7 Reasons Why Rope (1948) is a Perfect Movie

foreign [Music] I know I know the title itself is practically begging detractors and film Cannon loyalists to go off in the comment section but I can't help myself I love rope of all of Hitchcock's masterful gifts to the cinema and of all of his crowning achievements I think this 1948 crime Thriller is hands down his best film and one that is criminally underrated the master of suspense directed more than 60 feature-length films in his life and earned five best director Academy Award nominations his work has been championed since his silent film debut in his native country of England he has since been awarded accolades of greatness for practically taking over the Thriller and horror genre of films and television from the 1930s into the 70s it goes without saying but Hitchcock has bangers psycho vertigo the birds rear window and North by Northwest are perhaps his most iconic films they are revered among critics so fervently that they've become required viewing for anyone that considers themselves movie lovers but these films are mere fragments within an impressive tapestry of influential celebrated films by Hitchcock and nestled snugly within the fabric of his career is a seemingly simple Slow Burn Thriller called rope a film that I along with a small group of other fans considered to be his single best picture now saying that I think it's his best doesn't mean I'm saying that any of his other pictures are worse or deemed unworthy I'm simply stating that I go back to rope repeatedly as a cinematic experience and I'm emotionally invested and wowed each and every time plus I think film Canon should be Revisited every generation and updated accordingly psycho is still one of the greatest films of all time but if I had to pick a Hitchcock film to introduce to an up-and-coming movie lover without a doubt I'd pick rope and here are seven reasons why I love this movie so much reason number one the set decoration I don't know if it's possible to be a classic movie fan and not have an appreciation for set design old Hollywood put a tremendous amount of focus into living and workspaces and most were directly influenced by Art movements in their time in rope mid-century modern interior design was in its glorious infancy and Brandon and Phillips Swanky but livable Penthouse acts as a sign of the times representing a restraint take on luxury and excess in a post-war American home our two criminal leads believe themselves Superior to others enough so that they kill an innocent man hide his body in a chest then host a cocktail party just for the thrill of it so naturally their home would reflect the same calculating superiority this era of modernism moved away from frilly more ornate ideas of wealth and design present in the former part of the century and instead gave way to more geometric simplified furniture with an emphasis on function with exception to the first two minutes of opening credits centered on an establishing shot of our central location rope takes place inside of main characters Brandon and Phillips high-rise Manhattan apartment despite the claustrophobic atmosphere that eventually entangles Philip in particular throughout the film The lived space of their apartment is soothing and calm Sim we put I'd kill to entertain my friends in this space and that's all thanks to the film's art director Perry Ferguson along with said decorators Harold Bristol and Emil Korea the film's jewel tone color palette is emphasized by those gorgeous Emerald chairs that I just need to have in my home like ASAP and complimented by a mahogany coffee table and a Rosewood finish grand piano although function takes precedent over form in this home the flex of wealth is still Paramount just look at that strangely long five to eight seater couch that lines the back wall those paintings and that chest that holds David's dead body for the duration of the film as Brandon mentioned I got in Italy a marriage chest from the Renaissance Era that belongs in a museum and not in a New York City Apartment reason number two the outfits I'm not a fashion historian so I won't go into the history of men's fashion in the 1940s however I noticed that the cut and the fitting of the suits here are different from Hitchcock's earlier films like Rebecca in 1940 or Spellbound from 1945. in rope everyone looks Dapper and flattering in their slim fitted Taylor suits accented by bold Rich colors made even more vibrant thanks to the use of Technicolor but the standout here is Janet and her red wine colored dress topped with a stitched floral pattern and complete with Gidget sleeve inspired shoulders and elbows that billow out designed by the king of old Hollywood fashion and gowns Adrian Janet's dress feels like a throwback to the 1930s more specifically Adrian's well-known lady Lenten dress worn by Joan Crawford in 1932 but Janet's dress here is also both modern and Forward Thinking despite everybody looking so good in their outfits and ropes that's not the only reason that I love the outfits I think what makes these is quote unquote perfect as how the clothes further gives the audience insight into the class consciousness of this group of people this is a casual cocktail party among close friends and family unlike a film like dinner at 8 from 1933 where a group of rich people are invited to a dinner party to flaunt their status amongst one another here in rope these people all know each other this is just a small get-together arranged for a book exchange and drinks before a vacation the way that everyone comes dressed to the nines shows a ritual of the rich that's both fascinating and ridiculous reason number three Jimmy Stewart first and foremost I absolutely adore Jimmy Stewart now Paul Newman is