Cheesy, definitely not Hitchcock's finest,, but I love it anyway

Rating: 6/10 (28 January 2008)

One of the reasons I like this film is because it takes place in my backyard, so to speak. I happen to live in the area where it was filmed and that's one of the reasons I enjoy watching it. Having said that, and being a Hitchcock fan, I definitely don't think this was anywhere up to his standards.
I don't expect there to be a reason given for the bird attacks. That's a mystery and will remain one. What I can't get behind are some of the incredibly cheesy situations and silly dialogue. The conversation between Melanie and Annie for instance, after Melanie returns from having dinner with Mitch and his family. Annie goes into this whole explanation of Lydia's character and why she behaves the way she does. Yet, she says, Lydia is not a jealous, possessive mother????? When she relates her own experiences with Mitch and Lydia, Melanie makes the comment 'that adds up to a jealous possessive mother', or something along those lines. 'No', says Annie, she's not afraid of losing Mitch, she's just afraid of being abandoned'. Did I miss something here? I can't believe that Hitchcock allowed such senseless, pointless dialogue between his characters.
Later Annie is found dead in front of her house, yet she manages to push Cathy inside, and Cathy doesn't have a scratch on her. Okay, maybe there is a way this could have happened but it does stretch the imagination a bit. Speaking of Cathy, I found the kid to be irritating beyond words. Fortunately for her, Veronica Cartwright's acting has greatly improved in the intervening years but she sure couldn't act in this film.
Nevertheless, I find this film to be enjoyable and I watch it time and again. Despite the cheesiness and frequently contrived situations and the less than stellar characters, I think it's very entertaining. I just find it hard to believe it's a Hitchcock film.