Rear Window Overview:

Rear Window (1954) was a Mystery - Romance Film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and produced by Alfred Hitchcock.

The film was based on the short story It Had to Be Murder written by Cornell Woolrich published in Dime Detective Magazine in Feb 1942.

SYNOPSIS

This thoroughly enjoyable mystery classic from Hitchcock pokes amiably at the inherent voyeurism of the movie audience. Restless magazine photographer Stewart bides his time while confined to a wheelchair with observing the behavior of his neighbors from the vantage point of his rear window. His only other distractions during the day our visits from his model girlfriend Kelly and nurse Ritter. After waking in the night, Stewart is convinced he sees salesman Burr disposing of evidence that would indicate a hideous murder, with his nagging wife the obvious victim. But when Stewart's story doesn't wash with a policeman pal, he sends Kelly into the apartment to search for more clues. As Stewart watches helplessly, Burr returns to his apartment. Now aware of Stewart's snooping, Burr attacks the wheelchair-bound voyeur. Witty and beautifully produced (Hitchcock constructed the largest set of its time at Paramount?31 full-scale apartments), this is an enduring popular and critical favorite.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

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Rear Window was inducted into the National Film Registry in 1997.

Academy Awards 1954 --- Ceremony Number 27 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best CinematographyRobert BurksNominated
Best DirectorAlfred HitchcockNominated
Best WritingJohn Michael HayesNominated
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BlogHub Articles:

Roadgames: A Little Bit of Rear Window, a Dash of Duel

By Rick29 on Oct 7, 2024 From Classic Film & TV Cafe

Quid (Stacy Keach) with his harmonica.Directed by Hitchcock admirer Richard Franklin, Roadgames (1981) follows truck driver Patrick Quid (Stacy Keach) as he traverses the desolate highways of rural Australia after witnessing what may have been the aftermath of a murder. You see, there's a serial kil... Read full article


James Stewart, Grace Kelly, and Thelma Ritter debate “Rear Window” ethics

By Stephen Reginald on Dec 5, 2023 From Classic Movie Man

James Stewart, Grace Kelly, and Thelma Ritter debate “Rear Window” ethics Rear Window (1954) is an American mystery thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, and Thelma Ritter. The script was by John Michael Hayes, the cinematograp... Read full article


4K UHD Blu-ray Review: Rear Window

By Devon Powell on Sep 2, 2021 From Hitchcock Master

Distributor: Universal Pictures Release Date: September 07, 2021 Region ? 4K UHD: Region Free BLU-RAY: Region A Length: 01:52:27 Video ? 4K UHD: 2160P (HEVC, H.265) BLU-RAY: 1080P (MPEG-4, AVC) Audio (4K UHD & Blu-ray): 2.0 Mono English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono Spanish (Latin American) DTS ... Read full article


Rear Window: In the Heat of the Night

By Devon Powell on Sep 13, 2020 From Hitchcock Master

Exclusive Guest Article By: Robert Jones This article is the first in a series of four guest articles to appear on this page in celebration of Universal’s release of ‘The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection.’ ??How do you know what the world is like? Do you know the world is a f... Read full article


The Directors’ Chair: Rear Window

By Theresa Brown on Aug 25, 2020 From Classic Movie Hub Blog

The Directors’ Chair: Rear Window (Hitchcock, 1954) ?REAR WINDOW? (1954) – CURIOSITY KILLED THE… James Stewart, Rear Window Holed up in his apartment with a broken leg, a photo journalist played by James Stewart, whiles away his recuperative time watching his neighbor... Read full article


See all Rear Window articles

Quotes from

Lisa: You can't ignore the wife dissapearing, and the trunk, and the jewelery.
Lt. Doyle: I checked the railroad station. Yesterday at 6:20 am, he bought a ticket. Ten minutes later, he put his wife on a train. Destination: Meritsville. I asure you, the witnesses are that deep.
Lisa: That might have been a woman, but it couldn't have been Mrs. Thorwald. That jewelery...
Lt. Doyle: Look, Miss Fremont, that feminine intuition stuff sells magazines, but in real life it's still a fairy tale. I don't know how many times I chased down leads based on women's intuition.


Lt. Doyle: Jeff, you've got a lot to learn about homicide. Why, morons have committed murders so shrewdly that it's taken a hundred trained police minds to catch them.


Lisa: Well, if there's one thing I know, it's how to wear the proper clothes.


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Facts about

The first German dubbing was created in 1955. After the rights to this movie reverted back to Alfred Hitchcock, all prints of this version were destroyed. When the film became available again in 1984, a new dubbing had to be created since the old version could not be located. It is presumed lost.
Alfred Hitchcock: about a half hour into the film, winding the clock in the songwriter's apartment. The songwriter is real-life songwriter Ross Bagdasarian, creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks.
The size of the set necessitated excavation of the soundstage floor. Thus Jeff's apartment was actually at street level.
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Best Director Oscar 1954






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National Film Registry

Rear Window

Released 1954
Inducted 1997
(Sound)




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Also directed by Alfred Hitchcock




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Also produced by Alfred Hitchcock




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