Audiovisual masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (27 September 2018)

Being a Hitchcock movie, Rear Window has excellent use of many tactics to increase suspense. One thing that I found fascinating was how this film also skillfully employs the use of audio and the view of the camera in playing with the concept of perspective. Jefferies is physically trapped in his apartment, bound by injury and feels trapped emotionally as well. We are kept inside the apartment with him until Jefferies finally "makes his exit". Throughout the whole film what we are able to hear is true to what Jefferies would have been able to hear except at a couple key points.
When Jeff is in his apartment listening out he can hardly make out what people are saying, at several points in the movie he often leans in to try and hear better, an action that is accompanied by slight tightening of the camera shots, which really creates a very accurate first-person perspective. Hitchcock tried very hard to keep the perspective true to what those looking out of the window were seeing, only using third person shots within the apartment and in the final scenes. This was important because, by trapping us in one perspective, some information seemed desperately close but still out of reach, creating Hitchcock's favorite thing, suspense. However, that is not the only reason the use of perspective was critical in this film. It was important because whenever it was strayed from an event would stand out drastically. Look, for example, at when the footsteps were coming up the hall at the beginning of the third act, they were by far the loudest thing to happen in the movie up to that point, which brought a new element into the film, fear. Up till then we had felt safe yet quizzical in Jefferies' apartment, trying to figure out a puzzle on the outside. Now that puzzle and all the dangers with it, were coming into our safe space where we had been trapped. The sheer difference in the exaggerated volume (along with the lighting of the apartment) this scene had from those before made it stand out and added emotion.
Another example of how perspective was used in the film is rooted in the camerawork rather than the audio. As I stated before, the only time the camera shot leaves the apartment is when Jefferies does. Once he is outside the apartment we see the scene from the perspective of the onlookers and those in the apartment. This is in stark contrast to the views we have had up to this point and lends additional gravity to an already heavy scene. Finally, by trapping the camera in the apartment Hitchcock was able to also make my favorite scene in the movie. When Lisa was in Thorwald's apartment we could see her actions along with Thorwald's walk up the hall at the same time. This created an intensely suspenseful scene having all the aspects of parallel editing without the camera ever having to change its location.
Hitchcock was known for his use of suspense and Rear Window is another suspenseful masterpiece. There were a number of other very intriguing facets to this movie but what really stood out to me was his ability to create suspense and manipulate his audience with perspective. This film was a delight to watch and there is much more to be said about it but I didn't see much mention of Hitchcock's use of audiovisual in the reviews, so I thought I would bring up my perspective.