Review of Rear Window (1954) by Jacob E — 28 May 2013

If there is a movie that is just as influential as 'Psycho' for its genre, it would probably be Alfred Hitchcock's thriller masterpiece, 'Rear Window.' With its focus being voyeurism, it takes us through the eyes through Cary Grant's eyes as we the audience are with him spying on the rest of the neighborhood around him. As he begins to feel a strong sense of suspicion from one of his neighbors, we start to feel the tension escalate throughout the movie and how this is executed by Hitchcock is just mindblowing.

The movie already has enough suspense that Cary might be spotted and how this movie makes one feel a sense of paranoia is suspense at its utmost best. The sense that our characters might be in grave danger or they might just be making this all up in their hands adds a lot of psychological thrills to the story, because we the audience are trying to figure out the answers to a mystery where we don't have any proper evidence. I have honestly seen this type of story being mimicked by many movies/tv shows today and that just goes to show the amount of influence Hitchcock has on film.

From the performances to how the movie takes place in one location, 'Rear Window' is a work of pure art, but what I love is its consistent atmosphere that comes from its urban environment. The sense of claustrophobia alone adds to the suspense. It gives a great sense of just how vulnerable our characters are to begin with and as they get deeper into their suspicions, they are making themselves even more vulnerable and increasing their chances of danger and the film captivated me from start to finish. 'Rear Window' represents our curiosity in how this obsession can take control of us, no matter how hard we try to look away. Watching 'Rear Window' or any other film, it shows we all have this impulse within us to look into another world that holds a perceived mystery to us, but in this case, it's purely worth it.