Underrated script, overrated effects

Rating: 6/10 (28 November 2000)

The thing that struck me the most about this film is its brilliant script. Funnily enough, this is in direct contradiction to a lot of people's perceptions of the film; most find the script to be nonsensical and the characters one-dimensional, citing the suspense and the special effects as the film's strongest points. While I will admit that the characters (or, indeed, the performances) aren't exactly the greatest I've ever seen in a film, it's the advancement, the mechanics and the allegory of the plot that do it for me. I hate to echo or copy others, but zetes's 'freudian analysis' of this film (found in the user comments section of this site) was totally spot-on. The bird attacks were symbolic representations of Mitch's mother's antipathy towards her son's love interests, and seen from this perspective the whole movie makes perfect sense, particularly the ending.
Also great is the way the budding love affair between Melanie and Mitch is stripped of its childish veneer when they're faced with real danger. Their relationship never feels fake or contrived to me; even though they aren't the most realistic characters ever put to celluloid, it is clear that the movie is always to some extent a love story. It's a far cry from the manufactured, crowd-pleasing "love-interest" aspects of today's thrillers, and added greatly to my enjoyment of the film.
The technical aspects are all good, as can be expected from a Hitchcock film. The special effects were no doubt marvelous for their time, and the lack of a score gives a realistic atmosphere that adds to the effect nicely (hundreds of birds shrieking incessantly will chip away at anyone's composure). However, despite being well made, the film didn't have quite the massive effect on me that I thought it would. Maybe it's my ILM-addled sensibilities talking, or maybe my expectations were just a bit too high going in. In any case, such gripes notwithstanding one thing is for certain: by any standards, today's or yesterday's, this is good cinema. 8/10