historianna

In both opening sequences, Hitch shows multiple people reacting to the same situation in one shot. In Pleasure Garden, we have a group reacting to women dancing on stage, whereas, in The Lodger, we have a group reacting to the news of a murder. There’s more hustle and bustle in Lodger as opposed to Pleasure Garden in that Lodger is a new type of film for Hitchcock- it moves the audience outside where there is fog, darkness, mystery, and different lighting as opposed to the trivialness of the theatre/street in Garden. Obviously the scream at the beginning! Also, the theme of blonde women being at the center of a crime. The way that Hitch uses a group of people and their reactions to tell a story is powerful. The image of the men sitting together reading the telegram together made me feel anxious. I felt like I belonged with this group- waiting to know more about the horrifying situation at hand, but being forced to wait for each line to be printed. The closeup on the woman’s face as well as the angle of the camera on her face and the way the lighting accentuated the shine on her teeth. The was very raw and real… Other screams that come to my mind are from Psycho, the Birds, and (one of my favorites) Strangers on a Train.

1. Absolutely. The “Hitchcock touch” is visible in many ways. I noticed it in some of the lighting, the camera work— specifically when the camera panned over the faces of the men in the audience, the blur of the image until the man held up his binoculars, the man smoking in front of the no smoking sign and last but not least, the sassy/seductive blonde vs the timid/demure brunette. 2. I agree that this sequence shows elements that Hitchcock would use throughout his 50 year career. Although he might change his technique or approach during his lifetime as a director, many of the touches from this early film pop up later on. 3. I really think that the limitations are minor. Hitchcock, though he definitely would use the sense of hearing through soundtracks and effects, was all about the visual. You could take away the sound in quite a few of the opening sequences of Hitch’s films and you’d still walk away with some sort of feeling. Watching this silent clip still made me feel for the characters and get a good sense of the “vibe” this film was to give its audience.