Not his best... but it sure is good.

Rating: 8/10 (23 May 2004)

Although I still haven't seen much of Hitchcock's work, I must say he's mighty talented. I don't think REAR WINDOW is deserving of the title as the #15 movie of all time, and I certainly don't think it's better than PSYCHO... but it sure is good.
REAR WINDOW is the story of a photographer named Jeff (James Stewart) who is constricted to his apartment by his wheelchair after breaking a leg. After being at home alone all day (with the exception of visits from his nurse Stella, played by Thelma Ritter, and his girlfriend Lisa, played by Grace Kelly), he begins to inspect one of his neighbors, Lars Thorwald (played by Raymond Burr), who is acting peculiarly. This man's wife has suddenly disappeared, and Jeff comes to the conclusion that his neighbor has killed his wife. He has evidence to support this theory, but nobody believes him.
I must say, this premise of REAR WINDOW is very clever. I really do like the story. The actors are all pretty good, and Raymond Burr is genuinely creepy as the alleged murderer. The script is decent. Of course, Hitchcock's directing is excellent. But... this movie seemed to be missing something for me. Most of the time I found it to be rather boring, and incredibly slow-paced. I thought many of the interactions between James Stewart and Grace Kelly were useless to the movie and much too drawn-out. If it weren't for the rather bland moments, this movie would have a much higher ranking with me.
However, due to a great and well-executed plot, and the chills that the murderer can provoke, I have to say that although I don't think this is Hitchcock's best movie, it's certainly good. At the time I didn't care for it too much, since it bored me to no end, but looking back on it, it really is a worthwhile movie to watch. Not essential, but well worth your time. 8/10.