For being developed and released in the year 1972, this is a very impressive film. Frenzy, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, gives us one of the last glimpses into the mind of one of our greatest cinematic geniuses. While his style in this film is a bit different than what you may expect from seeing his earlier films, Frenzy is still a complete and utter Hitchcockian thriller. From the opening shot, to the uncanny cameo, to the swiftly tilting plot, anyone who has witnessed Hitchcock at his best will be able to see the mastery behind this film. The acting is superb and only helps to accentuate the brilliant eye that Hitchcock had to give us just what we came asking for. While he gives us a story that we may all be familiar with, it is the way in which he tells the story that makes Frenzy worth mentioning to friends and family.
The genius about this film is that instead of having your usual murder mystery that Hollywood has reproduced a thousand times, Hitchcock balances this story between our hero and villain. In complete Hitchcock form, he tells us, the audience, whom the murderer is right from the beginning so that we do not sit in our seats trying to bend our minds over whom it truly is doing this evil deed. He does this so that we can focus on the insanity of being the "wrong" man and the sadistic pleasure the other finds from not being in the police spotlight. He does this will sheer delight and the brilliance of a true filmmaker. What is continually enthralling about this is that we, the audience, are still kept on the edge of our seat. We know who the murderer is, we know why he is doing this, yet we still bite our nails and wonder how it will turn out. You do not see films of this caliber any more. Even at the end, Hitchcock has us guessing what will happen next up until the final credits roll. He does not allow us a break, and for that I am grateful.
There were some incredible scenes in this film that left a lasting impression on me as well as my idea of film. For example, the way that Hitchcock filmed the rape scene early in the film was shocking, powerful, and very risky for its time. Here we have a man, repeating the same monstrous words to a woman that he has forced himself on, while she repeats the inner voice inside of her out towards us. It sent a shiver down my spine like no other scene of this nature had. It was graphic, yet honest. It was raw, yet somehow cinematic ally intense. I had never seen a scene filmed like this in the past, so this was a sheer bold and stunning. Another scene that literally caught my eye was the moment when Babs leaves the bar, pauses, and right behind her is Rusk. The irony was killing me. It was so macabre that you couldn't help but laugh at the situation that was about to unfold. I felt that same way when I was watching Rusk with the potato sack. While I did think the length of the scene was a bit too much and at times a bit over-dramatic, I did see why Hitchcock left it in there. He was literally giving you the light side of serial killing, the parts that should perhaps make you smile, but instead they have this deeply rooted dark underbelly that keeps your hands firmly in front of your eyes or behind a pillow. It is frightening to think how Hitchcock could have changed the face of cinema today if he were alive to wave his magic wand. It would be powerful.
Outside of the brilliant man behind the camera and the fascinating way to tell an age old story, I thought that the actors did a decent job with what they were handed. While I think that the Golden Globe was mostly for Hitchcock himself, I was pleasantly surprised with Jon Finch's character portrayal and the suave coolness of Barry Foster. I thought that both of these actors did an exceptional job of counterbalancing the story. One was truly evil, while the other just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Both controlled their roles with ease, but then again, with Hitchcock behind the camera, a story like this should just fall into place.
While I have spoken very highly of this film, there were some small moments where I just felt Hitchcock could have gone further, pulled back, or just found the point instead of rummaging around a potato truck for it. That scene in particular did it for me. It was way too long and a bit too humorous for my liking. Also, the nudity was not needed in this film. I don't remember seeing a Hitchcock film with so much nudity, and I understand he was just trying to keep his films fresh for the 70s, but something can be said for style and class, and I felt there was just a bit of both lacking from this film. Outside of these small bits, the rest was flawless. I especially loved the court scene where all we had to rely on was the emotions of the convicted. Finally, who couldn't laugh at the fact that the only one to mess up the life of Blaney, to see the truth blurred and hypothetical, was the secretary that wore glasses. Ahh, it was good to see that Hitchcock has not forgotten all of his roots.
Overall, this was a very dark and disturbing picture that has captured the essence of originality and suspense. You need to see this film more than once to fully absorb everything that Hitchcock has to offer.
Grade: **** out of *****
The genius about this film is that instead of having your usual murder mystery that Hollywood has reproduced a thousand times, Hitchcock balances this story between our hero and villain. In complete Hitchcock form, he tells us, the audience, whom the murderer is right from the beginning so that we do not sit in our seats trying to bend our minds over whom it truly is doing this evil deed. He does this so that we can focus on the insanity of being the "wrong" man and the sadistic pleasure the other finds from not being in the police spotlight. He does this will sheer delight and the brilliance of a true filmmaker. What is continually enthralling about this is that we, the audience, are still kept on the edge of our seat. We know who the murderer is, we know why he is doing this, yet we still bite our nails and wonder how it will turn out. You do not see films of this caliber any more. Even at the end, Hitchcock has us guessing what will happen next up until the final credits roll. He does not allow us a break, and for that I am grateful.
There were some incredible scenes in this film that left a lasting impression on me as well as my idea of film. For example, the way that Hitchcock filmed the rape scene early in the film was shocking, powerful, and very risky for its time. Here we have a man, repeating the same monstrous words to a woman that he has forced himself on, while she repeats the inner voice inside of her out towards us. It sent a shiver down my spine like no other scene of this nature had. It was graphic, yet honest. It was raw, yet somehow cinematic ally intense. I had never seen a scene filmed like this in the past, so this was a sheer bold and stunning. Another scene that literally caught my eye was the moment when Babs leaves the bar, pauses, and right behind her is Rusk. The irony was killing me. It was so macabre that you couldn't help but laugh at the situation that was about to unfold. I felt that same way when I was watching Rusk with the potato sack. While I did think the length of the scene was a bit too much and at times a bit over-dramatic, I did see why Hitchcock left it in there. He was literally giving you the light side of serial killing, the parts that should perhaps make you smile, but instead they have this deeply rooted dark underbelly that keeps your hands firmly in front of your eyes or behind a pillow. It is frightening to think how Hitchcock could have changed the face of cinema today if he were alive to wave his magic wand. It would be powerful.
Outside of the brilliant man behind the camera and the fascinating way to tell an age old story, I thought that the actors did a decent job with what they were handed. While I think that the Golden Globe was mostly for Hitchcock himself, I was pleasantly surprised with Jon Finch's character portrayal and the suave coolness of Barry Foster. I thought that both of these actors did an exceptional job of counterbalancing the story. One was truly evil, while the other just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Both controlled their roles with ease, but then again, with Hitchcock behind the camera, a story like this should just fall into place.
While I have spoken very highly of this film, there were some small moments where I just felt Hitchcock could have gone further, pulled back, or just found the point instead of rummaging around a potato truck for it. That scene in particular did it for me. It was way too long and a bit too humorous for my liking. Also, the nudity was not needed in this film. I don't remember seeing a Hitchcock film with so much nudity, and I understand he was just trying to keep his films fresh for the 70s, but something can be said for style and class, and I felt there was just a bit of both lacking from this film. Outside of these small bits, the rest was flawless. I especially loved the court scene where all we had to rely on was the emotions of the convicted. Finally, who couldn't laugh at the fact that the only one to mess up the life of Blaney, to see the truth blurred and hypothetical, was the secretary that wore glasses. Ahh, it was good to see that Hitchcock has not forgotten all of his roots.
Overall, this was a very dark and disturbing picture that has captured the essence of originality and suspense. You need to see this film more than once to fully absorb everything that Hitchcock has to offer.
Grade: **** out of *****