{"id":10590,"date":"2010-06-24T12:53:28","date_gmt":"2010-06-24T19:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=10590"},"modified":"2021-02-09T09:20:04","modified_gmt":"2021-02-09T16:20:04","slug":"birds-the-1963","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=10590","title":{"rendered":"Birds, The (1963)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;It&#8217;s the end of the world.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-199x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"199\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-61175\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-678x1024.jpg 678w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-85x128.jpg 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-768x1160.jpg 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-1017x1536.jpg 1017w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster-179x270.jpg 179w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Poster.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA socialite (Tippi Hedren) pursues a lawyer (Rod Taylor) to his hometown of Bodega Bay, where birds are suddenly beginning to act hostile towards humans.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hitchcock Films<\/li>\n<li>Horror Films<\/li>\n<li>Jessica Tandy Films<\/li>\n<li>Killer Animals<<\/li>\n<li>Rod Taylor Films<\/li>\n<li>Small Town America<\/li>\n<li>Tippi Hedren Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary notes that while this loose adaptation of <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Birds_%28story%29\">Daphne Du Maurier&#8217;s short story<\/a> &#8220;disappointed most everyone when it was released&#8221;, it&#8217;s now &#8220;justifiably regarded as one of Hitchcock&#8217;s true gems, an exciting, complex picture that is technically dazzling [and] extremely well written&#8221; &#8212; not to mention &#8220;ideal for viewers who enjoy digging for themes&#8221;. Indeed, given that none of the characters in the film &#8220;has an explanation for what is happening&#8221;, it&#8217;s possible to project numerous theories and metaphors onto the story: perhaps, as Peary writes, the film is attempting to portray a version of &#8220;Judgment Day&#8221;, or &#8220;perhaps the birds have just decided to reclaim their world from the intruding human species, who had proved to be cruel landlords&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p>Peary himself asserts his belief &#8220;that the film is much like a Christian parable&#8221;, in which &#8220;the bird attacks serve to force humans to regain their humanness, to bring them closer together, to love one another&#8221; &#8212; given that each of the leading characters is shown to struggle with issues of trust and abandonment. He fittingly notes that, &#8220;when challenged by an alien force&#8221;, they &#8220;forget the barriers they had set up between themselves and come through for one another&#8221;, forming a &#8220;human flock&#8221; by the film&#8217;s disturbing, apocalyptic end. <\/p>\n<p>Thematic concerns aside, <em>The Birds<\/em> remains one of Hitchcock&#8217;s most interesting experiments in horror; its pacing and overall timbre are unlike anything he attempted before or after. As Peary notes, the &#8220;film&#8217;s highlights are not necessarily the bird attacks&#8221; (though they&#8217;re terribly disturbing) &#8220;but how Hitchcock builds suspense prior to them&#8221;; and, unlike in his iconic thriller <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5177\"><em>Psycho<\/em> (1960)<\/a>, just for instance, no music at all is used to heighten emotions &#8212; just expertly sound engineered bird noises. Featuring a debut performance by Tippi Hedren that will &#8220;grow on you&#8221;:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-1024x551.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"344\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61179\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-1024x551.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-300x161.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-768x413.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-1536x827.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2-502x270.png 502w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Hedren2.png 1823w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; <em>The Birds<\/em> remains a worthy, unique entry in Hitchcock&#8217;s vast oeuvre, and is certainly must-see viewing for film fanatics. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fine Technicolor cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-1024x552.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"345\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61181\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-1024x552.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-768x414.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-1536x828.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor-501x270.png 501w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Taylor.png 1823w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-1024x550.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"344\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61184\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-1024x550.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-300x161.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-768x412.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-1536x825.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2-503x270.png 503w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Cinematography2.png 1831w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Excellent use of location shooting in Bodega Bay<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-1024x554.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"346\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61182\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-1024x554.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-768x415.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-1536x830.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2-499x270.png 499w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Location2.png 1837w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-1024x550.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"344\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61185\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-1024x550.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-300x161.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-768x412.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-1536x825.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School-503x270.png 503w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Bodega-Bay-School.png 1835w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>\n<\/li>\n<li>Many genuinely frightening scenes of terrorizing birds<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-1024x547.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"342\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61178\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-1024x547.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-300x160.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-128x68.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-768x410.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-1536x820.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2-506x270.png 506w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Birds2.png 1815w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-1024x552.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"345\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-61180\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-1024x552.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-128x69.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-768x414.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-1536x828.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still-501x270.png 501w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Birds-Still.png 1831w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Bernard Herrmann et al.&#8217;s eerily effective soundtrack (combining natural bird sounds with electronic sound effects)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as one of Hitchcock&#8217;s most terrifying films. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Important Director<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0056869\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/movies.nytimes.com\/movie\/review?_r=1&#038;res=9D05E7D9143CEF3BBC4953DFB2668388679EDE\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moviediva.com\/website\/MD_root\/reviewpages\/MDBirds.htm\">Movie Diva Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/classic-horror.com\/reviews\/birds_1963\">Classic-Horror Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s1747hitc.html\">DVD Savant Review (scroll down)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/30594\/the-birds#articles-reviews?articleId=66940\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/horror\/birds-1963.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/the-birds\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s the end of the world.&#8221; Synopsis: A socialite (Tippi Hedren) pursues a lawyer (Rod Taylor) to his hometown of Bodega Bay, where birds are suddenly beginning to act hostile towards humans. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Hitchcock Films Horror Films Jessica Tandy Films Killer Animals<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10590"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10590\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69314,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10590\/revisions\/69314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}