Alfred Hitchcock's film Rebecca, the 1940s film based on Daphne du Maurier’s novel, contains themes like death, murder, adultery, and incest. The film is also organized in a manner that is meant to be enjoyed by mature people or people who would take the film seriously. However, looking at the organization of the film in terms of the cinematic techniques, the director of the film made the right decisions regarding lighting and camera movement. The film attempts to explore the relationship between present and past, Mrs De Winter and Rebecca. In the chosen sequence, a defining character is Rebecca, a dead woman whose presence is dominant. Mrs De Winter is Maxim De Winter’s new wife who is placed into the position of lady of the house —a position …show more content…
Both characters seem to break down to their most vulnerable selves. The couple shares Rebecca’s small shack and exchange more embraces than in any other scene. Maxims wife begs him to stay with her even though she knows he still loves Rebecca, and Maxim puts down his wall, and decides to tell her the truth about his feelings for Rebecca that he has been hiding all along. One of the craziest parts about the story Rebecca is this sequence. The entire story we believe that this is a story about the main character working on her gripe with Maxims late wife whom she can’t seem to amount up to; until this scene. In this sequence we learn that Maxim never really loved Rebecca and not only that, he’s the one who killed her. In the revelation the Maxim never loved Rebecca, the main character can finally stop comparing herself to her and can recognize that Maxim loves her for who she is. This overwhelming passion to be with him is displayed in the desperation you hear in Mrs. De Winters voice when she tries to reason with her husband, saying the only ones who know of Maxim’s secret is them and that it can stay that way. One reason I chose this sequence was because it was peculiar to me, the reason that the director took the most shocking plot twist and changed it. In the novel, Rebecca was murdered by Maxim’s shotgun, but in the film she's explained to have tripped and fallen to her …show more content…
Because the scene was shot in the small cottage, there was little room for different focal lengths, so most of the shots are jumps between the characters to create drama. All of the shots in this sequence are medium shots and close ups, giving the audience the perception of a cramped space that's over occupied with forgotten objects. The camera also follows Maxim’s movements, like a person eyes would, but not the eyes of the heroine who is slightly to the side, like the eyes of a third party. Mise-en-scene arrangements are also evident in the sequence. Because the film is in black and white, it was pivotal in this scene to use lighting to create drama. Hitchcock has put different components into different scenes and he arranged them in a meaningful way. Rebecca’s room was said to have been exactly how she left it, in this scene Maxim describes how Rebecca walked across the room as she spoke to him, the ash tray that he described her having use is still there, as if she had just put out her cigarette. Then Maxim walks back and leans against the wall, and stumbles to open the door to reveal where Rebecca died. Within the clip, it can be seen that eerie music is used when Maxim is telling Mrs De Winter about the night that Rebecca died. The director used music as a way to illustrate the torment Maxim feels when speaking about the past, which is significant to the film narration. This is
Though complex and brilliantly written for its time, the plot of Alfred Hitchcock’s film, Vertigo, is only half of the genius behind it. Alfred Hitchcock’s unique presence as an auteur is truly what sets his films apart. There is symmetry to his shots that give the film an artistic feel, as if each frame were a painting. Many times, within this symmetry, Hitchcock places the characters in the center of the frame; or if not centered, then balanced by whatever else is adding density to the shot. For example, as Madeline sits and looks at the painting in the museum, there is a balance within the frame. To counter-act her position to the right of the painting, Hitchcock puts a chair and another painting on the left side, which is visually pleasing to the eye of the audience. The use of red and green not only adds a visual effect as well, but later serves as a clue that Madeline is not actually dead, when the women who looks like her is wearing a green dress.
In conclusion in “Rear Window” Hitchcock is shown off as an auteur and realist though his modification and implementation of his own creative mind and as a realist by conveying reality and occurrences of everyday life respectively. He also used methods such as eye line matching, cinema as window and frame, and potentially character specific lighting to connect the audience with the characters and to give the main characters more individualized
Daphne Du Maurier's Rebecca Rebecca has been described as the first major gothic romance of the 20th century; Mrs. Danvers’ character is one of the few Gothic interests within the novel. Her unnatural appearance and multi-faceted relationship with Rebecca provides scope for manifold interpretations and critical views. Furthermore, Mrs. Danvers connection with Rebecca and Manderlay is a sub-plot in itself, making Mrs. Danvers the most subtly exciting character in the novel.
Rowe, Lawrence. "Through the Looking Glass: Reflexivity, Reciprocality, and Defenestration in Hitchcock's"Rear Window"." College Literature 35.1 (2008): 16-37.
From the start of the book, you get an off feeling about Manderley. The estate couldn't have been a happy place for the narrator. Her dream of the home seems more of a nightmare. Du Maurier begins foreshadowing that, during the time the narrator lived in Manderley, she was always compared to Rebecca, and looked down upon by the people who knew her. For the most part, she felt in competition with her. The narrator was always told she was so different from Rebecca. Rebecca was described as a beautiful, strong, and independent women. Something the narrator could never be. It brought out the narrator's insecurities. Her insecurities influenced her to shut out her husband, Maxim, even more than she already had. To show these events would happen, secretly, the author starts the first chapters with, "They were memories that cannot hurt," (du
Stam, Robert & Pearson, Robertson., ‘Hitchcock’s Rear Window: Refluxivity and the Critique of Voyeurism’ in Deutelbaum, Marshall & Poague, Leland A. ed., A Hitchcock Reader (John Wiley & Sons: 2009).
There are four crucial scenes of this film in which Hitchcock shows a change in perspective and identity through the mise-en-scène. Hitchcock’s signature motifs, style, and themes are conveyed through the mise-en-scène.
