Hitchcock

Despite their misogynous leanings I have loved Alfred Hitchcock’s films from a young age. Many hours have been spent in the company of Norman Bates, Marion Crane, Lisa Freemont and Roger O’Thornhill, or was that George Kaplan?

However, it was with some hesitation that I entered the screening of Hitchcock. Ambiguity makes Hitch and his films fascinating, aiding the suspense for which they are famed. This is why I often shy away from these types of fictionalisations, feeling that to know Hitchcock could ruin the magic of his art.

 However, the film posed no danger of any real insights into Hitch’s genius, as the best way to describe Hitchcock is fluffy. It brought to mind My Week With Marilyn; light, entertaining and enjoyable, but missing the grit to really dissect the personality within. Taking the viewer through the period in which Hitchcock was making Psycho, the film starts promisingly, bringing the viewer unexpectedly into the world of Ed Gein, the notorious serial killer from Wisconsin who inspired many horror films from Texas Chainsaw Massacre through to The Silence of the Lambs and most importantly, Psycho, and drawing a parallel between the director and the killer. Hitchcock converses with Gein many times throughout the film and this works to comment on the inspiration for Psycho; the darkness that lurks within humanity; and the link between genius and insanity. However, the device rarely works, cutting into the plot in a jolting, Brechtian way that is incongruous with the light nature of the rest of the film and seems wholly unnecessary and distracting.

This said, Anthony Hopkins is excellent as always, and the occasional hint of Mr Lecter under the surface of Hitch’s persona is a somewhat fun link with other Gein inspired films. However, in many respects the film should be called Mrs. Hitchcock, as the performance and role of Helen Mirren steals the show. Excellent as ever, Mirren brings Alma Hitchcock to life as a gutsy woman who has become overshadowed by her demanding husband and is teetering on the brink of an affair. Many past portrayals of Alma depict a downtrodden woman playing second fiddle to Hitch’s obsessions with his leading ladies, and it was this one dimensional aspect in the character portrayal which let down The Girl, a feature length BBC drama portraying Tippi Hedren’s view of Alfred Hitchcock. Scarlett Johanson is also excellent as Janet Leigh in a role that seems almost written to counterpart The Girl.

However, despite its problems, the film is wholly enjoyable. Uneven and essentially fluff, the stellar cast pull it through. The occasional cheesy line had the audience groaning but with a knowing wink. Hitchcock is enjoyable and interesting and it is always a pleasure to watch the portrayal of gutsy women on screen.

Hitchcock. Well worth a look but don’t expect life changing cinema. Intriguing and entertaining – a fluffy 3 stars

http://www.hitchcockthemovie.com/

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