paisleeeee

The tracking shots made me feel the tension and dread of those moments...the boys walking slowly towards the headmaster. I like how this replaced music and sound in creating that tension. I think Hitchcock used this technique for the reason I cited. It creates a mood in the scene without sound, much like the glass floor in The Lodger created the pacing in the room above. The use of montage is the common element in the previous clips. In the case of The Ring, it showed the fighter's paranoia regarding his wife's behaviour with his rival. In Downhill, we see the woman's point of view or version of the story.

On first look, I did recognize some Hitchcock touches...all have already been mentioned. Specifically, the blurry out of focus vision, when the monocle was being removed, and the binoculars bringing the dancers legs into focus. I had to laugh at the man's attempt at charming the blonde by commenting on her curl and then she handed it to him. Also Hamilton's smoking in front of the No Smoking sign, while fingering his moustache...a classic villain I'm suspecting! It's the suttle humour that I've always enjoyed in a Hitchcock film. Strauss, Yacowar and Spoto to me were correct in their assessments. Hitchcock had a unique eye, a unique approach. I think that everything was conveyed quite well, considering it is a silent film. I was getting interested in the story, even without much expostion of dialogue. Expressions and actions, while clearly exaggerated, were very effective in carrying on the storyline to the extent that I'm interested in watching the entire film, to see how the story continues and to see more of the Hitchcock touch.