Film Techniques In Alfred Hitchcock's Film The Birds

In “The Birds”, written by Daphne DuMaurier, the author creates suspense to reveal a theme in the story by only giving the reader snippets of information at a time and not explaining all that is happening. At the beginning of the story when the birds first start to attack, they try to explain what is happening, saying that “there are birds in there . . . it’s as though a madness seized them, with the east wind.” . . . it’s the weather”

Hitchcock utilizes sound, camera work, MacGuffins, and plot twists to tell the storylines of the movies. Hitchcock understood the importance of camera work and sound because he began his career making silent films.12 It is why he uses many close up shots so the audience can pay attention to specific details and the emotions on the character’s face. He does not rely on dialogue to tell the story. He uses sound to help convey the message of a scene.

In fact, this was Hitchcock’s first major American film, and he was able to explore the true American family of the time. Thornton Wilder was chosen to expand the treatment into a screenplay, and he was the one who proposed the opening of Shadow of a Doubt, which was a nod to Hemingway’s well-known story “The Killers.” Together, Wilder and Hitchcock meticulously crafted the plot and how each piece of information in the story would be revealed to the audience. Later, Hitchcock believed that the structure of the intense story was solid but that the characters and dialogue needed to be improved. Sally Benson was recruited for this task to add humor, modern touches, and freshness to the family

It is obvious that the bird has murdered considering it has a wrung neck. Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale have just found what appears to be the cause of the murder, considering Mr. Wright’s neck was also

Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters contemplate this disturbing discovery, and they wonder who else could be capable of this act of violence. They know Mrs. Wright surely did not do it, as she cared for the bird greatly, she even “used to sing real pretty herself” and the women have already concluded “she would’ve liked a bird.” That leaves Mr. Wright, and due to the fact that he broke the birdcage, it is only reasonable that he killed the bird as well. This realization that the women make leads them to what the men have been searching for all day, a motive. Mr. Wright likes the quiet, so he killed the singing canary which happens to be the only thing bringing happiness to Mrs. Wright.

Rear Window by Alfred Hitchcock is a fillm full of symbolism and motifs that provides viewers with a bigger meaning. It shows these rhetorical appeals through Hitchcok’s eyes that would not be recognized if not analyzed. Through these appeals I have recognized the window as being a symbol and marriage and binoculars as motifs. After understanding much more than what the eye anitially sees when viewing this film there is a fine line between understanding what is going on in the film and observing what the protagonist Jeff is viewing.

How long do you think you would survive a bird apocalypse? A month? A week? A day? The main characters in both versions of The Birds face this problem.

Alfred Hitchcock successfully performs suspense and shock in a number of ways. One way was when he reveals that the cop is following her, making us think that he found out concerning the money she stole. Another way is when we see Norman staring through the hole, examining her as if he is waiting to make his move. The last technique that Hitchcock constructed suspense is when we identify a shadowy character gazing at her take a shower, making us wonder who it could

1. In the film, Birdman directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu is about a man named Riggan, whose well known as the “Birdman.” In the film we witness Riggan struggling who is making his mark in the world using broadway. When he achieved his fame as “Birdman”, he isolated himself from the screen as he battled with his inner voices which later caused him to commit suicide. His inner voices in the beginning of the film weren’t as powerful as it was towards the end.

In contrast, “The Birds” story took place post WWII in the 1950s on the coast of Great Britain. In the story the time of year was winter

These were explored by the use of the motifs of birds, eyes, hands and mirrors (Filmsite.org, n.d.). Hitchcock skilfully guides the audiences through a tale

The ratio of birds to humans is approximately 300 to 7, so if humans were attacked by a mass of birds, there’s a very slim possibility of survival, if any possibility. This is the base of the plot of Daphne du Maurier’s short story, The Birds (1952), and Alfred Hitchcock’s movie adaptation of the same name, which came out in 1963. While there are similarities between them, such as the conflict and the theme, there are also differences, such as the characters and the setting. This essay will be covering the similarities and the differences between the short story and the film. There are a few similarities between the short story and the movie, like the conflict and the theme.

The death is then contrasted with a young redhead as he runs through the brush, this is a very innocent image (Binary opposites). It is shot from the side and you have to look closely to make him out, this tells us something is hiding or we do not see everything. He then picks up the dead bird and we go back to signs of death and danger. We then here ambient noise including crickets which is quite a peaceful sound and so the audience are lulled into a false sense of security.

The reader quickly learns that Nat is very resourceful as he knows to go get food from the farm while it is daylight and the birds will not attack. Maurier uses characterization to not only describe Nat, but many other characters throughout the story. As you can see, foreshadowing, imagery, and characterization are just a few of the literary elements that give “The Birds” an intense story line. They help to create an exhilarating tale that keeps the reader engaged and wondering what will happen next. Maurier’s use of these components helped to make the short story into a hit American horror film in 1963.

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF PAUL CELAN’S POETRY AND ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S MOVIE, ‘THE BIRDS’, CASTING A SPOTLIGHT ON THE PORTRAYAL OF TRAUMA A writer uses words and phrases to describe a scene, whereas, a film - maker uses pictures to depict a scene. Interior monologues and expression of thoughts characterize a literary work. On the other hand, settings, props, costume, looks, gesture and movement of a character formulate the essence of a movie. Inevitable storyline compression in a movie, confines its scope of expression, in contrast to a literary piece, where an author has liberty of thought and expression. Despite all these divergences, a parallel can be drawn