Vertigo – 100
Notorious – 95
Dial M for Murder – 90
Psycho – 90
North by Northwest – 90
Rear Window – 90
The Birds – 85
Shadow of a Doubt – 85
Rebecca – 85
Lady Vanishes – 85
The Man Who Knew Too Much – 85
Strangers On A Train – 85
To Catch a Thief – 75
Rope – 75
The 30 Steps – 75
All out of 100. I really need to watch more of his films.
Genius Director
1. Vertigo 10/10 (one of only 6 films I rate 10/10, just to give you an idea of its caliber)
2. Psycho 9.5/10
3. Shadow of a Doubt 9/10
4. Marnie 8.5/10
5. Strangers on a Train 8.5/10
6. The 39 Steps 8.5/10
7. North By Northwest 8.5/10
8. Rear Window 8.5/10
9. Rope 8.5/10
10. I Confess 8/10
11. The Wrong Man 8/10
12. Dial M for Murder 8/10
13. Suspicion 8/10
14. Stage Fright 7.5/10
15. The Man Who Knew Too Much 7.5/10
16. Frenzy 7.5/10
17. The Trouble With Harry 7.5/10
18. The Birds 7/10
19. Foreign Correspondent 7/10
Really need to see: Rebecca, Notorious, The Lady Vanishes, Spellbound, The Lodger, To Catch a Thief
I found many of his lesser known films to be absolutely mesmerizing, especially I Confess, which is probably one of his top 5 directorial efforts. The film is absolutely stunning to look at, and evokes a strong sense of German Expressionism (i.e.- angled shots of Gargoyled Buildings). Truly a beautiful film.
1. Rear Window
2. Psycho
3. Vertigo
4. Rope
5. The Man Who Knew Too Much
6. Strangers on a Train
7. The Birds
In no particular order
Rope 3/5
Psycho 5/5
North by Northwest 5/5
Marnie 4/5
The Birds 5/5
Rear Window 5/5
Vertigo 3/5 (I know I’m in the minority there…)
39 Steps 4/5
Rebecca 5/5
Family Plot 4/5 (I know I’m REALLY in the minority there)
Topaz 2/5
Frenzy 3/5
Torn Curtain 4/5 (I really liked it!)
To Catch a Thief 4/5
I Confess 5/5
The Wrong Man 5/5 (very creepy)
Strangers on a Train 5/5
Notorious 5/5
The Paradine Case 3/5
Spellbound 4/5
Dial M for Murder 3/5
The Trouble with Harry 3/5
Man who Know too Much (orig) 5/5
" " (remake) 5/5 (a glossy gem!)
Suspicion 5/5 (Joan Fontaine was a real fox)
Lifeboat 5/5
Stage Fright 3/5 (not as bad as I thought it might be)
Saboteur 4/5
Mr. & Mrs. Smith 3/5 (I wanted it to be better, but it wasn’t despite Carole Lombard)
I love them all…even FAMILY PLOT!
@Jasper – just curious to know why you like the Jimmy Stewart Man Who Knew Too Much, Torn Curtain, and Family Plot so much but not a big fan of Vertigo? is there something specifically about Vertigo that made you think it was a lesser work?
@Adam – you really need to get your hands on some of Hitch’s films; specifically Notorious and Shadow of a Doubt (which he considered his favorite)
Thanks for asking Fredo…I’m kidding…I hoped nobody would.
I saw Vertigo in a theater during the revival of it back in the 80s (in high school)…I thought it was over-engineered, and I know that’s probably not a cool thing to say on this site, but truthfully, I was bored. I saw the other films re-released during that time and loved Rear Window, the first Hitchock film I saw in a theater. I liked the remake of The Man Who Know Too Much for a lot of reasons. It’s lightening paced, J Stewart is excellent and Hitchock gets a stellar performance out of Doris Day. The scene when she’s told her son is missing is great and so is the acting.
I really liked Torn Curtain a lot too. I know Hitchcock didn’t really click with Paul Newman & Julie Andrews and they didn’t really give him what he was looking for but I thought they had great chemistry. The opening scene is pretty sexy to boot. Additionally, the scene (sans music) of the man getting killed in the farm house is a mindblower.
