doing things that are usually not accepted. As the main characters stepped away from God, they had to pay the price of making wrong choices and the price of being pressured by those choices.
These were explored by the use of the motifs of birds, eyes, hands and mirrors (Filmsite.org, n.d.). Hitchcock skilfully guides the audiences through a tale
In 2015, HBO aired a six-part, true crime documentary series titled, The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst. Writer and director, Andrew Jarecki, examined the details of three crimes associated with Durst, including the disappearance of Durst’s first wife Kathy, the murder of his dear friend, Susan, and the murder and dismemberment of his neighbor, Morris Black. While the mini-series was met with acclaim, many – including myself – criticize The Jinx for its storytelling approach. The series seemingly blurs the lines of storytelling – for entertainment purposes – and journalism; raising many questions regarding ethics. Initially, Durst approached Jarecki regarding an interview after he saw All Good Things, a film Jarecki had released
He has always been the shadowy figure or the familiar face in the background of one of his films. He has masked himself behind routines and monotone expressions. He also refused to disclose information about his personal life with the public. The intimate parts of his life, however, are on display for the public in the form of motion pictures. In his films, Hitchcock expresses his unspoken desires, frustrations, and relationship problems.
Hitchcock clearly shows many scenes in the film to portray the fear and suspicion that many Americans had after the war. In the film, Hitchcock also uses dramatic events such as the yelling of Mrs. Thorwald or the arguments he had with the NYP policeman, Tom Doyle. These scenes all add to the fear of communism and paranoia that was based on someone’s perspective of the world. In the film, it was illustrated that if you were not friendly towards your neighbors it meant that you were of suspicion. The film also illustrated that the way in which you acted towards other people contributed to the overall suspicion of somebody.
In this era of movies and stories we have better graphics and word choice to make the stories more scary. Unlike now they did not have this in 1963 and 1843. But still the people who made it feel like it was a modern day story was Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred Hitchcock. One way they created suspense was by using foreshadowing to give a hint of what's coming next. Another way they created suspense is by using different wording than we would use than modern talking slang/wording.
SOUND IN THE SILENCE! Chaplin’s “Modern Times” Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin, better known as Charlie Chaplin was an English actor, director, scriptwriter, producer, composer and the great silent star, in the sound era. The speciality about Chaplin’s films is that whenever we watch it - no matter after how long you saw it the last time - it seems both endearingly familiar and inexhaustibly fresh, with a feeling of wanting to watch it again.