12 Alfred Hitchcock Movies Which Prove He Is The Master Of Suspense

A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theatre admission and the babysitter were worth it. – Alfred Hitchcock

One of the most iconic figures in the history of cinema is Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock who redefined the way a movie can be directed and shot. His off-track techniques and thrilling style of story telling set him apart. There is a reason he is called the ‘Master Of Suspense’ as he virtually invented the genre. The plots he thought of back then were so out of the box and oozed brilliance that they will still keep you on the edge of your seat!

So, presenting before you the best of Hitchcock’s suspense filmography.

1. The 39 Steps (1935)

This film was made during Hitchcock’s early career in Britain and is one of his best spy mysteries. The movie explores the streets of London and Scottish Countryside maintaining a tight plot and sharp dialogues.

The story is about a man in London who tries to help a counter-espionage agent. But, the agent subsequently gets killed and the man is accused of the murder. The movie lingers around him saving himself and also trying to stop a spy ring which is trying to sack some secret information. The scene of a rousing political impromptu speech in the movie was repeated in Hitchcock’s subsequent movies.

 

2. The Lady Vanishes (1938)

In the movie, a rich young girl gets chatty with a charming old lady on a train and then dozes off. After getting up, she realises that the old lady disappeared from the train. The part where no one on the train believes that she was even there added to the mystery and suspense of the film.

The ensemble created with suspense, mystery and sly comedy is perfected with a cast of Dame May Whitty as the disappearing Miss Froy and some brilliant English actors. The Lady Vanishes was one of the last movies in England by Hitchcock. The box-office success paved his way to Hollywood.

 

3. Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

Santa Rosa is visited by her Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten), who is a very charming man. But Rosa soon realises that he is wanted for a murder and Charlie becomes aware of her suspicions. Later, one of the suspected murders gets killed and the case is closed, Rosa’s suspicions don’t die.

Shadow of a Doubt is one of the finest films by Hitchcock and it features a stellar performance by Joseph Cotten with perfect suburban setting influencing the horror genre. The idea of menace lying in safe and quiet neighbourhood laid the groundwork for upcoming horror movies by Hitchcock.

 

4. Notorious (1946)

U.S. government agent T.R. Devlin (Cary Grant) recruits Alicia Huberman (Ingrid Bergman) in order to help bring Nazis to justice. Alicia, the American daughter of a convicted German war criminal is supposed to be spying for he government when she falls for T.R. Devlin. She is instructed to win the affections of Alexander Sebastian (Claude Rains), a Nazi hiding out in Brazil. Now, Sebastian becomes serious about Alicia and things get complicated. The stake gets higher, but Devlin has no other choice to watch her slip further undercover.

Terrific sexual tension and nail-biting suspense will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout the movie.

 

5. Rope (1948)

Philip Morgan (Farley Granger) and Brandon Shaw (John Dall) kill a mutual friend by strangling him to death by a piece of rope, just before hosting a dinner party. Then they hid the body in a chest on which the buffet dinner is arranged. Both of them welcomed their guests which included victim’s fiancée (Joan Chandler) and the college professor (James Stewart) whose lectures inadvertently inspired the killing.The murder mystery unfolds in a single room step by step in a very classy yet intriguing way.

Hitchcock wanted to shoot the movie in a single take but due to lack of technology, he was not able to. But, to make the film look like one big shot, all the cuts were made on a black screen when the camera zoomed into someone’s back. It was one of the most interesting experiments ever attempted by a major director working with big box-office names. There were only 10 cuts in the entire movie, each one almost 7-10 minutes long!

 

6. Strangers on a Train (1951)

This adapted screenplay of Patricia Highsmith’s thriller book of the same name is another masterpiece by the master of suspense. A guy named Bruno Anthony meets a tennis player Guy Haines on a train. After talking for a while, they eventually realise that they have something in common, a person in their life they want dead. Hence, they make a deal to kill each other’s target. Bruno was supposed to kill Guy’s wife Miriam and Guy was supposed to kill Bruno’s father. After Bruno murders Miriam, Guy backs out of the plan.

