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Vacationing in northern California, Alfred Hitchcock was struck by a story in a Santa Cruz newspaper: "Seabird Invasion Hits Coastal Homes". From this peculiar incident, and his memory of a short story by Daphne du Maurier, the master of suspense created one of his strangest and most terrifying films. The Birds follows a chic blonde, Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), as she travels to the coastal town of Bodega Bay to hook up with a rugged fellow (Rod Taylor) she's only just met. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock's skill at staging action is brought to the fore. Beyond the superb effects, however, The Birds is also one of Hitchcock's most psychologically complicated scenarios, a tense study of violence, loneliness, and complacency. What really gets under your skin are not the bird skirmishes but the anxiety and the eerie quiet between attacks. The director elevated an unknown model, Tippi Hedren (mother of Melanie Griffith), to being his latest cool, blond leading lady, an experience that was not always easy on the much-pecked Ms. Hedren. Still, she returned for the next Hitchcock picture, the underrated Marnie. Treated with scant attention by serious critics in 1963, The Birds has grown into a classic and--despite the sci-fi trappings--one of Hitchcock's most serious films. --Robert Horton
Amazon.com Essential Video
Vacationing in northern California, Alfred Hitchcock was struck by a story in a Santa Cruz newspaper: "Seabird Invasion Hits Coastal Homes." From this peculiar incident, and his memory of a short story by Daphne du Maurier, the master of suspense created one of his strangest and most terrifying films. The Birds follows a chic blonde, Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), as she travels to the coastal town of Bodega Bay to hook up with a rugged fellow (Rod Taylor) she's only just met. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock's skill at staging action is brought to the fore. Beyond the superb effects, however, The Birds is also one of Hitchcock's most psychologically complicated scenarios, a tense study of violence, loneliness, and complacency. What really gets under your skin are not the bird skirmishes but the anxiety and the eerie quiet between attacks. The director elevated an unknown model, Tippi Hedren (mother of Melanie Griffith), to being his latest cool, blond leading lady, an experience that was not always easy on the much-pecked Ms. Hedren. Still, she returned for the next Hitchcock picture, the underrated Marnie. Treated with scant attention by serious critics in 1963, The Birds has grown into a classic and--despite the sci-fi trappings--one of Hitchcock's most serious films. --Robert Horton
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Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beware THE BIRDS!!!,
This review is from: The Birds (Widescreen) (DVD)
The Birds is one of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock films. Perhaps that has a lot to do with the beautiful Tippi Hedren, who shines in everything she does. The gorgeous scenery, adorable costumes, and lavish colors also add to the surreal atmosphere, which quickly gets disrupted by a flock of killer birds. Like many firsts Hitchcock introduced with his films, this is the first "nature run amock" film, just like Psycho was the first "slasher" film. This Psycho follow-up was yet another ground-breaking addition to the horror genre and further revealed the master director's darker obsessions. Like Hitchcock's fabulous Rebecca and mediocre Jamaica Inn, this is based on a story by the extremely talented Daphne Du Maurier, but Hitchcock was left with the task of fleshing out the short story into a feature film. He did one hell of a job. Hitchcock and screenwriter Evan Hunter borrowed only the title and basic conceit of Daphne du Maurier's 1952 short story, "The Birds." Du Maurier's tale, conventional and utterly humorless, is a Cold War parable that uses the unexplained bird attacks as an apocalyptic metaphor for nature thrown out of balance by technology and warfare. It's told from the perspective of Nat Hocken, a disabled war veteran and farmhand living in a cottage with his family in the British Isles. The film version is set in Bodega Bay and follows bored, spoiled socialite Melanie Daniels (Hedren) as she romantically pursues dashing lawyer Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor). Tension soon develops among Melanie, schoolteacher Annie Hayworth, Mitch's former flame (Suzanne Pleshette), and Mitch's domineering mother (Jessica Tandy). The emotional interplay is interrupted (and reflected) by the sudden and unexplained attack of thousands of birds on the area.
1.0 out of 5 stars
IT'S FOR THE BIRDS,
By
This review is from: The Birds (Widescreen) (DVD)
I always get annoyed when people say that the special effects in "The Birds" are great. . .for its time. Well, I don't have a time machine to go back to 1963, so let me state unequivocally: the special effects are lame, unconvincing, and, at times, down-right laughable. And, believe me, the special effects are the only thing that this ridiculous movie could have ever had going for it. The acting is wooden. Are we sure that "Tippi" Hedren wasn't a former mannequin--not a model? Rod Taylor is so wooden Tippi shouldn't have rented the boat. . .she could have used him to float across the bay! And what's up with Suzanne Pleshette? Is she a woman playing a drag queen playing a woman? Add to that ridiculous plotting, screamingly funny dialogue, THE MOST ANNOYING SONG EVER WRITTEN and sung by the school children before the crow attack, an over-the-top piece of acting to the balcony by Jessica Tandy, and a DVD with grainy visuals and flat sound and you've got one of the most over-rated pieces of cinema ever to be foisted off on the public as a "Classic." Give this movie the bird.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
What happens when our fowl feathered friends become...foul!!!!,
By
This review is from: The Birds (Widescreen) (DVD)
XXXXX
"Seems like a pattern, doesn't it? They strike, then disappear, and then start massing again." The above line of dialogue is from this entertaining, suspenseful, scary, and romantic movie. It was directed by the great Alfred Hitchcock who said, "This could be the most terrifying motion picture I have ever made!" This movie is based on the short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. Because of its special effects (where no computer animation was used) and apocalyptic theme, this movie influenced later "revenge of nature" films. (It was nominated for a special effects Academy Award.) Briefly, Melanie Daniels ("Tippi" Hedren) is attracted to Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor). She decides to unexpectedly visit him at his home located in a small Pacific coastal village. In this village, she discovers three things: (1) Mitch has a much younger sister (Veronica Cartwright) and a possessive, widowed mother (Jessica Tandy) (2) Mitch's former lover and now the village's school teacher (Suzanne Pleshette) (3) The gradual strange behaviour of the birds in this village. Look for Hitchcock's cameo just after the opening credits. What makes this movie especially suspenseful is that the viewer does not know when the birds will attack. Those who like their movies to tell them everything as it proceeds will not like this movie. By not telling the viewer everything, Hitchcock effectively adds another dimension to his movie. Two other things unique about this movie are: (1) It has no background music (thus adding to the suspense) (2) It has no conventional ending (thus giving the impression that the events portrayed in the film are just the beginning...) Finally, the DVD (the one released in 2000) is perfect in picture and sound quality. It has thirteen extras, many of which are brief but interesting. In conclusion, don't be a birdbrain!! Be sure to see this classic movie directed by "The Master of Suspense!!!" (1963; 2 hr; wide screen; 20 scenes; colour) <<Stephen Pletko, London, Ontario, Canada>> XXXXX
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