Review of Rope (1948) by Charlie M — 03 Nov 2014

Part theatrical production and part philosophy class, 'Rope' a Hitchcock classic that starts with a murder and slowly winds up the tension towards a charged climax. Jimmy Stewart plays the high-minded professor whose former students have secretly planned "the perfect murder" of their own classmate. The killers then throw a cocktail party for the victim's friends & family whilst the body is still warm. An enjoyable albeit talky film, this is Hitchcock's first color picture and boy does he take advantage of that with the New York City skyline changing as the evening and the film proceeds.

The movie takes place in real time (81 minutes) without any music and moves in a way that allows us to live in the moment and absorb the realizations of each character.