The Birds (1963) Rating 4/5

Plot wise thrillers then and now are not much of a difference. But the key difference between the Hitchcock thriller classics and the movies nowadays is not the plot but how it’s built up.  Hitchcock knew that jumping right in to the action has less impact on the viewer so he most of the time went on a long road filled with lengthy conversations and normality phase before the real plot unveils. The success of The Birds is also largely depends on that way of storytelling.

The Birds starts with a familiar feeling of a romantic movie. A beautiful woman get attracted to a handsome man at a bird shop and ends up finding out who he is and goes through the trouble to visit him at his remote home town. This town situated near the bay is scenic and peaceful where the couple gets to enjoy there company a bit till something strange comes to light. First it comes in the form of curious people (Which is always the case in small towns) and later on it takes a different shape. The shape of birds.

Like in all Hitchcock movies there are many characters that raise suspicious looks, dialogues and vibes. And the viewer sense that there is something brewing in the background but not sure exactly what and how it will come to play. Therefore it’s the familiar frustrating wait that the viewer will feel for a good deal of time of the movie. However there is a crucial shift in plot that actually turns the movie from romantic to thrilling and from that point onward there is ample reasons to grab on to the seat.

There is a noticeable beauty in the cinematography in The Birds than most other Hitchcock movies. Maybe because it takes place in a scenic location whereas majority of others movies has urban based plots. And another noticeable different is the use of animation and props which I must say for a movie made 50 years back is very good. And like always acting is good even by the minor roles and directed well.

I cannot think of a recent movie which is better than this running on a similar theme. Sadly thrillers based on nature’s epidemics have turned in to half science fictions and has lost its base value. But here all you will see is ordinary people facing an extraordinary situation. And the ending perfectly makes sense.