Directed by:
Alfred HitchcockScreenplay:
Evan HunterCinematography:
Robert BurksCast:
Tippi Hedren, Rod Taylor, Jessica Tandy, Suzanne Pleshette, Veronica Cartwright, Charles McGraw, Lonny Chapman, Joe Mantell, Ruth McDevitt, Ethel Griffies (more)VOD (2)
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Classic horror directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Spoiled socialite Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) pursues lawyer Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor) to his Bodega Bay home after they meet in a bird shop. Melanie sails across the bay to deliver the gift of a lovebird to Mitch's young sister, only to be attacked by a gull on her way back. Soon random attacks on humans are taking place all over Bodega, as birds of all varieties mass in their thousands overhead. (Universal Pictures UK)
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Reviews (10)
Considering when it was made, the special effects are absolutely excellent. Hitch did a good job and how he builds up the atmosphere, layer after layer, from one attack to another, is genius. Never a dull moment, even before the feathered actors arrive on the scene. The very nicely constructed, relatively untraditional courting storyline is amusing and captures your attention. If only all directors and screen play writers also dedicated such care to their projects these days.
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The Birds is still as sensational as I remembered it, a joy to behold. Perhaps what I admire most is the gradual building of the atmosphere and how smoothly the film moves from an interesting relationship drama full of likeable characters to a fierce thriller with a fight for life. Each scene with the birds is not only incredibly suspenseful, but also even more suspenseful than the last, so that the amazingly chilling attack on the schoolchildren is trumped within minutes by the "pterocalypse" in the city, which is later surpassed by the multiple horror finale in the house. The technical aspects of the film are still extremely impressive, and if it strikes anyone as dated, then please let it be - I continue to find The Birds terrifying and probably always will.
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The horror passages are truly chilling and excellently filmed, but we wait an awfully long time for them. The meticulous character study in the first half only works at first, but gradually Hitchcock falls into stereotype, and as the wait for "something" drags on, boredom slowly creeps in, which is the first time this has happened to me in his films. Regardless, The Birds is still incredibly well-crafted for its time, from the patient direction and sober script to the superb editing and eccentric use of colour, and it's hard to imagine a remake ever challenging its refinement in the future. Hitchcock may have made better stuff, but the same can be said for Spielberg and his Jaws – even that one is now seen as a major cult classic. 75%
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The first half is a very, very long exposition. Hitch tries to gradually build up the tension, but the result is a bit boring with all the unnecessarily long dialogues that don't move the plot anywhere. But the second half is a different story. A terrifying, omnipresent threat from an unusual enemy, brilliantly filmed. So, the overall result is very good. BTW: The short story is still better :)
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The Birds is an absorbing character study with beautiful color composition, a masterfully built atmosphere and hypnotically captivating fluidity of the action. At first glance, it is “only” a wonderful-looking commercial supernatural horror movie, but on closer inspection, it is a work of art with a poignant existential subtext. With the passage of time, it has become a cinematic gem.
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