Classic Trailers: REAR WINDOW

     

     Wednesday's Classic Film Trailer is a good one. A film that is magnificent in every aspect and one that I have seen five or six times. It was recently on Turner Classic Movies and I was hooked, once again, the moment I saw those singular rows of blinds roll up during the opening credits. I am writing of Alfred Hitchcock's classic murder mystery Rear Window, starring the remarkable James Stewart and the beautiful Grace Kelly. A film that is amazing because the whole film takes place in an apartment complex and its courtyard. A film that is seen from and through the point of view of Stewart's character. It is Hitchcock's "peeping tom" film and is my absolute favorite Hitchcock film. The camera work is phenomenal, the acting is perfect and the story and how it unfolds is legendary. I mean, what Hitchcock does with the limitations he has set with the script is brilliant and contains one of Hitchcock's most suspenseful moments when Stewart's character gets caught spying on a neighbor through his binoculars.
     James Stewart plays L.B. Jeffries, a boundless photographer. He is a risk taker and has suffered a broken leg that has left immobilized in a wheelchair. He is stuck in his apartment during the hot summer. Jeffries has an ongoing relationship with the wealthy, elitist Lisa Fremont (Kelly), but Jeffries does not know if she is the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with. He enjoys travelling and going on adventures, where Fremont prefers expensive dinners, clothes and meeting with the social elite. She loves him and wants his involvement in her affairs, but is happy just sitting around the apartment with L.B. It is great to see her playing rich beauty and adventure seeker all at once. She proves herself later in the film and her intoxicating beauty is hard to turn away from. Jeffries, through spying on his neighbors while being extremely bored, witness' a man and his wife fighting. The man goes out once and as the next few days come along, he sees that the man's wife is no longer there. The rest you can unravel and see for yourself like Jeffries does in the film. I highly recommend seeing this classic Hitchcock film. The cast is rounded out by Raymond Burr, Thelma Ritter and Wendell Corey. It was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Director, Best Color Cinematography, Best Sound and Best Screenplay for John Michael Hayes. Hitchcock never shied away from testing the boundaries of cinema and this is a true testament to his genius. A masterpiece. A true classic. Enjoy!

Credits by IMDB and trailer by YouTube.