To Catch A Thief

NOTE: This post is a review of a Hitchcock film that was seen projected on 35mm at the Belcourt Theater in Nashville, TN, as part of their Alfred Hitchcock: Master of Suspense Series. These movies were not watched on DVD, but in a theater, projected on film.

It's funny, because I remember seeing this on DVD a few years ago, and I went back and read my review of it, and I said something to the effect that it was a very "competent" film. Seeing it on the big screen (or, perhaps, it was the years distance) definitely changed my mind on this one. I think it's now one of my favorite Hitchcock's, along with Psycho.

To Catch A Thief s the story of a retired cat burglar, John Robie (Cary Grant), who must solve a rash of burglaries done in his old style in order to clear his name. No one believes him, but help comes in the way of Frances Stevens (Grace Kelly), a bored socialite who falls in love with Robie, and her mother Jessie (Jessica Royce Landis).

The acting, such as it is for the period is fantastic, and Kelly is the real stand out here. Every time I see her on screen, I'm reminded of what a travesty it was that her career was ended early. She seems so natural, she's almost weightless on screen. Hitchcock captures the French Riviera with flair, opulence, and rich cinematic tones. This truly is, I think, one of his best.

Rear Window

NOTE: This post is a review of a Hitchcock film that was seen projected on 35mm at the Belcourt Theater in Nashville, TN, as part of their Alfred Hitchcock: Master of Suspense Series. These movies were not watched on DVD, but in a theater, projected on film.

Rear Window is kind of amazing in that it almost pre-supposes things like reality TV. The whole premise of the movie is based on how much people are fascinated with other people's "normal" lives. Jimmy Stewart plays LB Jefferies, a photographer who has been injured and laid up in his apartment. He spends all of his time in a wheelchair, watching the lives of his neighbors, through their windows. One day, though, he thinks that he might have witnessed one of the neighbors, a man by the name of Thorwald (played by Raymond Burr) murder their wife.

Hitchcock does an amazing job at giving you the run around here. Most of the time, you're not quite sure whether Thorwald did it or not. Every time Jefferies seems to come up with some bit of evidence against him, there's evidence that say's he didn't do it. The more obsessed Jefferies becomes, the cloudier things get. I think it's an interesting comment, too, that he gets his girlfriend and nurse involved in the spying. They are both hesitant, at first, but eventually fall into the paranoia, much like a show like Honey Boo-Boo will start off with a few watchers, and balloon based on how many crazy and stupid things that little girl and her family can cram into an episode.

DVD - To Catch A Thief

Hitchcock is pretty reliable, and To Catch a Thief keeps the status quo. The film stars Cary Grant as John Robie aka The Cat, a retired master thief. When someone on the French Riviera begins stealing high dollar jewels using The Cat's old M.O., Robie has to come out of retirement in order to clear his name. Along the way, he meets the gorgeous and single Frances Stevens (played by the gorgeous Grace Kelly), and begins romancing her as a way to keep his cover while investigating the robberies.

The story for Thief is pretty basic, but enjoyable, and Grant and Kelly, as always, pull off great performances. Hitchcock does an amazing job at photographing the French Riviera for the exterior scenes, and making sure that all of the sound stage stuff matches with the look and feel. Although Thief is not one of his more well known films, overshadowed by his thrillers from the same era, it's still a reliably enjoyable piece of work.