Family Plot I think I like for the cast…Bruce Dern (NEVER dull), Karen Black, Barbara Harris and William Devane made quite the kinky foursome (I don’t mean sexually). Hitchock had a tightly wound story and got the best out of these actors. Harris is very funny as the fake medium. I love the scene (shot from above) of Katherine Helmond being pursued by Dern in the cemetary. The film is not on par with Nortorious or Psycho, but few movies are. I still really enjoyed it.
For me Vertigo is head and shoulders above anything else Hitch did. I enjoyed North By Northwest, The Birds, Strangers On A Train, Dial M For Murder, Psycho, and Rear Window in that order. Everything else that I’ve seen is pretty good, but I couldn’t put them in any sort of order.
@Jasper – I understand what you’re saying and Vertigo feels very different from a lot of Hitchcock’s films so I can see how maybe some people would be put off by it (or bored). I haven’t seen Family Plot because people talk about how crappy it is but I love Bruce Dern and have been meaning to see it.
Vertigo (1958)
Psycho (1960)
Strangers on a Train (1951)
North by Northwest (1959)
Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
Notorious (1946)
Rear Window (1954)
The 39 Steps (1935)
The Lady Vanishes (1938)
The Birds (1963)
I Confess (1953)
Sabotage (1936)
Young and Innocent (1937)
The Trouble with Harry (1955)
Rebecca (1940)
Rope (1948)
The Farmer’s Wife (1928)
Marnie (1964)
Lifeboat (1944)
Frenzy (1972)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
The Lodger (1927)
Spellbound (1945)
Stage Fright (1950)
Dial M for Murder (1954)
Foreign Correspondent (1940)
Blackmail (1929)
The Paradine Case (1947)
To Catch a Thief (1955)
Suspicion (1941)
The Wrong Man (1956)
Murder! (1930)
Rich and Strange (1931)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
Saboteur (1942)
The Ring (1927)
The Manxman (1929)
Topaz (1969)
Family Plot (1976)
Mr and Mrs Smith (1941)
Secret Agent (1936)
Torn Curtain (1966)
Easy Virtue (1928)
The Skin Game (1931)
Under Capricorn (1949)
Jamaica Inn (1939)
Number Seventeen (1932)
10. The Birds
9. The Wrong Man
8. Notorious
7. Psycho
6. The 39 Steps
5. Strangers on a Train
4. Shadow of a Doubt
3. Spellbound
2. The Lady Vanishes
1. North by Northwest
I’ve only basically seen the major, popular ones.
1. Psycho – 10/10
2. Rear Window – 8/10
3. The Birds – 8/10
4. North by Northwest – 7/10
5. Vertigo – 7/10
6. Rebecca – 7/10
1. Notorious
2. Vertigo
3. Strangers on a Train
4. The Birds
5. North By Northwest
6. Frenzy
7. Rear Window
8. Rebecca
9. Rope
10. Topaz
11. 39 Steps
12. Marnie
13. Suspicion
14. Family Plot
15. Spellbound
16. The Man Who Knew Too Much
17. The Lady Vanishes
Yes – I still to this day have never seen Psycho. I’ve seen film highlights too many times and know the outcome – I therefore keep passing on it. This thread reminded me about Lifeboat – a film I really look forward to seeing. Many folks don’t care for Frenzy or Topaz – but those are two films of his I’ve always felt are unfairly neglected. Frenzy just has such a cool early 70’s English vibe I really take to – a virtual time capsule of that time period. Topaz is so unique compared to his usual style – and I love the politics and intrigue involved. Family Plot I can’t take seriously, but think it’s so much fun. The Lady Vanishes – without a doubt my least favorite in the bunch – the over the top acting, the miniatures, the all too coincidentalness of everything happening, the granny spy, the guns that never run out of bullets on the train – although I could go on and on about that one I’ll stop there! Notorious – great use of a marvelous cast, outstanding suspense, wonderful camera work – a perfect film.
I have not seen “The Pleasure Garden,” the lost “The Mountain Eagle.” “Waltzes from Vienna,” “Champagne,” “Downhill,” “Juno and the Paycock,” “Bon Voyage,” and “Aventure Malgache.”
@Christopher – I don’t care what your excuse is, you need to see Psycho. Like immediately!
I’m totally with you on Frenzy and actually think it was a return to form for him after some weird tangents in the 60s. It reminds me a lot of his pre-Psycho films and was probably his last great film.
