Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE (August 13, 1899 – April 29, 1980) was a British-American film director closely associated with the suspense thriller genre. He began directing in Britain before working in the United States from 1939 onwards. With more than fifty feature films to his credit, in a career spanning six decades, from silent film to talkies to the color era, Hitchcock remains one of the best known and most popular directors of all time, famous for his expert and often unrivaled control of pace and suspense throughout his movies.

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KBE - August 13 - 1899 - April 29 - 1980 - British - American - Film - Director - Suspense - Thriller - Britain - 1939 - Silent film - Talkie - Color

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Hitchcock's films draw heavily on both fear and fantasy, and are known for their droll humour. They often portray innocent people caught up in circumstances beyond their control or understanding. This often involves a transference of guilt in which the "innocent" character's failings are transferred to another character and magnified. Another common theme is the exploration of the compatibility of men and women; Hitchcock's films often take a cynical view of traditional romantic relationships.

Related Topics:
Fear - Fantasy - Transference - Cynical

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Although Hitchcock was an enormous star during his lifetime, he was not usually ranked highly by contemporary film critics. Rebecca was the only one of his films to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, although four others were nominated. He was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for lifetime achievement in 1967, but never personally received an Academy Award of Merit. The French New Wave critics, especially Eric Rohmer, Claude Chabrol, and François Truffaut, were among the first to promote his films as having artistic merit beyond entertainment. Hitchcock was one of the first directors to whom they applied their auteur theory, which stresses the artistic authority of the director (over the competing authorities of the screenwriter or producer) in the movie-making process. Indeed, through his fame, public persona, and degree of creative control, Hitchcock transformed the role of the director, which had previously been eclipsed by that of the producer. Today, Hitchcock is seen as the quintessential director who manages to combine art and entertainment in a way very few has ever matched in motion picture history.

Related Topics:
Star - Film critic - Rebecca - Academy Award for Best Picture - Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award - 1967 - Academy Award of Merit - French New Wave - Eric Rohmer - Claude Chabrol - François Truffaut - Auteur theory

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