Customer Reviews
5-star Hitchcock - By: Greshon, 18 Sep 2008 
I don't really have anyhting to say about this film but, having just rewatched it, I do feel like adding to the praise. It's such a good film.
Mesmerising. The complex set is ingenious. James Stweart is wonderful. Grace Kelly is gorgeous. The mystery reels youin & the suspense is built very skillfully, leading to a truly nail-biting climax. I like the clever way the neighbours' lives reflect the lives of Jeff & Lisa. Beautiful (very colourful) restoration, too.
The British touch in American cinema - By: Jacques COULARDEAU, 14 Aug 2008 This film has become a cult film with time. Everything seems to be at that level though the situation & plot are rather light. What is important here is that Hitchcock transforms this back yard & garden surrounded by buildings all around & a highly voyeuristic microcosm into a complete vision of human society with all its dramas, & its pleasures & joys. To transform such a small microcosm entirely closed onto itself into a vision of the whole society we hardly get a couple of glimpses of through an alley opening onto the main street is marvelous & amazing. The second phenomenal fact is that the main actor is a wheelchair-ridden man with a severely broken legin a cast. How can the whole world completely turn & whirl around that sole man? It is only possible because it is absolutely seen through the only eyes of this man or the eyes of the people standing next to him. There is only one instance when the point of vision is not his own eyes but a point outsidein the yard-garden: at the end when he is being dropped from his window & then we get for a very short period of time the vision from the cops' eyes. This gives to that film such a personal dimension that it is nearly sickening: we have the impression of invading the privacy of that man. In fact what I have just said is false because he alternates what the man can see & close-up shots on him to show his personal reactions to what he has just seen. This constant alternating of voyeuristic sequences from the eyes of one man & close-up shots on his body language & language forces us into his own skin, body, bones. We are no longer voyeurs but ghostsin him seeing through his eyes. We are the direct witnesses of what he sees because we see it with him, through his own eyes & we start feeling the same emotions as he does. Of course everything is seen through the camera, but Hitchcock even uses some tools to emphasize the voyeuristic dimension & force us into it: a camera with a zooming lens that is so big that the camera becomes minuscule, or binoculars that are of course too big for the distance across the back yard & later the flash bulbs to force us not to see through the eyes of the murderer but to be seen through the eyes of the murderer. The last point I would like to insist on is that Hitchcock shows a murder but he is not interestedin the murder per se butin the reactions of the witnesses, those who see everything & how they are blind to what they see. Then he builds up the slow recognitionin their eyes, language & behavior, & then they become obsessive about it, to the point of becoming if not courageous at least unconscious of the risks they are taking or running. That too is remarkable & that nearly makes us get out of the simplistic voyeurism I have spoken of all along & climb into some kind of distantiation from the penned up impression of before, a distantiation that leads us to the idea that couragein a human society is often the result of a conviction that makes us blind to the danger or risk we are facing. Courage is the result of a lack of consciousness more than intensified consciousness. This is the human dimension Hitchcock always brought to his films. And that is kind of lostin our modern action films that do not have one single second now & then to just rest & digest what has happened before.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines
simply THE PERFECT FILM - By: S. J. Pinder, 22 Jul 2008 Rear Window boasts amazing talent & superb direction from Hitchcock which makes this not one of,but the best film by him & one of the most perfect films ever made.
Rear Window combines all the dark humour & atmosphere needed to make a film a rewarding experience & not only that...a supreme atmospheric thriller that relies entirely on tension & pace.
with all the twists & turns you wont know how it all ends up...and makes you anticipate its rewarding conclusion.
the idea of one setting is very clever & it makes the film work a treat.
Rear Window contains the great performances by Grace Kelly & the amazing James Stweart.
it is a wonderfully unique film & demands viewing by everyone.
i love the film & watch it whenever i can & see something newin it almost every time.
it is fantastic & you will be on the edge of your seat the whole way through & will have you attempting to find out just who the murderer is.
it provides chilling scenes that will make you say"oh,go,oh,god"and that is just what the master wants you to do.
the tension is of course the secret that makes this a perfect example of fantastic filmaking.
watch it again...and again.
you wont ever get bored.
One of the best Hitchcocks - By: Chris Wood, 05 Jun 2008 This film is amazing! It builds into an incredibly taut, well paced film. The suspense is handled masterfully & what starts as a mad theory builds into an impressive case. The tension here is as well done as anything I've seen - very strongly recommended.
"We've Become a Race of Peeping Toms" - By: Mark Baker, 11 Apr 2008 
It's summerin New York, but L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies (James Stewart) is trappedin his apartment with a severely broken leg. Aside from the daily visits from his nurse Stella (Thelma Ritter) & girlfriend Lisa (Grace Kelly), his only diversion is watching the peoplein the apartment complex out his back window. And since it is the middle of a horrid heat wave, everyone has their window open at all times.
Late one night, Jeff witness something funny going on across the way. The invalid wifein one of the apartments has vanished & the husband (Raymond Burr) is taking many trips out of the apartment carrying somethingin his suitcase. Jeff quickly assumes the wife was murdered. Enlisting Lisa & Stella's help, he tries to prove it. But is he right? And can he prove it without leaving his own apartment?
I seem to have a weird relationship with Hitchcock. I don't enjoy the movies everyone considers his masterpieces, but I do enjoy his lesser known films. In keeping with this tradition, I didn't enjoy this one as much as I thought I would. The beginning of the film was very slow as the many side stories were set up. Even once the main story got going, I still found it rather slow for my tastes. The ending, however, was exciting if a bit predictable. And the acting was great, bringing the characters to life.
I'm definitely going to keep watching Hitchcock's films. But I'm going to explore all his films to see which ones I think are his best. I doubt that this one, while not his worst, will make the list of his best either.
