Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980), was an English director and producer. Labeled as the "Master of Suspense", he became known for thrillers, often combined with a dark sense of humor. After a successful career in his native country, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood in 1939. Over a career spanning more than half a century, Hitchcock fashioned for himself a distinctive and recognizable directorial style. He pioneered the use of a camera made to move in a way that mimics a person's gaze, forcing viewers to engage in a form of voyeurism. He framed shots to maximize anxiety, fear, or empathy, and used innovative film editing. His stories frequently feature fugitives on the run from the law alongside icy blonde female characters. Many of Hitchcock's films have twist endings and thrilling plots featuring depictions of violence, murder, and crime, although many of the mysteries function as decoys —or MacGuffins— meant only to serve thematic elements in the film and the extremely complex psychological examinations of the characters. Hitchcock's films also borrow many themes from psychoanalysis and feature strong sexual undertones. Through his cameo appearances in his own films, interviews, film trailers, and the television program Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-1965), he became a cultural icon.
Hitchcock is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In 2002, Hitchcock was ranked 2nd behind Orson Welles in the critics' top ten poll in the list of The Greatest Directors of All Time compiled by the Sight & Sound magazine. Andrew Sarris in his influential book of film criticism The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929–1968 included him in the "pantheon" of the 14 greatest film directors who had worked in the United States.
Hitchcock's critically most acclaimed film is the psychological thriller film Vertigo (1958). Although being a mild failure upon its release, it has risen in popularity over the decades. In 2012 it even replaced Orson Welles' Citizen Kane as the greatest film ever made in the Sight & Sound critics' poll. Regarding visual style, Vertigo is often declared as Hitchcock's most perfect film. The use of color symbolism, meticulously composed shots, and the famous "Vertigo effect" (dolly zoom) continue to be studied and admired.
Hitchcock's most commercially successful and most famous film is Psycho (1960), which had a significant impact on the horror genre, especially the slasher film. Hitchcock was able to prove his skills with the mystery thriller film Rear Window (1954), to create suspense within a confined setting - primarily the protagonist's apartment. In this film, voyeurism, one of Hitchcock's favorite subjects, is an essential aspect.
Many of Hitchcock's spy films, most notably North by Northwest (1959) and Notorious (1946), had a major impact on the Mission: Impossible and James Bond series.
Hitchcock is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In 2002, Hitchcock was ranked 2nd behind Orson Welles in the critics' top ten poll in the list of The Greatest Directors of All Time compiled by the Sight & Sound magazine. Andrew Sarris in his influential book of film criticism The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929–1968 included him in the "pantheon" of the 14 greatest film directors who had worked in the United States.
Hitchcock's critically most acclaimed film is the psychological thriller film Vertigo (1958). Although being a mild failure upon its release, it has risen in popularity over the decades. In 2012 it even replaced Orson Welles' Citizen Kane as the greatest film ever made in the Sight & Sound critics' poll. Regarding visual style, Vertigo is often declared as Hitchcock's most perfect film. The use of color symbolism, meticulously composed shots, and the famous "Vertigo effect" (dolly zoom) continue to be studied and admired.
Hitchcock's most commercially successful and most famous film is Psycho (1960), which had a significant impact on the horror genre, especially the slasher film. Hitchcock was able to prove his skills with the mystery thriller film Rear Window (1954), to create suspense within a confined setting - primarily the protagonist's apartment. In this film, voyeurism, one of Hitchcock's favorite subjects, is an essential aspect.
Many of Hitchcock's spy films, most notably North by Northwest (1959) and Notorious (1946), had a major impact on the Mission: Impossible and James Bond series.
Known for
AFI Life Achievement Award: 50th Anniversary Special
Le Film Pro-Nazi d’Hitchcock
My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock
Kim Novak: Hollywood's Golden Age Rebel
Normandie ne partira pas ce soir
I Am Alfred Hitchcock
Her Name Was Grace Kelly
Tales of the Uncanny
Hitchcock Confidential
Hitch x 4
78/52
Dark Glamour: The Blood and Guts of Hammer Productions
Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey
Hitchcock/Truffaut
Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
Night Will Fall
What Is Cinema?
Talking Pictures
The Psycho Legacy
The Master's Touch: Hitchcock's Signature Style
Once Upon a Time... 'Notorious'
Breaking Barriers: The Sound of Hitchcock
The Pervert's Guide to Cinema
Grace Kelly: Destiny of a Princess
The Making of 'Psycho'
Alfred Hitchcock: The Early Years
Hitchcock and Dial M
Writing And Casting To Catch A Thief
Topaz: An Appreciation by Film Critic/Historian Leonard Maltin
Destination Hitchcock: The Making of 'North by Northwest'
The Trouble with 'Marnie'
All About 'The Birds'
The Making of 'The Man Who Knew Too Much'
Hitchcock: The Early Years
Monsieur Truffaut Meets Mr. Hitchcock
Psycho
Shirley Maclaine: Kicking Up Her Heels
The Universal Story
Ingrid Bergman Remembered
Lifepod
Star Life
Tales from the Crypt
Cary Grant: A Celebration of a Leading Man
Gregory Peck: His Own Man
Saavi
The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Memory of the Camps
Terror in the Aisles
Frontline
Family Plot
Spécial cinéma
The Men Who Made the Movies
The Men Who Made the Movies: Alfred Hitchcock
Masters Of Cinema - Alfred Hitchcock
Frenzy
Topaz
The Dick Cavett Show
The Movie Orgy
Mondo Hollywood
Torn Curtain
Cinema: Alfred Hitchcock
Marnie
A Talk with Hitchcock
The Birds
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
Alcoa Premiere
Psycho
Startime
North by Northwest
Vertigo
Suspicion
The Wrong Man
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Cinépanorama
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Chaney Vase
The Trouble with Harry
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
To Catch a Thief
Rear Window
Dial M for Murder
The Oscars
I Confess
Strangers on a Train
Lux Video Theatre
Stage Fright
What's My Line?
Robert Montgomery Presents
Under Capricorn
Rope
The Paradine Case
Notorious
Spellbound
Watchtower Over Tomorrow
The Fighting Generation
Lifeboat
Aventure Malgache
Show-Business at War
Shadow of a Doubt
Saboteur
Suspicion
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Foreign Correspondent
Rebecca
The House Across the Bay
Jamaica Inn
The Lady Vanishes
Young and Innocent
Sabotage
Secret Agent
The 39 Steps
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Waltzes from Vienna
Lord Camber's Ladies
Number Seventeen
Rich and Strange
Mary
The Skin Game
Murder!
Elstree Calling
An Elastic Affair
Juno and the Paycock
Blackmail
The Manxman
Champagne
Easy Virtue
The Farmer's Wife
Downhill
The Ring
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog
The Pleasure Garden
The Mountain Eagle
The Blackguard
The Passionate Adventure
The White Shadow
Always Tell Your Wife
Woman to Woman
The Man From Home
The Spanish Jade
Number 13
Three Live Ghosts
The Bonnie Brier Bush