Multi-dimensional.

Rating: 9/10 (24 July 2005)

"Rear Window", perhaps one the most eccentric films Hitchcock ever made, is about a war photographer (played with enough passion by James Stewart) who watches the private lives of his neighbors through his rear window all the day as he gets confined to his wheelchair after a leg injury. Now, he gets convinced that one of the neighbors is a murderer. He tries to dig deeper into the matter with a bit help from his socialite girlfriend and his nurse. The story, always told from a single perspective, is quite full of suspense though Hitchcock brilliantly avoids weird plot twists in the end. The ending may seem predictable, but the film manages to keep the suspense on. And there lies the beauty of it.
It is not just another spy movie. The film also gives interesting insights of the fifties society. All the neighboring characters represented some portion of the community. The talented musician, the sculptor, the childless couple, the happily married new couple or the sexy ballet dancer -- everybody's lives reflected some part of the photographer's own life and feelings. The film restricts itself in only one set, but that never gets it boring. That's where the brilliance of Hitchcock lies, perhaps.