Research: Alfred Hitchcock's Visual Storytelling

Rear Window (1954)

Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 film Rear Window is interesting as the entire film is looked at from one angle and point of view; from James Stewart's character Jeff; a photojournalist who has his leg in a cast and is unable to get out of his apartment. With these obstructions in mind, Hitchcock has cleverly used techniques of visual language and editing to give identities to the neighbours and create tension when the nearest threat to Jeff is all the way on the other side of the block unaware they are being watched.

Looking Out The Window:

Visual Components:

Space:

Space is simply defined from the only point of view we have; Jeff's. Because he is only able to look out his window, Hitchcock has used a lot of one-point perspective. This is to emphasise on how restricted Jeff is. Hitchcock could have chosen to use different version of space to create the tension he wanted for spying on a murderer such as two-point perspective. But, he chose to use one-point perspective to constantly remind the audience that we are in Jeff's position; in a wheelchair with a cast on our leg, looking out a rear window.

Line:

There is one most obvious use of line in this film, it couldn't stick out any more than it does. From Jeff's point of view in his apparent, we can see that there is a majority of straight horizontal and vertical lines in the neighbourhood. This does not imply anything unusual about the neighbours. However, there is one obvious diagonal ladder that always draws attention to the eye in ever moving and static shot it's placed in.

This diagonal line is placed so that it leads to the outside of Thorwald's flat (the antagonist). Also, the line leads up to the apartment above him; which also happens to be where the owners of a dog he strangled live. Hitchcock has brilliantly placed this line to make Thorwald stick out as the antagonist and also foreshadow who his next victim is after he murders his wife; with the reliance on eye-trace of the audience to follow the directions of the line itself. And even though other lines on the set are diagonal, this one stands out above the rest as it is the only diagonal line we see from our perspective with Jeff in the film.

Colour:

Hitchcock has a specific use of colour in this film. And it is used specifically on one person; Miss Lonleyheart. In every scene that she appears in, she wears a shade of green and it is highly vibrant and saturated. If you correlate this with the fact that she is a woman living on her own; pretending to have someone to dinner and going into a restaurant with a vibrant green outfit, one word can define her character overall: envy.

She desires the company of a significant other. She relies upon strong drink for motivation to go out and meet someone and when it all goes horribly wrong, she considers suicide. All this time, she wears a shade of green to show how she envies other people's lives and relationships and how she desires such things as a lonely woman.

Shape:

When using shape in a specific way, Hitchcock describes the character of Miss Torso. He does this with Squares:

For 90% of the film, Miss Torso is seen through square window as shown above. She also has a fencing filled with tiny squares as well. The implication here; and is also clarified later in the film, is that she is a ballet dancer; naturally balanced and with composure and routine. Much like the equal, symmetrical and balanced geometrical properties of a square.

With these visual components, Hitchcock has been able to set up each character that Jeff has his eye on without the need for dialogue or any form of backstory. Each visual component is associated with that character and is used specifically for them in that purpose. This creates a very effective way of showing the complexity of the stories plot with the obstruction of being confined to one scene that is the neighbourhood block.

Editing:

In my opinion, the most intense scene with the use of editing is not the moment when Thorwald breaks in to Jeff's apartment. It's watching Lisa confronting Thorwald in his apartment. However, Hitchcock has not used any quick cuts. The only cuts we see our when we go back to short takes of Jeff's fearful reaction to what we see. The intensity comes from the long takes, the reduction of audio and a wide shot.

The reason why this is so intense with so little use of cutting is because of where we are as an audience looking in. If we remember that we are in Jeff's point of view throughout the film, we realise that we're confined to only his point of view in the wheelchair and cast. So in every respect when watching, we feel like Jeff. Therefore, when watching this transpire, we are helpless, useless and disabled; unable to run to the rescue, unable to call out without being caught and unable to react quickly to it at all. All we can do is watch from a far. And because it's so far away and out of our reach to aid Lisa, it makes the scene all the more tense.

Looking Through The Window:

Cinematography:

When we're not looking out the window, we come into Jeff's apartment. This is where the audience can be allowed to stop being curious or be wary of the intensity and tension of the drama out the window. They can get on a more personal level with Jeff and Lisa's relationship. To show this reduction in intensity and to make the audience more comfortable, Hitchcock has consistently used the rule of thirds to make the shots feel pleasant to the audience:

Line:

Another use of visual language that Hitchcock uses from inside the window is with line; for a similar use as he did with Thorwald's diagonal ladder:

Closure with the three points of interest foreshadow the tension of the following scene from the one above. Stella, Jeff and Lisa form a triangle, one that is pointing directly at Lisa. This is the foreshadowing of her putting herself in danger by climbing into Thorwald's apartment to find evidence.

*Notes taken during screening*

• Opening scene is one long pan
• Editing cuts back and forth between him and lonely woman across the block
• Everything he talks about with other people is summed up in events outside the window
• Diagonal line becomes centre of attention the moment antagonist starts to act suspicious
• Cuts to Jeff needing to scratch an itch far away from him (His frustration with the detective)
• Ms Lonlyheart wears saturated green (envy)
• Rule of thirds (Doyle, Lisa and Jeff)
• Shallow depth of field
• Intensity created by contrast of wide and close up shots
• High Angle low lighting intensity as Thorwald approaches
• Chairoscuro Lighting

Dial M for Murder (1954)

Whilst Dial M for Murder is mostly focused of the theatrical performance of the actor; being based off a play, Hitchcock still uses some manner of visual components to tell the story.

Use of colour:

In Grace Kelly's performance, her costume changes significantly through specific points from the plot to the actual attempt on her characters life.

In the opening scene, she wears a white dress to imply that she is the innocent loving wife to the man she's kissing that is her husband.

Soon after this scene, her costume changes from white to red causing a large contrast in colour. The red resembles her deceit and lust for her American lover.

Leading up to the break in, she has more affinity of colour to resemble the negative implications of red. However, her costume is more blood red; foreshadowing the danger ahead of her.

Finally, at the point where she gets attacked, there is contrast again to show that she is now vulnerable in white with a shady figure standing behind her.

Controlling colour in this way, Hitchcock has varied the mood of the scenes leading up to the attack and what we as an audience should be expecting to feel; even though the performance has mapped out everything that takes place in the plot to kill her.

Studying Hitchcock has helped me to realise even better just how easy it is to have complexity in a film's plot with the simplest use of visual language. When used in the right way, it's very easy and can save a lot of jargon that can come with dialogue.