Saturday, August 8 - Movies
The Age
Thursday August 6, 2009
Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963)ABC2, 8.30pmMITCH Brenner (Rod Taylor) goes into a San Francisco pet shop and "mistakes" a beautiful lady for a sales assistant. A wicked flirtation ensues before Mitch reveals it has all been a game, with revenge his only motive. The lady in question, you see, is Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), one of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest ice-cool blondes. She is careless about getting what she wants and had previously offended Mitch with her public behaviour. Not that his disapproval stops Melanie, who is soon off up the coast road to Mitch's weekend abode in Bodega Bay with two lovebirds as a gift for his young sister. (These are the lovebirds that ever-so-famously tilt to one side or the other as Melanie's sports car screeches around the tight bends.) In Bodega, Melanie hires a skip and powers across the bay with her gift. As she later leaves Mitch's house, seagulls drift into shot: a battle between humans and birds is about to begin. Melanie's dual crossing of the bay, completely wordless, is simply stunning cinema, full of nuance and menace, beautiful to behold and effortlessly elegant. It reveals one of Britain's greatest filmmakers at the height of his powers. The Birds is based on Daphne Du Maurier's short story but its genesis is far more fascinating. Fans are recommended to read Ken Mogg's piece on the free movie website Senses of Cinema (which I co-edit). Mogg may have you watching it over and over again. -- SCOTT MURRAY
© 2009 The Age
