unnerving images, bad acting

Rating: 5/10 (12 November 2003)

Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds is undoubtedly one of the low points in his career. I am not sure why he chose to make this move. It has a weak plot that was doomed to fail. Of course Hitchcock was still able to deliver some eerie scenes of the birds. Also he was able to give the setting of the small town its own life, just as he did in Psycho and Rear Window. In those movies, as in the Birds, he allows the setting to become its own character. Other than those two positives, the movie was lacking quite a bit in other areas. Tippi Hedren and Rod Taylor were perhaps Hitchcock's worst lead pair. Most scenes were over-acted. Also the direction was not up to par with Hitchcock's other movies. I give it a solid 5 out 10.