Without question, Alfred Hitchcock was one of the best filmmakers to come out of England and take Hollywood by storm. Where others have failed, Hitchcock earned himself an international reputation as the master of suspense; enthralling the cinema-goer with innovative techniques, and gripping the aorta of human fear. As well as iconic (changing the way people look at birds forever), Hitchcock became emblematic of a 20th century cultural evolution. With a career spanning 6 decades, we can follow Modernism from puberty to stumbling retirement (although I’m not sure that Matisse and Sarraute would have appreciated being labelled under Modernist Menopause).
The French, although normally fiercely loyal to their own cinematic protégé, nonetheless know when to acknowledge a true master (albeit a foreigner, and worse, a Brit). As such, they are seeing-in 2011 with over a month’s worth of Hitchock’s Best-of, documentaries, exhibitions, and archives from Jan 5- Feb 28 at La Cinémathèque française, 51 rue de Bercy, opposite the Bibliothèque Nationale.
Have a gander at the website, pick your favourite thriller, and scare yourself silly this month! Just be warned...the Parisians are not big popcorn eaters, especially during films of extreme dramatic tension.
Just take my word for it.
Yours frightfully,
Mustard
