film and architecture section: Rope by Alfred Hitchcock, architecture and film appreciation

category: Architecture and Film

film index: 74

relationship with architecture:

study subject in: "film+architecture" Course, Harvard Design School. (click HERE for syllabus)

film: Rope

director: Alfred Hitchcock

writers: Play:Patrick Hamilton, Adaptation:Hume Cronyn, Screenplay:Arthur Laurents, Ben Hecht (uncredited)

production: USA Warner Brothers Studios

release: 28 August, 1948

playtime: 81 min

visual:

Language: English

Subtitles:

Genre: Suspense

Cast: James Stewart, John Dall, Farley Granger, Cedric Hardwicke, Constance Collier

size: 699 mb

reference: Taringa.com, Avaxhome.ws, skc339.blogspot.com, pasquish.blogspot.com, iloveclassics.blogspot.com, englishtips.org

Description and Download

An experimental film masquerading as a standard Hollywood thriller. The plot of Rope is simple and based on a successful stage play: two young men (John Dall and Farley Granger) commit murder, more or less as an intellectual exercise. They hide the body in their large apartment, then throw a dinner party. Will the body be discovered? Director Alfred Hitchcock, fascinated by the possibilities of the long-take style, decided to shoot this story as though it were happening in one long, uninterrupted shot. Since the camera can only hold one 10-minute reel at a time, Hitchcock had to be creative when it came time to change reels, disguising the switches as the camera passed behind someone's back or moved behind a lamp. In later years Hitchcock wrote off the approach as misguided, and Rope may not be one of Hitchcock's top movies, but it's still a nail-biter. They don't call him the Master of Suspense for nothing. James Stewart, as a suspicious professor, marks his first starring role for Hitchcock, a collaboration that would lead to the masterpieces Rear Window and Vertigo.

Overview: Applying their professor's theory, two classmates decide to murder their inferior and keep him in the apartment during a dinner party.

Acting: Impressive acting by James Stewart. Seems that this is the kind of role he's best suited for. Everyone in this is perfectly chosen for their roles, and the direction is superb.

Cinematography: 9 takes, 80 minutes. This is what's most interesting about this film. The reason that there were so MANY takes is because film reels could only hold about 10 minutes of film. Had they attempted more seamless takes, I would have been more impressed, but Rope has Russian Arc beat to death in my books. This is also Alfred Hitchcock's first colour film, and apparently whole takes were redone because he didn't like the colour of the sunset in the background. that, my friend, is dedication.

Script: The reference to Notorious is quite entertaining. Three people are chatting, talking about Cary Grant's last film, called "Something. You know with Ingrid Bergman?" I thought only Shakespeare could pull off plugging his other plays mid-story. In a way, this illustrates the essence of this film. Dialogue stays witty, poignant and conversational with a huge fat slab of holy-than-thou arrogance and a dash of hints and mystery. Of course you need that when your story's about people killing just to prove they can pull it off.

Plot: Witty. This is the story of a couple of guys who kill their classmate and put him in a trunk. The next few hours has these guys throwing a dinner party, with that very chest as centerpiece. The only regret I have is that I wish I hadn't seen Six Feet Under. You see, that show taught me early on what happens to a body after death, and I don't think a bunch of dinner guests would let slide a farting, leaking steamer trunk for hours upon hours... Baring that acceptable suspension of disbelief, a nice thrill-ride with a dramatic finish.

Mood: Perfectionism is nice, especially with such stories as the time a dolly ran over and crushed the foot of a crewman. Since the takes were so long, they wanted to make sure that they did it right the first time. The poor broken-footed man was gagged and dragged off, while the cameras kept rolling, and yes, they used that shot in final edit. With the drive of such talent to make sure it's done right, you won't be surprised to find how good a film this is. That real-time feel adds a nice element of immediacy.

imdb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0040746/
wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rope_%28film%29

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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Rope by Alfred Hitchcock, architecture and film appreciation

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