I know – it’s not fair of me to keep passing on Psycho – I just feel robbed since I know the outcome, and of course the shower stabbing. All and all I’ve probably only have seen maybe 2 minutes of clips from it. You’re right though – I guess the time has come for me to take the leap. Thanks for the push.
Edit : Alright dude – I just now looked Psycho up on Netflix – and wouldn’t you know – it’s available for instant viewing! Gonna log off now and give it a whirl – wish me luck.
Okay Fredo – just finished it! You’re right – it’s a must see. I can imagine how not knowing the key scenes could make this one of the great suspense films of all time. I did however have a few problems with a couple things. First off I felt the opening dialogue between Marion and Sam was too contrived and a little corny, but forgivable. Also – at the end of the film when the psychiatrist was explaining Norman’s actions and condition – it was all so easy – too tidy of a wrap up – Alfred over did it a tad by feeling the need to describe too much as if the viewer couldn’t piece it together on their own. And Sam and Marion’s sister seemed to more interested in hearing Norman’s diagnosis rather than displaying grief for a loved one they just discovered had been killed. But hey – I’m being picky there. It’s undeniably a classic – I’ll give it four stars. So – a double feature tonight – both four stars – before Psycho I watched “Good Bye, Lenin !” and it was great also.
1. Vertigo
2. Psycho
3. Rope
4. Rear Window
5. Spellbound
6. Rebecca
7. Shadow of a Doubt
8. Notorious
9. The Birds
10. Strangers on a Train
11. The Lady Vanishes
12. Marnie
13. Lifeboat
14. The 39 Steps
15. Frenzy
16. Dial M for Murder
17. North by Northwest
18. The Trouble with Harry
19. The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
20. I Confess
21. Family Plot
22. The Lodger
23. Jamaica Inn
24. Bon Voyage
25. Adventure Malgache
It got a lot harder as I went down the list because honestly I have enjoyed every Hitchcock movie I have seen.
Vertigo – 9/10
The 39 Steps – 9/10
Rear Window – 9/10
The Birds – 8/10
Psycho – 8/10
Rear Window-10/10
Vertigo-10/10
TheBirds-8/10
Psycho-9/10
Spellbound-8/10
The 39 Steps-8/10
Frenzy-6/10
North by Northwest-7/10
Marnie-6/10
Rope-7/10
Rebecca-8/10
Notorious-8/10
The Lady Vanishes-8/10
The Man Who Knew to Much (1956)-7/10
Sabotage-6/10
Strangers on a Train-8/10
Family Plot (1976) 7/10
Frenzy (1972) 9/10
Marnie (1964) 8/10
The Birds (1963) 10/10
Psycho (1960) 10/10
North by Northwest (1959) 10/10
Vertigo (1958) 10/10
The Wrong Man (1956) 8/10
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) 10/10
The Trouble with Harry (1955) 6/10
To Catch a Thief (1955) 7/10
Rear Window (1954) 10/10
Dial M for Murder (1954) 8/10
Strangers on a Train (1951) 10/10
Under Capricorn (1949) 6/10
Rope (1948) 8/10
Notorious (1946) 11/10
Spellbound (1945) 7/10
Lifeboat (1944) 8/10
Shadow of a Doubt (1943) 10/10
Saboteur (1942) 6/10
Suspicion (1941) 7/10
Foreign Correspondent (1940) 7/10
Rebecca (1940) 9/10
The Lady Vanishes (1938) 10/10
Young and Innocent (1937) 8/10
Sabotage (1936) 7/10
Secret Agent (1936) 6/10
The 39 Steps (1935) 10/10
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) 6/10
Number Seventeen (1932) 4/10
Rich and Strange (1931) 6/10
Murder! (1930) 6/10
Blackmail (1929) 10/10
Easy Virtue (1928) 5/10
Downhill (1927) 7/10
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) 6/10
The Pleasure Garden (1925) 5/10
I have seen most of them including some of the silents but I will rate the top ten.
