MY SITE
Camera
"A film has got to be ocularly interesting and above all it is the picture which is the thing I try to tell my story so much in pictures that if by any chance the sound apparatus broke down in the cinema, the audience would not fret and get restless because the pictorial action would still hold them!"
-Alfred Hitchcock, July 1936 in Stage as published in Gottlieb, 1995, pg. 297
-Alfred Hitchcock, July 1936 in Stage as published in Gottlieb, 1995, pg. 297
Alfred Hitchcock was notoriously thoughtful and meticulous when it comes to camera angles and other visual editing methods. In fact, he was known to produce his cinema to rely on visual images instead of dialogue.
|
"I believe in using camera movement when it helps tell the story more efficiently." -Alfred Hitchcock
|
This method worked in Hitchcock's favor when he shot the famous cigarette scene in North by Northwest. This scene was already taboo for the 1950s, and Hitchcock crossed the line when he scripted Eve to say, "I never make love on an empty stomach." This statement was deemed ridiculous by Earnest Lehman, who proceeded to censor it to read, "I never discuss love on an empty stomach." Even though Hitchcock's original script wasn't accepted, the sexual tension and promiscuity portrayed in the scene gave the audience a clear understanding of what was being implied.
|
The German Expressionism influence was also prominent in Hitchcock's asymmetrical and unusual camera angles. In his films, Hitchcock applies the high angle shots when a character makes a realization or when they are in a crisis. These two instances often occur together.
|
Another tactic that Hitchcock used to tug on the audience's emotions is collectively known as Soviet Montage. Soviet Montage is the use of editing for cinematic effect and simultaneously filming to create an emotionally taxing reaction. An example of Soviet Montage in Hitchcock's films can be seen at the beginning of North by Northwest.
As "Master of Suspense," Hitchcock used different camera effects to create anticipation in his films. Some examples are listed below.
Mr. Hannay's arm and back are introduced in The 39 Steps before the audience is acquainted with his face. This causes Hannay's identity to be based on the style of his coat, alone. Thus, Hitchcock forces the audience to focus on what Hannay is wearing and how it changes over the course of the film. This familiarization with his outfit also influences the audience to pay attention to all of the costuming in the cinema.
|
A particularly interesting scene in The 39 Steps is when Hannay escapes the men trying to kill him by hiding on a bridge. In the film, the camera depicts the image to the right, then pans to the right so Hannay is no longer in the shot. After a moment passes and the train leaves with the killers on it, the camera pans back to Hannay's hiding spot, but he is nowhere to be found, as seen in the second shot. This causes the audience question Hannay's safety. Did he fall to his death, or did he escape? Once again, the "Master of Suspense" toys with the audience's emotions to make them more emotionally invested in the film and its characters.
|
This scene from North by Northwest, as well as the next one, probably looks very familiar, which is because it has been recreated in various movies since it was filmed in the late 1950s. Roger and Eve are trying to escape death after Eve's mission is compromised. Here Roger is desperately reaching for Eve's hand after Leonard pushed her off of Mount Rushmore. The point of this scene is to make it known that the once all-powerful Eve is now completely powerless and her life is entirely dependent on Roger's ability to save her.
|
Roger miraculously caught Eve's hand, just as her feet slipped off the ledge. Then, Roger's fingers begin to slip so he resorts to pleading with Leonard to help him. As Leonard approaches the edge, it seems like he is actually going to help. However, Hitchcock had other ideas. The "Master of Suspense" had Leonard step on Roger's fingers, causing him to slip more. This scene puts Leonard in charge of the hero and heroine's fates, which is deeply disturbing to, at this point, the highly invested audience.
|
Considering these scenes were only excerpted out of two of Hitchcock's films, it is easy to imagine the countless other ways in which he utilized camera angles to enhance his movies. These angles create suspense, sexual tension, and convey deeper meanings to explicitly stated dialogue.
In an interview with Herb A. Lightman, Hitchcock reveals that he self identifies as a film technician, and discusses his techniques. The following in an excerpt from said interview.
Q: "What do you feel are the most important elements to be considered in the establishment of mood on the screen?"
A: "I think, to sum it up in one way, the risk you run in trying to get mood is the cliche, the shadows in the room and what have you. I spend half of the time avoiding the cliche, in terms of scenes. In North by Northwest, the girl sends Cary Grant to a rendezvous where we know an attempt will be made to kill him. Now the cliche treatment would be to show him standing on the corner of the street in a a pool of light. The cobbles are washed by the recent rains. Cut to a face peering out of a window. Cut to a black cat slithering along the bottom of a wall. Wait for a black limousine to come along. I said 'no.' I would do it in a bright sunshine with no place to hide, in open prairie country. And what is the mood? A sinister mood. There's no sign of where the menace can come from, but eventually it turns up in the form of a crop duster airplane. Someone inside the plane shoots at Cary Grant and he has nowhere to hide."
This answer speaks volumes about Hitchcock's dedication to blazing his own trail in the film industry. He wanted to create unprecedented cinemas that would demand emotional and intellectual investment from the audience.
To read the rest of Hitchcock's interview, visit the site linked below.