Regal Crossgates 18 continues their Classic Film Series with Alfred Hitchcock’s brilliant Rear Window, this Wed. at 2 and 7pm only. Future films in the Classic series will be Chicago, The Grapes of Wrath, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Silence of the Lambs in following weeks, at 2pm on Sundays, and 2 and 7pm on Wednesdays.
Synopsis: When professional photographer J.B. “Jeff” Jeffries (James Stewart) is confined to a wheelchair with a broken leg, he becomes obsessed with watching the private dramas of his neighbors play out across the courtyard. When he suspects a salesman may have murdered his nagging wife, Jeffries enlists the help of his glamorous socialite girlfriend (Grace Kelly) to investigate the highly suspicious chain of events. Events that ultimately lead to one of the most memorable and gripping endings in all of film history. Having received universal critical acclaim, Rear Window also ranks 31st on the IMDB list of top rated films of all time, as voted by users.
Rear Window was filmed entirely on a Paramount soundstage (at the time, the largest in the world). Hitchcock required the stage floor be removed to allow fully functioning apartment buildings to be built inside the soundstage. As such, the street level in the film is actually at the soundstage basement level. Actors could remain inside their ‘apartments’ during an entire day’s shoot, and wore radio earpieces to receive instructions when filming.
Rear Window was unavailable for over 3 decades due to copyright issues, and was digitally remastered in 2008 – both superlative reasons to catch it in the theater while you can. And yes, Stewart would have needed a tripod to stabilize that ridiculous 400mm lens on his camera. As a professional photographer, his character should have known this. Update: upon rewatching the film, I took note that Stewart’s character, in fact, uses his knee to rest the end of the lens. Only twice, does he hold it freehand, and once, his nurse does as well. This combination seems reasonable, if the goal is to simulate imperfect real-world behavior.
Materials copyright Universal Studios Entertainment.
Resources:
http://www.universalstudiosentertainment.com/rear-window/ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1017289-rear_window/ http://www.amazon.com/Rear-Window-Universal-Legacy-Series/dp/B001CC7PPI http://hitchcock.tv/mov/rear_window/window.html