Was Hitchcock a creep?

[Cort Haus]

I just watched 'Vertigo', because I like James Stewart. I thought the film was alright until the last hour, when it became a bit of a creep-fest, with a predictable outcome.

I'm wondering whether Hitchcock got personal pleasure out of dramatising his fantasies of violently dominating women, killing them, and blaming them, all simultaneously. It seems to be a bit of a theme in his movies.

[Heresson]

Well, he was creepy when it comes his relations towards women who played in his films.
But, on the other hand, he was catholic

[Az]

Well, he was creepy when it comes his relations towards women who played in his films.
But, on the other hand, he was catholic

heh.

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Heresson
he was catholic

splains it then.

[Zero]

it would help to be a weirdo to make weird things. thats why most artsy guys are bit freaky.

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Zero
it would help to be a weirdo to make weird things. thats why most artsy guys are bit freaky.

I've nothing against wierd. Kubrick could be considered wierd, but not creepy.

[Monk]

If you haven't already, you might want to read Laura Mulvey's essay which includes thoughts on Vertigo and other Hitchcock movies. You don't have to agree with her radical feminist theory to find her observations in this matter interesting.

http://www.brown.edu/Departments/MCM/nothing/index.php/Visual_Pleasure_and_Narrative_Cinema

[Bkeela]

Since when is it creepy to want to dominate and kill women?

[TheStinger]

IIRC he used to spy on Grace Kelly undressing

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Bkeela
Since when is it creepy to want to dominate and kill women?

Well, you apparantly have no problem with it.

A director who spends an hour of a film slowly and mercilessly dragging a woman through humiliation to her death, and clearly enjoys the process, is a creep in my book.

[Zoid]

He was a creepy old sod indeed. In The Birds he almost caused Tippi Hedren to have a mental breakdown. The scene towards the end where she's attacked by all the birds took a week to shoot. The birds were actually tied to her clothes with nylon threds so they couldn´t get away... They had to shut down filming for more than a week afterwards to give her the chance to recuperate. Not to mention that he gave Tippis daughther Melanie Griffith a doll that looked exactly like her mother and came in a coffin shaped wooden box...

He was infamous with cast and crews for his "practical jokes." While some inspired laughs, such as suddenly showing up in a dress, most were said to have been more cruel than funny. Usually he found out about somebody's phobias, such as mice or spiders, and in turn sent them a box full of them...

He wanted his tomstone inscrition to read "This is what we do to bad little boys."

His biggest fears included heights, small children and policemen...

Etc, etc...

[Addled Platypus]

watch "39 steps"

[molly bloom]

Originally posted by Zoid


He was infamous with cast and crews for his "practical jokes."

He once bet one crew member that he wouldn't stay overnight on the empty set. The crew member didn't think much of this challenege, so cheerfully accepted Hitch's bet, which menat being handcuffed where he was.


He also accepted Hitch's kind offer of a flask of coffee. Which was laced with laxative.....


In bets British tradition, the house where Hitch grew up (which is near here) is now a Texaco garage....

517 High Road, Leytonstone, E11

Alfred Hitchcock, undoubtedly one of the world’s finest and most famous film directors was born here on August 13th 1899 to, William Hitchcock, a poultry dealer and fruit importer and Emma Whelan Hitchcock. As a child he was forever looking to explore and by the time he was ten he had managed to ride all of London’s Bus lines and explored every dock terminal. The black and white picture shown here is of Leytonstone High Road in 1900, exactly how Alfred would have know it in his childhood. Sadly the house where he was born at number 517 was bombed during the Second World War and the site is now occupied by a garage

http://www.londontelevisionarchive.com/htdocs/films.html

Still:

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth, a series of mosaics were commissioned for the entrance to Leytonstone Underground Station. These are collectively known as "The Hitchcock Gallery"...

http://www.london-e11.co.uk/ArtInE11.php

[C0ckney]

Originally posted by Bkeela
Since when is it creepy to want to dominate and kill women?

a lot of his films contained some 'creepy' things, but that's a big part of what makes them great.

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Monk
If you haven't already, you might want to read Laura Mulvey's essay which includes thoughts on Vertigo and other Hitchcock movies. You don't have to agree with her radical feminist theory to find her observations in this matter interesting.

http://www.brown.edu/Departments/MCM...rrative_Cinema

Thanks for the link. Her observations were indeed interesting, though difficult to untangle from her own obsessions and authoritarianism.