Notorious (His masterpiece, as far as I am concerned. Flawless. 10)
Strangers On A Train (9.5)
Sabotage (9.3)
Rear Window (9.2)
Shadow Of A Doubt (9)
The 39 Steps (8.7)
Rebecca (8.5)
The Lady Vanishes (8.4)
Foreign Correspondent (8)
North By Northwest (7.5)
Vertigo – 5/10
Psycho – 10/10
Strangers on a Train – 8/10
North by Northwest – 10/10
Shadow of a Doubt – 9/10
Notorious – 10/10
Rear Window – 9/10
The 39 Steps – 10/10
The Lady Vanishes – 10/10
The Birds – 7/10
The Trouble with Harry – 3/10
Rope – 6/10
Marnie – 4/10
Spellbound – 10/10
Dial M for Murder – 6/10
Foreign Correspondent – 10/10
To Catch a Thief – 7/10
Suspicion – 7/10
Secret Agent – 7/10
Sabotage – 7/10
Saboteur – 6/10
Discussion wise:
I am a huge fan of NOTORIOUS, probably Hitchcock’s most underrated film. There just isn’t a dull moment in it, the acting and production are flawless, it is a damn near perfect film, the one that I would choose to refute Ingmar Bergman’s assertion about Hitchcock’s being “infantile.” What the hell did he really mean by that, anyway?
As for VERTIGO, well. I don’t love it as much as others do, but I certainly don’t hate it as much as others do. A good friend claims that it is now as over-rated as it had been under-rated. My problems with it are pretty minor: there’s a certain laxness to certain elements of the production that always annoy me, especially in some of the sets and some of the rear-projection. But nothing can take away the brilliance of Stewart’s performance.
I like FRENZY a good deal, too. It has some of Hitchcock’s most daring play with the idea of hero/villain. A thoroughly ulikable hero on the run for a murder that he is all too capable of having committed, and a jolly goodtime killer who we wind up rooting for in his quest to recover an incriminating clue. And one of the most fascinating open endings in films: what on earth is going to happen next?
What do you mean everyone bitches about lists? Who bitches about lists? Lists are great! Here’s mine.
No. 1-11 each get 4 stars (out of 4)
1. Rear Window
2. Vertigo
3. Notorious
4. North by Northwest
5. Psycho
6. Shadow of a Doubt
7. The Lady Vanishes
8. The Birds
9. Strangers on a Train
10. The 39 Steps
11. Rebecca
12. The Wrong Man
13. Foreign Correspondent
14. Blackmail
15. The Lodger
16. Rope
17. Marnie
18. Lifeboat
I’ve seen a few more but I don’t remember them well. I know none of them would crack the top 10.
When in Rome…
Strangers on a Train 4/5
Rear Window 4/5
Psycho 4/5
Vertigo 4/5
Shadow of a Doubt 4/5
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) 4/5
The Birds 3/5
North by Northwest 3/5
Dial M for Murder 3/5
Marnie 2/5
I can get my hands on Notorious, Blackmail and Frenzy.
Fredo
I know everyone bitches about lists but since Alfred Hitchcock has made so many films, I’m curious to see what people have seen of his and what they consider their favorites based on what they’ve seen. For example I can’t say The Wrong Man is Hitch’s best film because I haven’t seen it (well, even for people who have seen it, I can’t imagine making this statement)! From the list, I realized I haven’t seen as many Hitchcock films as I thought I had. So for someone just starting out on Hitch, since his filmography is so big, where does one start? I started with Psycho over ten years ago and have loved his films ever since. Even his crappier films are still interesting to watch.
I would like this to not only be a “list” thread but also a discussion of why you disagree with the standard feeling of one of his films (for instance, why you hate Vertigo or why you love Topaz). For example, I’m not a huge fan of Rear Window. I mean, it’s a decent film but I definitely wouldn’t put it in my top five (or even top ten apparantly). I love Jimmy Stewart and I love Grace Kelly but for some reason, I don’t see the film as being on the same level as Psycho or Vertigo.
So here goes, all of Hitchcock’s films that I’ve seen, in order of preference:
1. Strangers on a Train
2. Psycho
3. Vertigo
4. Notorious
5. North by Northwest
6. Rope
7. The Birds
8. To Catch a Theif
9. Shadow of a Doubt
10. Suspicion
11. Rear Window
12. Frenzy
13. Marnie
14. Dial M for Murder
15. Foreign Correspondent
16. Spellbound
17. The Man Who Knew Too Much
18. Torn Curtain