Favorite Hitchcock Shot?

[Tom Lowe]

I had the great pleasure of watching Hitchcock's masterpiece Notorious on TCM again the other day, and it struck me what a brilliant shot he nailed right near the end, when Grant is in Bergman's room.









Everything about this shot is perfect. The lighting is god-like. The whole story has basically built up to this moment, so it has a lot of impact. Camera does about a 100-degree dolly move right in the middle of the shot.

What I would give to have Bergman whispering in MY ear like this.

Shot starts right around the 4-minute mark on this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St9AzqJvlj4

[David Mullen ASC]

"Notorious" is gorgeous filmmaking in all departments, including the lead actors.

My favorite for cinematography is probably "Vertigo", the use of the color green to symbolize Madeleine, as well as her profile:







But in terms of favorite shots, there are so many from Hitchcock -- the crane down to the key in Ingrid Bergman's hand in "Notorious" for example, the murder in the park in "Strangers on the Train" reflected in the fallen pair of eyeglasses, the scary Bates house against the clouds in "Psycho", the wide shots of Cary Grant waiting at isolated road in "North by Northwest" before the crop duster attack, etc.

[Tom Lowe]

It's so funny. I can spot a 65mm movie even on crummy SD NTSC on Turner Classics every time now. The dynamic range is just off the charts in these Vista Vision and other large-format pictures.

[BASSAM MSSALATIE]

IS it the right place here
http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2246 :turned:
or here

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=679

[Rudi Herbert]

Vertigo is my favorite as well, there's such isolation and desperation as the truth evades him to the Cary Grant character, as well as that intangible aura of mystery about Madeleine (Kim Novak) all of it achieved through the cinematography. And speaking of gorgeous, how about Kim Novak, the absolute most astonishing actrees I ever fell head over heels for...even if (or maybe because of) I was only twelve when I first saw her in Vertigo. Still remember the shivers I got when she first appeared onscreen...Anyway, back to cinematography :-)

[krd]

I know there are objectively better shots, and David already hit the big ones, but my favorite is the opening of "Shadow of a Doubt", probably because unlike a lot of Hitchcock he used actual exteriors, so it feels more like a "real" film noir for these first few minutes.

[Radoslav Karapetkov]

The "Vertigo" Zoom.

It's one of the most powerful techniques, IMHO.

[Tom Lowe]

And speaking of gorgeous, how about Kim Novak, the absolute most astonishing actress I ever fell head over heels for...even if (or maybe because of) I was only twelve when I first saw her in Vertigo. Still remember the shivers I got when she first appeared onscreen...Anyway, back to cinematography :-)

She was smokin'. My Dad joins you in claiming Novak is the hottest woman he's seen on screen, but I actually think Grace Kelly is little hotter, just in terms of looks.

Of course, Hitch was the master of obsessing over hot blondes. :)

[David Mullen ASC]

It's hard to top Grace Kelly in "Rear Window" or "To Catch a Thief"...

That sequence where she first appears in "Rear Window" in that step-printed kiss, then goes around the room and turns on each lamp, is one of the best character intros in a movie.

Of course, there's Ingrid Bergman...

And I've always liked Margaret Lockwood in "The Lady Vanishes".

[Tom Lowe]

I take it you're a Bergman fan, David? I can't imagine any DP who wouldn't kill to have had a chance to shoot her back in her prime. A few years ago I read her autobiography and it was really fantastic. She suffered a lot of persecution due to the way society viewed the divorces she went through. What's really fascinating, though, are the various characters who come and go throughout her life. When everything was at its darkest and it seemed the whole world was against her, she received this random letter from her friend Ernest Hemingway saying something like, "Forget what the fuckers say! Live your life." Hehe, classic Hemingway.