Then, Bruno decides to plant evidence against Guy for his wife’s death. Then Guy realises that Bruno is serious and hence he is compelled to comply with his ravings.

 

7. Rear Window (1954)

Sitting in a wheelchair, his leg broken, a photographer (James Stewart) doesn’t know how to kill time. So, he starts observing his neighbours from the rear window of his house. Slowly, it becomes intriguing and he got to know a lot about them by just watching them work every day. And then one day, he witnesses a murder.

An oddly unique plot, bright set and heart-beating anticipation highlight Rear Window, alongside a captivating take at the open windows of New York lofts.

 

8. The Trouble with Harry (1955)

A local man’s corpse is discovered on a hillside, no one is able to figure out how did he die. So, the suspicion of killing him hovers on many town residents including the man’s ex-wife, Jennifer (Shirley MacLaine). The other suspect was Capt. Albert Wiles (Edmund Gwenn), a retired seaman who was hunting in the woods where the body was found.

Few people offer their help including a local artist to unsolved the murder mystery along with the community. The mystery unravels with suspense at its peak.

 

9. Vertigo (1958)

The surreal plot of the movie will leave you thinking about its dreamy scenes for days after you see it. This Hitchcock’s masterpiece is a brooding exploration of obsession and lost love. The dreamlike sequence tells the tail of Kim Novak, who kept slipping in and out of her great grandmother’s personality. The movie also shows the Hitchcockian love story of two lovers (James Stewart & Kim Novak) who are made for each other but fail to place trust in one another.

Hitchcock’s romantic story of obsession, manipulation and fear will lead you towards a cycle of madness and lies. If you haven’t watched it yet, you have missed out on life.

 

10. North by Northwest (1959)

In an excellent instance of mixed up character, Roger Thornhill is tossed head first into the universe of espiange when he is erroneously named a spy by the name of George Kaplan. In his endeavours to escape and attempt and demonstrate he isn’t a spy, things go from terrible to more regrettable when is accused of murder. Now, he is running from the police and as yet attempting to make sense of who George Kaplan is, he meets a wonderful blonde lady, Eva Kendall who helps him sidestep the powers. In any case, in a world loaded with untruths and spies, would he be able to trust this delightful outsider?

This movie has a perfect mix up of classic Hitchcock elements like confusing identity, wrong accusation, an icy blonde, a touch of homoeroticism, a meeting on a train, a little voyeurism and a woman sent to seduce a spy for love of her country.

 

11. Psycho (1960)

The best known work of Hitchcock, Psycho practically created the genre of horror-thriller. The plot of the movie and the infamous shower scene has been recreated uncountable times in films, television shows and other mediums. He was the first to create a twisted plot where the leading lady of the movie died in the middle of the film.

The story starts with Marion Crane, who is entrusted with $40,000 by her employer and is battling her morals on how to use the money. She finally decides to steal the money to start a new life with her lover Sam. She is driving towards California when she decides to take a break and spend the night in a hotel. The hotel’s run by a man named Norman Bates who seem to have unusual attachment to his mother.

The story takes a solid twist when Norman murders Marion in shower wearing his mother’s costume. Hence, the concept of psychotic killer was born.

 

12. The Birds (1963)

This classic and off beat movie is of the most unforgettable creations by Hitchcock. The story is about inexplicable avian attack on a calm seaside town. All kinds of events like birthday parties, innocent farmers and school teachers are attacked in a vicious way by birds. This ecological fable has brilliant special effects showing the huge flocks attacking humans, considering the time it was made in. Trained birds, mechanical birds and animated birds have the scenes absolutely spectacular.

The scene with crows settling on children’s play ground, one by one, will haunt you for quite some time.

There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it.

Cover Image Source