mudness

1. What tone, mood, or atmosphere is Hitchcock establishing for the audience very early on in this picture? Pay particular attention to the music. The scene opens with a relaxed, jolly, friendly atmosphere represented by travelers patiently waiting in the hotel lobby (reading the newspaper, smoking, chatting...), the appearance of a sweet old lady (a smiley Miss Froy) and a cheerful music in the background (the only sound one can hear for the first 30 secs). But then, as Miss Froy opens the door and leave, the strong wind pushing back seems to be the prelude of the chaotic scene (stressful travelers and manager trying to book a rooms) it's just about to start with the entrance of the hotel staff currying in additional luggage from the travelers, the sound of a foreign and made up language viewers cannot understand, the stressed voice of the hotel manager, and the trumpeter figurine inside the clock (again, musical reference!) coming out just that moment, as if making an opening soundtrack from the next hotel manager announcement since the background music has ceased and will remain silent for the rest of the scene. Once Iris enter the scene, the rhythm slows down again (more to come in question number 3) 2. Discuss the characters of Caldicott and Charters in this scene. What do the performances of Caldicott and Charters add to this scene. I feel they bring “Britishness” (or the classical British stereotypes) to the scene, through a small hint of politeness (they don't rush to the counter or make a fuss of the situation: nothing can move/alter a British citizen except for tea and cricket! : D ), insularity (they don't mix with the rest), snobbery (they somehow look a bit upper class and distinguish themselves from other travelers), and definitely... HUMOUR (specially when they believe the hotel manager is getting out of the counter to greet them). I'd like to also make a small comment about the role of the hotel manager, as one of the key characters helping Hitch set the humorous tone of the scene. I cannot help but hearing Roberto Benigni in those glorious Jim Jarmush movies, with his accent and crazy arm-waiving. Would this character in the lady vanishes be an influence for Roberto? Might be going too far in my thinking, I know. 3. Describe how Hitchcock uses dialogue, camera movement, and the placement of characters in the frame to establish Iris (Margaret Lockwood) as the star of this scene. To start with, the camera isolates the entrance of the three women and follows them throughout the hall and stairs, stopping all the previous craziness for a while (as if freezing time). Even if Iris is not placed in the center of the frame, I think a symbol of her being the star of the scene is that she's the first one of the three being welcomed by the manager and fist one also to drop a sentence. Then she's leading the way together with the hotel manager (is his name Barns?); she is also the one correcting the pronunciation of the word Avalanche – something that portraits her as a high-class English woman (speaking French at the time was the quintessence of European upper class); and she's also the one ordering the room service, incl. The bottle of champagne. I specially like the feeling the the absence of background noise gives me, specially since I saw 5 secs earlier how noisy the crowd in the lobby had been. This drastic change in the sound reinforces the feeling that everybody is staring at the three ladies - something we confirm bit later in the scene when we get to see it with our own eyes, around min. 2:40 – and in my opinion stresses the importance of the characters.

1. What do you anticipate is going to be more important in this film--the characters or the plot? I believe Hitchcock uses the opening scene to present the main characters the film, in an environment that's not so relevant for the plot (except maybe for the fact that through the scene we get to know that the mother (Jill) is a champion skeet shooter). Based on this premise, I think characters are more important in the movie . 2. What do you learn about Abbott (Peter Lorre) in his brief scene? How might this introduction affect your view of the character Abbott later in the film? I feel the director present Abbott as the only character in the opening scene that seems to have something to hide (he does not behave so naturally). Abbott clearly recognizes the skier (Louis, who does not recognize Abbott) but tries to conceal his surprise. I think the the idea is reinforced through the dialogue, as Abbot is just finishing his sentence with “awkward moment” when he sees Louis. He actually breaks the word into something like “awk----ward” which I immediately link with the Abbott body language and feelings. Just brilliant! 3. How is this opening both similar and different from those two films' opening scenes (The Pleasure Garden and The Lodger). Similar: - The three of them occur in open spaces with large crowds of people. - They establish a relationship between the observer and the observed. - Do we also see POV shots in the three of them? The old man, looking at the girls' legs and then the “curly” blonde through the binoculars (The pleasure garden), the crowd looking at the dead body (The lodger), and Louis seeing how he approaches the girl as he roles down the slope. Different: - The pleasure garden and the lodger open with a somewhat frantic rhythm, while the beginning of The man who knew too much sets a more peaceful and friendly mood, even if a bit disturbing after we see Abbott reaction when he encounters Louis.

1. In this sequence, describe how Hitchcock uses sound design to put you into the subjective "mind of Alice"? Be specific. - I think Hitchcock uses both, sound and silence, to show a dissociative disorder in Alice. When she's alone (before stepping in the shop or when she's in the phone booth) and there is silence, Alice seems to be able to detach herself from reality (she is somewhat calm) but as soon as she's surrounded by people, the “sound” coming from other character's voices make her come back to reality, as they are talking about the murder. - Wording in the dialogue has been carefully picked to remind Alice about the murder ("cut us a bit of bread", “stick a knife”, etc.) and sometimes even describe Alice body language/feelings (e.g. in my opinion, the sentence “gives me the shivers” resonates with Alice's almost constant shaking throughout the scene). Finally, the repetition of certain terms (e.g. knife, murder) leads the viewer into Alice's mind / obsessive thinking. - I feel the female customer might have also been cast for her voice, which in my opinion sounds loud, unpleasant, and sharp... as a knife (even when she says "Brrrrreakfast". - Of course, Hitchcock's toning down of all the female customer's speech except for the word knife, shows how much Alice is lost in her own world, even when surrounded by people. 2. How sound design of this scene operates in counterpoint to the visual track. I think it does especially in the way Alice's facial expression changes when she hears certain words. E.g.: Acknowledgment of the word knife for the first time after being seated at breakfast table (as Alice looks to her right – the place where the sound comes from). How Alice raises her eyebrows every time she hears “knife” but her eyes get lost throughout the whole conversation (shows that she's lost in her own thoughts). How Alice nervously moves her hands / fingers when the female customer starts talking about the murder at the door, while they are starting to have breakfast (shows uneasiness). Ding-sound announcing a new customer brings Alice's memory back to the night of the events. 3. Why do you think this particular use of subjective sound is not used frequently in cinema? I'm not quite sure, but it might be because it looks (sound) a bit artificial and might take the viewer out of the story (reminds the viewer that's they're watching a movie, not a real life) and maybe disengage the audience.

1. I definitely see his touch, from the spiral stairs sequence (though this time its symbolism is slightly different - not so much troubling), to the camera shifts or the sexual tension (legs frame, body language of the male character, etc.). I was particularly surprised by the early use of the shots where Hitchcock frames the eyes/face of the actor/actress in the center of the scene, usually in a close up. This (close-up of eyes), together with his visual humor (the first 18-20 secs of the clip are a master piece) makes me see a hint of surrealism in the sequence (maybe it's just because I'm a ·surreal fan!). 2. Totally agree – I think this question is quite connected with the previous one. 3. I don't think so – the acting, farming, set, and THE MUSIC is saying everything. Actually, I came to think that maybe it is through directing silent movies that he became so obsessed by details on the sets (I could spend hours looking at one frame, seeing what he's placed on the scene). I truly love the moment where he shows Mr. Hamilton smoking a cigar in front of a non-smoking sign and what it looks like a peephole to me. Brilliant way of showing the theater manager.