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Hitchcockian

Films made which are similar in style to Alfred Hitchcock's films

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Hitchcockian films are those made by various filmmakers, with the styles and themes similar to those of Alfred Hitchcock.

Characteristics[edit]

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Elements considered Hitchcockian include:

• Climactic plot twist.
• The cool platinum blonde.^[1]
• The presence of a domineering mother in someone's life.^[2]
• An innocent man accused.
• Restricting the action to a single setting to increase tension (e.g. Lifeboat, Rope, Rear Window).
• Characters who switch sides and/or who cannot be trusted.
• Tension building through suspense to the point where the audience enjoys seeing the character in a life-threatening situation (e.g. Vertigo).
• Average people thrust into strange or dangerous situations (e.g., Psycho, North by Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much).
• Bumbling or incompetent authority figures, particularly police officers.
• Use of darkness to symbolize impending doom (dark clothing, shadows, smoke, etc.)
• Strong visual use of famous landmarks (Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, Forth Rail Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge, Albert Hall, British Museum, Piccadilly Circus, etc.)
• Mistaken identity (e.g. North by Northwest, Frenzy).
• The use of a staircase as a motif for impending danger or suspense.^[3]
• Use of a MacGuffin plot device.^[4][5]
• Referring to crime for mystery rather than presenting it explicitly (e.g. Dial M for Murder).
• Train scenes (e.g. North by Northwest, The Lady Vanishes, Strangers on a Train, Shadow of a Doubt).
• The color red provoking a fearful, and potentially self-destructive, reaction.
• A beautiful woman needlessly embezzling her employer's money.
• Voyeurism and surveillance.^[6]

Notable examples[edit]

Some films, or films with scenes, considered Hitchcockian include:

Filmmakers[edit]

The following is a list of filmmakers who have directed multiple Hitchcockian films:

• Dario Argento^[71]
• Park Chan-wook^[72]
• Henri-Georges Clouzot^[73]
• Brian De Palma^[74]

Films by country[edit]

Australia[edit]

• Roadgames (1981)^[75]
• Crosstalk (1982)^[76]
• Coffin Rock (2009)^[77]
• Blame (2010)^[78]
• Crawl (2011)^[79]
• Bad Blood (2017)^[80]

France[edit]

• Les Diaboliques (1955)^[81]
• Plein Soleil (1960)^[82]
• La Piscine (1969)
• Le Boucher (1970)^[83]
• The Vanishing (1988)^[84][85]
• Love Crime (2010)^[86]
• Elle (2016)^[87]
• Personal Shopper (2016)^[88]
• L'Amant double (2017)^[89]

Germany[edit]

• Unknown (2011)^[90][91][92]

Italy[edit]

• The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970)^[93]
• Terror (1978)^[94]
• Tenebrae (1982)^[95]

South Korea[edit]

• Mother (2009)^[96]
• The Handmaiden (2016)^[97]
• Decision to Leave (2022)^[98]

Spain[edit]

• Buried (2010)^[99]

United Kingdom[edit]

• Peeping Tom (1960)^[100]

See also[edit]

• Alfred Hitchcock
• Alfred Hitchcock filmography
• Giallo
• Krimi
• Thriller film

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Michael Walker (2005), Hitchcock's motifs, Amsterdam University Press, ISBN 978-90-5356-773-9

External links[edit]

• Entertainment Weekly's EW.com feature: What, exactly, makes a film "Hitchcockian?"