Dreamlike clarity makes The Birds work on the unconscious as well as visually

Rating: 10/10 (1 November 2005)

I saw The Birds when it first came out, in a theater. I was visiting my home town of Philadelphia after being away for a couple of years and one of my older cousins was given the job of entertaining me by taking me to a movie. I was totally taken with The Birds but I'm not sure my cousin liked it at all. Since then, I've seen the movie dozens of times and I've enjoyed it on many different levels every time I've seen it, depending on what age I was, what experiences I'd had to date, and where my consciousness was. If I'm flipping channels and see any scene from The Birds, I tend to get riveted to the spot and have to finish watching through to the end. There are scenes in this film which, like great music, carry you along with them to places you wouldn't otherwise go but, once there, won't willingly leave.
Hitchcock's films are all crafted with extreme care and the stories of his obsessions and perfectionism are legendary. For me, those things pale beside the work itself, this film being one of my personal favorites. Tippi Hedren, whom I identified with very strongly in this film and even more so as Marnie, epitomized a certain 50's ideal turned on its head - a strong-willed woman who was visually very together but, underneath it all, perhaps a bit fragile psychologically. I like the fact that Hitchcock chose to make her rich in this film because that' makes sense to me as someone who grew up in that era. I say 50's because, although the film was made in the early 60's, it is built on the imagery and assumptions of the 50's as firmly as early 70's films were built on those of the 60's. It takes a while for the societal norms and cultural views of one decade to make it into the movies, especially the movies which make sense of, or epitomize, them.
Every camera angle and small exchange between people, or between people and birds, or between the birds themselves, is exquisitely pertinent to the story. Every detail of each set, every action, every snippet of dialogue, every gesture all fit together seamlessly to create a world that feels as real and comfortable as an old sweater... the better to take you places you would never dream of going psychologically. Comfort and safety, order, well-understood expectations all create a firm foundation for you to surrender your emotions and allow the story to work on your subconscious as well as your conscious mind.
It does this brilliantly and that is why generations of film students know the beats of the movement, the pauses and silences, the framing and the pacing as well as I do. Many people prefer to study Psycho for these nuances but I think that which film strikes one's own personal chord most resonantly speaks more to our own internal landscapes than to which film of Hitchcock's is 'better'.
I have never taped or purchased a copy of The Birds. I think it's because I would rather remember it, like memories from my own life, within the context of the time I saw it. I also like to stumble across it on TV or cable and rediscover it all over again in whatever frame of mind I am in at the time. If you've never seen it, please do. It's one of the real masterpieces of cinematic art.