The film, Vertigo (1958) directed by Alfred Hitchcock, is classified as a genre combination of mystery, romance, suspense and thriller about psychological obsession and murder. Filmed on location in San Francisco and on the Paramount lot in Hollywood, California in 1957, the cultural features of the late 1950’s America were depicted in the films mise en scène by costume and set designs current for that time period. The film was produced at the end of the golden age of Hollywood when the studio system was still in place. At the time Vertigo was produced, Hollywood studios were still very much in control of film production and of actor’s contracts. Hitchcock’s groundbreaking cinematic language and camera techniques has had great impact on film and American popular culture and created a cult following of his films to this day.
Psycho is a 1960 thriller directed by the well-known filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock. The movie starts in Phoenix, Arizona were Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) and her boyfriend Sam Loomis (John Gavin) are having a romantic lunch. Marion wants to marry Sam, but he has to make too many alimony payments, leaving him out with the option to have enough money to support her. Marion returns to the real estate office where she works as a secretary. In this scene Alfred Hitchcock makes a “cameo” appearing outside the real estate agency were Marion works. As she’s coming in through the front door you can see him through the glass door standing outside with a dark color jacket and his hat.
One of the first and most prominent forms of symbolism that is applied to the novel is the long drive to Manderley. This drive makes use of the setting as an introduction to the late Rebecca. When we first read of the Manderley drive and its unsettling location, one is plunged into a still and silent atmosphere a realm that one suspects belonged to the late Mrs. De Winter, Maxims first wife. “The drive twisted and turned as a serpent.” (Du Maurier 65) This depiction, under closer inspection holds a deeper meaning. Unconsciously, the reader is immersed into the crookedness known as Rebecca’s nature. Her constant changing of face from social hostess to abusive wife.
“The Lodger” is a creepy story. An atmosphere of fog and darkness, creating this eerie feeling of dread and horror. Then we enter this joyous dance hall looking at the dancers talking and having fun until the news of the Avenger killed another girl creates tension and fear. But with the Hitchcock switching of scenes by adding comedy added to the movie shows a fun and joy in this a petrified and putrid population. Showing a humanity not just an evil world of austere repudiation. Then we meet the characters, by entering the house of Daisy and her parents (Mr. and Mrs. Bunting) in this house filled with joy and peace and a mix of tension and dread also. There are hidden hatred and fear, especially in the heart of Daisy. We detect in Daisy interaction
...t is evident they do act in conjunction with one another in the text. However, it is also evident that the two houses oppose one another as intended to demonstrate different ways of life, possibly before and after the enlightenment, which underlies Gothic nostalgia of a medieval way of life. Within Rebecca, Du Maurier is constantly making the assumption that the narrator and Rebecca are a prime example of the double within a text as they appear to mirror each other in many ways, despite their differences. Additionally, the opening and conclusion of the novel with a dream represents repetition and highlights the concept of the double which is demonstrated throughout the text. Therefore, overall, both the texts which have been discussed in this essay do demonstrate an idea of a double to quite a large extent although some of these concepts are sometimes misunderstood.
In the book, Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier, there exist a big emphasis on social class and position during the time of this story. When we are introduced to the main character of the story, the narrator, we are right away exposed to a society in which different privileges are bestowed upon various groups. Social place, along with the ever present factor of power and money are evident throughout the story to show how lower to middle class groups were treated and mislead by people on a higher level in society. When we are introduced to the narrator, we are told that she is traveling with an old American woman; vulgar, gossipy, and wealthy, Mrs. Van Hopper travels across Europe, but her travels are lonely and require an employee that gives her warm company. This simple companion (the narrator) is shy and self-conscious, and comes from a lower-middle class background which sets up perfect for a rich man to sweep her off her feet. The narrator faced difficulties adapting to first, the Monte Carlo aristocratic environment, and second, to her new found position as Mrs. De Winter, the new found mistress of Manderley.
The significance of the feminist film theory is that it explores the concept that women are inferior to men. Examining the theory in Alfred Hitchcock’s films, “The Birds”, “Vertigo” and “Psycho”, will display how the theory can be used to explore his films and their meaning. Hitchcock is a very monumental filmmaker and is known for his mastery at controlling the audience. Hitchcock never stated that it was prevalent in his movies, although he could have worked this theory into his movies and not even have realized it. The time period in which Hitchcock produced these films was not a time of equality for women so the subjectivity of women in his films might not have been that prominent to see, since it was a “normal” thing to society.Hitchcock
Drama, suspense, and mystery were part of her writing style. These three characteristics were portrayed in the novel. Daphne du Maurier was famous for her writings of psychological and gothic thrillers (Daphne du Maurier). This style of writing often included drama, suspense, and mystery intertwined throughout the novel (“Du Maurier, Daphne” 520). Suspense was shown when the narrator is given a letter and has no idea who it is from, “Someone knocked at the door, and the lift boy came in with a note in his hand...I opened it, and found a single sheet of notepaper with a few words written in an unfamiliar hand. “Forgive me. I was very rude this afternoon.” That was all. No signature, and no beginning. But my name was on the envelope, and spelt correctly, an unusual thing,” (book p. 19-20). While one can predict who wrote this letter to the narrator, it is not clearly defined, thus adding suspense early in the novel. Mystery was shown in the line, “The thought suddenly came to me that perhaps Mrs. Danvers was dishonest,” (du Maurier 162). This line from the novel shows some mystery because the narrator believes that Mrs. Danvers is up to something that she should not be. There are also some parts of the novel that added all three elements at one time. One specific situation comes to mind, “Rebecca never committed suicide. You’ve asked for my opinion and by God you shall