Rope

One of my favorite movies is Alfred Hitchcock's "Rope". It was recommended to me by my father, and at the time I was a little sceptical, being that the film was released in 1948. I was young, and I didn't realize that movies from that time are amazing, and carved a path for movies now. Most comments I have seen about this film are negative, people tend to judge things of the past with the eye of today, if you ask me it is a genius classic.


First and for most, I want to talk about the direction and organization of the film. Take a minute to think about any other movie, and how many times it is cut in the editing room. When you watch dialogue between two or more people, the angle changes a lot. Lets make up a number and say that in a 90 minute film there are hundreds of cuts, well in "Rope" an 80 minute film, there are only nine. If you pay attention you will see the cuts, they are disguised with blackouts on the actors backs giving the illusion of a full length film with no cuts. The cameras they used were very big, and the entire film took place in the same apartment, so pulling this off was not easy. Everything had to be planned, and everything had to be perfect. The actors could not miss a single thing, there lines, or there positioning. I think that the way Alfred Hitchcock directed this movie is amazing, the patience and precision that was put into the film is inspiring.


Lets talk about the story. The film takes place in Brandon Shaw (John Dall) and Phillip Morgan's (Farley Granger) apartment. In the apartment they murder their former classmate David Kently (Dick Hogan) with a rope. The two killers hide David's dead body in a big wooden chest in the apartment, the chest resembles a big dinning room table. In an attempt to prove a perfect murder, the two invite Davids friends over for dinner. The friends eat dinner on the table that David's dead body is in, resulting in a very suspenseful awkward dinner. I don't want to ruin the movie for you so I'll stop there, just enough to hopefully get you interested.

I would not say the film is a masterpiece, but I definitely think it is a great movie, and it should be considered a classic. The precise direction from Alfred Hitchcock, and the wonderful acting from James Stewart is something to be seen If you enjoy watching movies. Go rent it at blockbuster, and try not to think about the fact that it is a sixty one year old movie. enjoy!