Although Alfred Hitchcock is dead, he`s surely not forgotten.
Hitchcock not only directed a series of films that have become perennial video favorites, but also created a cinematic style that has been emulated by such directors as Brian De Palma and Jonathan Demme (”The Silence of the Lambs”). Here are some of the films that best mimic the look and feel of the style that earned Hitchcock the title ”master of suspense.”
”The Last Embrace” (1979): This exceptional early Demme film borrows heavily from Hitchcock. Roy Scheider plays a CIA agent who is tracking down and being tracked by a diligent killer. Janet Margolin is the moody female lead who plays a mysterious cat-and-mouse game with Scheider. The film is wonderfully capped with an edge-of-your-seat climax at Niagara Falls.
”Body Double” (1984): De Palma`s uneven but addicting murder mystery incorporates numerous Hitchcock references (a murder setup from ”North by Northwest,” claustrophobia instead of Jimmy Stewart`s dizziness from
”Vertigo,” a telescope instead of the telescopic camera lens from ”Rear Window”) and also manages to lampoon the horror movies of the 1980s. Craig Wasson plays a young Los Angeles actor who blindly walks into a murder plot, and Melanie Griffith plays the porno actress who reluctantly helps him out.
”Dressed to Kill” (1980): De Palma borrowed heavily from ”Psycho” and again from ”Vertigo” in this tight, sexual and often scary murder mystery. Angie Dickinson is a promiscuous housewife who is savagely murdered in an elevator. Not satisfied with the police investigation, Dickinson`s whiz kid son (Keith Gordon) tries to lure the killer back out, enlisting the help of a reluctant prostitute (Nancy Allen) who witnessed the murder. Also stars Michael Caine.
”The Double McGuffin” (1979): ”McGuffin” is the term Hitchcock used to describe the ”thing” (the uranium in ”Notorious,” the microfilm in
”North by Northwest,” etc.) coveted by the characters in his movie-sort of the driving force of the movie. This lively family movie, directed by Joe Camp, is rife with references to his films. The story centers on the discovery of a Middle East assassination plot by some teenagers. An eclectic cast includes Vincent Spano, Ernest Borgnine, George Kennedy, Elke Summer and Lyle Alzado.
”High Anxiety” (1977): Actor-director Mel Brooks paid tribute to Hitchcock in this parody that satirizes key scenes from numerous Hitchcock films (”The Birds,” ”Vertigo,” etc.). The plot revolves around
psychiatrist Brooks taking over a creepy sanitarium. Not the funniest of Brooks` endeavors, the film is still a lot of fun especially for Hitchcock fans. Stars Brooks regulars Harvey Korman, Madeline Kahn and Cloris Leachman. ”Bedroom Window” (1987): This is Hitchcock with a twist of sex, directed by Curtis Hanson. Steve Guttenberg plays an architect having an affair with his boss` wife (Isabelle Hubert). When he reports a murder she has witnessed but is too scared to talk about, he becomes the prime suspect. From there, the plot thickens and twists like Hitchcockian taffy. An addicting little movie despite the wide-eyed performance of Guttenberg.
”Psycho II” (1983): This sequel picks up 23 years after the original Hitchcock film left off. A ”rehabilitated” Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins)
returns to the Bates Motel only to find things as peculiar as usual. Although a bit more gory than the original, the film pays homage to Hitchcock with its spooky and numerous surprises. Directed by Richard Franklin (”Cloak and Dagger”), who studied under Hitchcock at the University of Southern California film school.
”Frantic” (1988): Roman Polanski borrowed heavily from Hitchcock`s
”The Man Who Knew Too Much” in this somber but occasionally very funny murder mystery. Harrison Ford plays an American doctor whose wife (Betty Buckley) is mysteriously kidnapped from their Paris hotel room. Of course, the Paris police don`t believe Ford and it`s up to him to rescue Buckley. The journey takes him through the Paris underground and to a larger and more sinister plot.
”Suspect” (1987): Cher plays a public defender in Washington who is trying to free a homeless person (”Darkman`s” Liam Neeson) from a murder charge. Things look bleak until nosy juror Dennis Quaid begins his own investigation. The film has many Hitchcock-like plot twists and an excellent cast that includes Chicago`s John Mahoney and Joe Mantegna.
