Hitchcock’s American And British Suspense Genre And How They Reflect Social Concerns Of The Period

In Hitchcock’s American suspense films, the knowledge or the secret is revealed early in the film usually by means of restricted narration which is tied to one or two characters. The restricted narration is designed to provoke identification with the main or main characters. In Psycho the audience is drawn into the film by Marion Crane, the viewer is only allowed to view the events through her perspective until she meets Norman Bates. The narration is done in such a way that we see the world on the screen through the eyes of Marion and we are able to understand her desires as well as what motivates her to pursue them. From the beginning of the films the viewer ca

The prevalent social concerns of the period in which a film was made are important determining factors that greatly influence the content and how the audience receives a film. The American films made during this period of the 1960’s reflect the social concerns of the period. Hitchcock’s films were concerned with issues of women in the work force, issues of gender roles, family values, and the sexual objectification of women. These themes come up time and time again but are especially prevalent in Psycho and Vertigo. The British films that were made by Hitchcock during the time period also reflect the major social concerns of the time. In his British films the major concern was World War II. Evidence of the war can be seen in the content of The 39 Steps and The Lady Vanishes. Both of these films deal with issues of spies, international espionage, conflicting powers, issues of trust and loyalty to an individual’s nation.

The film Vertigo also is characteristically American because key information is also revealed early compared with other events in the film. The audience understands that the vertigo cripples Scottie and will keep him from performing his job properly as a detective on the police force. We are aware that the only way he will be able to perform effectively is if he were to work a desk job instead of being out on the streets doing his job. The narration begins from Scottie’s point of view but later switches to Judy’s point of view after Scottie’s hospitalization. The viewer no longer identifies with Scottie but instead with Judy and not only identifies with Judy but also begins to sympathize with her character later in the film especially when Scottie becomes sadistic and manipulative. In addition the viewer is aware early in the film that Madeline is just a character played by Judy.

Hollywood and British films have several elements in common such as being entertainment oriented, they value content and story over form, they are star centered, character centered and are made for the purpose of profit. Hitchcock’s British and American films present different variations on the suspense genre which can be accounted for by their national origins and the social concerns prevalent during the time which they were made. The British films have always been different from the films that are produced in Hollywood because they do not usually have budgets that are as large. Because they have smaller budgets they look cheaper, possess stars that are up and coming instead of huge celebrities and are more interested in groups of people instead of individuals. In addition to the differences in the studios used and the budgets of the British films made by Hitchcock the British films contain British historical elements that relate to national identity and heritage where as the American Hitchcock films contain landmarks and monuments that indicate American heritage. The films also contain Hitchcock’s interpretation of American and British identity as well as the heritage of both countries. Since Hitchcock, born in Britain, came to the United States during the war and is not a native American by birth his interpretation must be different from an individual who was born and lived in America their entire life.

n understand that Marion is unhappy with her job, the fact that her boyfriend, Sam lives in anoth

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