Product Description

Although Alfred Hitchcock is well-known for his interviews, he also wrote extensively about the cinema during the course of his life. The writings gathered together in this book are meditations on film art in general, as well as attempts to define his own art in particular, expressed in a manner that reflects the delight that he took in film-making. The essays focus directly on Hitchcock's life, his films and his film practice. He deals with fear, the mechanics of suspense, and the position of women in his films and in the audience - and in the process he reveals a great deal about the complex creation and manipulation of his public persona. The pieces also include a description of how he proposed to his wife.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #476082 in Books
• Published on: 1997-02-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 360 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
No one knew more about manipulating a movie audience than Alfred Hitchcock, the legendary master of suspense. But while many film directors have written books about their ideas and techniques, Hitchcock discussed his personal theories almost exclusively in the short articles he wrote throughout his long life. Here, for the first time, most of these hard-to-find pieces have been collected. Sidney Gottlieb's well-edited volume features Hitchcock's thoughts on actors ("they should be treated like cattle"), effective film editing, the power of the thriller, proper uses of a director's talents, and the keys to any good suspense film: sex and murder. Gottlieb's introduction and running commentary is illuminating and helpful.

Customer Reviews

An excellent introduction to the world of Hitchcock
I recently saw "Rear Window" for the first time and this fuelled my interest in Hitchcock and film making in general. As a result, I went in search of a book that would develop my very basic knowledge of Hitchcock and his techniques for developing and sustaining suspense. In "Hitchcock on Hitchcock" I found an ideal companion. Unlike other books that focus on Hitchcock's interviews, Gottlieb has collated a selection of rare or previously unpublished essays actually written by 'Hitch'. These essays are possibly a more genuine reflection of the man than his interviews to which, I have since learned, he adopted a notoriously mischievous attitude.

Gottlieb has not adopted the predictable chronological approach and simply listed each essay in order. Instead, he has chronologically categorised selections of essays into chapters such as "Film Production" and "Technique, style and Hitchcock at work". In his introduction to each chapter, Gottlieb attempts to offer a critique of the subsequent essays in that chapter. Gottlieb also challenges the popular perceptions that have grown around the man from previous works, especially the well documented Trauffaut-Hitchcock interviews.

All of this provides a helpful context in to which can be seen Hitchcock's evolving views on a number of important film related matters. The essays themselves are generally short and to the point and infused with Hitchcock's dry humour, which I particularly appreciated. The arrangement of the book means that each chapter stands alone and need not be followed in any particular order. Unfortunately, as a result this means that there is a fair amount of repetition. Gottlieb's introductory essays (which probably consist of about 5% of the book) may occasionally be too dry for the casual reader but often offer a great, if scholarly, insight into Hitchcock.

On the whole I would thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in Hitchcock. It is largely an addictive read and one that is certainly worth adding to a collection.