After reading the short story “It Had to Be Murder” by Cornell Woolrich, I watched the film Rear Window, which turned words into visuals thanks to the brilliant film direction of Alfred Hitchcock. Now, I am going to turn the film back into words and compare and contrast some key elements of the story, talk about different camera shots, and comment on important elements of mise en scene.
During the film, you, the audience, are seeing through the eyes of the main characters and will experience the action of the film through their perspective. This is a subjective point of view because you see the actor watching someone or a scene taking place. Then, you see what the actor is observing, and finally, you see his reaction. However, Hitchcock does let the audience take part in the film because we see something Jeff misses while he is sleeping. We see the exit of the fake Mrs. Thorwald who leaves during the wee hours of the morning for the train station.
Here are some examples of the contrasts and comparisons between the short story and the film:
- In the short story, you are missing the romance. The romance between Jeff (James Stewart) and Lisa (Grace Kelly) plays a huge part of the film. Also, Grace Kelly was a beautiful and perfect choice for the role of Lisa because her physical appearance was feminine and sophisticated. The very first time you see her in the film is in a close up, slow motion camera shot, which is normally a great entrance for a main character. The slow motion creates sensual drama as she leans in for a kiss. The close up allows you to see all the details of Kelly’s face. The lighting of the scene casts shadows that makes the image unforgettable and creates a sensual mood which adds to the romance the short story lacked. The outfit Kelly wore for this and every other scene enhances the importance of her femininity.
- The short story only included the murder of Mrs. Emma Thorwald. However, the film had many side stories of the different neighbors. These included Miss Torso, the ballerina, who is always dancing up a storm, Miss Lonelyheart, who almost attempts suicide, the Songwriter, who finally finishes a song by the end of the film, the Newlyweds, who are always having sex, and the couple whose dog is murdered by Mr. Thorwald. All of these side scenes/stories allow the film to be possible and add humor and other emotional elements to the film. They make the story more complex, making the audience and Jeff and Lisa wonder if it is ethical to watch the private lives of others.
- In the short story, Jeff only had one supporting character by the name of Sam. Sam seemed extremely distant and really wanted nothing to do with the murder Jeff was trying to uncover. Throughout the short story, Sam just did the favors/errands Jeff told him to do and never asked questions about the craziness of each request. On the other hand, in the film, Jeff had two main supporting characters, Stella, his nurse (who can be considered Sam’s more humorous, female film character played by Thelma Ritter) and Lisa Carol Fremont, Jeff’s “oh too perfect” girlfriend. During the film, these two characters are extremely involved in the Thorwald murder that happened across the courtyard, make their own predictions about how the murder was successfully pulled of, and risk their own lives to be apart of Jeff’s investigation. The two believed Jeff’s opinion that Mrs. Thorwald was murdered by her husband and fully take part in the plot, which is nothing like the short story. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the addition of these characters because they added a much-needed emotional element of humor to such a serious and eerie story. Yet, in the short story, the audience definitely questions Jeff’s sanity because he did seem much more crazy. You felt like he had made up the entire murder story in his mind.
Here are a couple elements of Mise En Scene:
- The Setting: You can actually see every window, which resembles a mini city or dollhouse.
- The Props: In the very beginning they visually depict Jeff’s character. They zoom into a continuous shot of his broken leg and cast, a broken camera, and the cover of a magazine. This opening scene shows that Hitchcock truly understood that he was telling a story through the use of visuals.
- The Music: The film opens with jazz music, which reflects the busy streets beyond the courtyards walls. The main music of the film is the song that the Composer is struggling to find the medley and harmony for, which he ends up finishing at the end of the film, saving Miss Lonelyheart from committing suicide.
- The Lighting: They used four different types of lighting that automatically changed with the flip of a switch. The four types include:
- Morning
- Afternoon
- Twilight
- Nighttime
The dramatic scene where Thorwald breaks into Jeff’s apartment includes many lighting techniques that create tons of drama. Jeff grabs his camera to defend himself and takes a picture to make the flash go off with every step closer Thorwald gets to his wheelchair. The flash leaves a sort of red color lingering for a moment, resembling blood and creating suspense and drama to the importance of the scene.
Here are some of the general themes:
- Since the audience acts somewhat like voyeurs, they are witnessing life’s relationships that are both good and bad. Originally, Jeff resists the ideal relationship because he always says he isn’t ready for marriage. Instead of focusing on his own problems of having a broken leg or having too perfect of a girlfriend, he watches the lives of others and concentrates on their problems. Again, the various dramas that unfold depict life and the relationships we all experience.
- Throughout the film, one can also see the incompatibility of male and female positions in society. This can be seen visually through the murder of Mrs. Thorwald and the scene where Miss Lonelyheart brings back a man and he forcefully starts to come on to her and she fights back, kicks him out, and ends up alone in tears. These type of scenes make us feel sympathetic, yet they also tell us that we need to know how to defend ourselves from the things we do not understand in the world. These are both external and internal struggles that we face on a daily basis. There is a major difference between a man and woman’s point of view. This can be seen through the Newlyweds who literally have sex all the time because that is what they expected marriage to be like and the way Lisa shows and even proves her love for Jeff through always talking about marriage and then being part of the murder investigation. Also, she seems so perfect to Jeff as well because she is almost seducing him through the food she makes him because he is immobile. At the end however, Lisa is reading Beyond the High Himalayas and then switches the book our for her personal reading preference of Bazar magazine. This is a great conclusion to the story because it shows that she found balance and was not going to abandon her more feminine life interests.
- The audience also gets a sense of isolation from the rest of society because you never really leave the apartment. It’s a world defined by a courtyard. Each apartment resembles a prison cell. This idea of isolation is directly addressed when the lady who has her dog killed accuses all of the neighbors of not being true neighbors. You never see any of the neighbors friendly interacting; they all keep to themselves.
More information about Rear Window can be found on the AFI’s Top 10 website!
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