technically my favorite star and that will never change but Jimmy Stewart is by far my favorite actor however no one including Stewart thought he was the right fit for the role of Rupert Philip and Brandon's former College Headmaster and the initial culprit that planted the idea of human superiority in their heads Farley Grand himself spoke a little bit about this in a video that I posted on tcm's YouTube channel a few years ago when someone like James Mason or somebody would have been more interesting that had a little Sinister bite to him you know yes this is Shameless self-promotion of the series that I added to the channel when I worked there I highly recommend that anybody who's a fan of old Hollywood just watched the entire series of old interviews it's phenomenal I'll put the link in the description despite this Hitchcock paid the actor three hundred thousand dollars on a budget of 1.5 million a payout equivalent today of 3.7 million dollars and in my opinion it was money well spent in the original onstage production Rupert was written as an effeminate Oscar Wilde character but Stuart comes in and plays it straight for a lack of better words it's a decision that's ultimately just Jimmy Stewart being Jimmy Stewart but I think it exalts the film into the stratosphere of greatness the sexual tension gets cut by this try sardonic professor who's part chromogen and part Devil's Advocate Stewart's Rupert therefore becomes an ideal foil to Philip and Brandon's plans and the film's comic relief bringing a strange air of Whimsy even as his own skepticism serves as an appropriate plot device that helps the story unfold also there are a few moments that can be read as Brandon having an unrequinted Devotion to Rupert which leads to my number four reason number four Farley Granger and John Dahl aka the gay subtext writer Arthur Laurent was hired to adapt the openly gay themed stage play ropes in for the screen in part due to his own sexuality the film undoubtedly presents a gay subtext that buys today's standards feels blatantly front and center case in point hey I use the phone of course it's in the bedroom cozy notice how Brandon never says my bedroom or Phillips bedroom the gay angle is made all the more apparent due to the performances of Farley Granger and John Dahl but this video isn't about both actors personal lives or their queerness although if you want details on it I highly recommend watching Matt balm's video on rope I'll add the link in the description Granger and doll's sexuality don't Define them as actors but I think it's largely the reason why their chemistry and rope works so well together they're toxic tender passionate and together they're frankly hot giving a deeply understated depth to their Dynamic at times Granger oversells his performance but Dahl falls back cool and calm other time the opposite Rings true but both actors perfectly balance out the other displaying an interaction between Philip and Brandon that gives us all the background we need to understand their relationship it's obvious that late night conversations and intimate moments have transpired between these two and that they're more than just friends through their chemistry we're also made aware that Brandon has used Philip's feelings for him to his advantage to get what he wants admiration devotion and compliance their two well-written characters whose queerness isn't the reason they're Killers but it's an added Dimension to who these men are and how their relationship operates doll's performance is charming and level-headed with the balance of overly confident dominance that makes Brandon a devilishly alluring character to watch to this day John doll's performance here and in Gun Crazy another criminally underrated film makes him one of my favorite stars of this era reason number five camera as character you can watch practically any Hitchcock film and understand why he's a master of craft and filmmaking rope is no different nevertheless this film isn't filled with flashy moments or Innovative shots which is why I think rope has largely gone overlooked some may view it as nothing more than a film stage play at first glance but to see rupas such as to ignore the rich subtleties of Hitchcock's techniques as a director as any article or video about the making of rope will attest the film is comprised of 10 separate takes meant to create one seemingly long take shot all of that magic used to create this quote-unquote one take picture was happening behind the scenes while filming the entire set was rigged with wheels that strategically placed crew members who could Houdini the set and the actors away and back together at will but what I love is just how unfathomable the tracking shots still seemed to be giving the audience an incredible scope of the living space that we're in in ways that seem simply impossible the camera is not an omnipotent presence able to be anywhere and in all places we're Limited in what we can see and what we focus on and where our attention lies our point of view feels reminiscent of being in a dreamlike situation or even as if we're at the party ourselves we're present and listening at times but then we zone out every now and then lost in thought my favorite example of this is when Mrs Wilson is cleaning the apartment after the party and the camera sits to the left of the frame while the party goers are out of frame on the right discussing David's whereabouts Mrs Wilson is centered as she walks back and forth through the apartment getting closer and closer to discovering David's dead body it's so simple and yet I've never seen another film do this before and it would take until the 1970s before I would see it done again with the likes of Robert Altman don't quote me on that I haven't looked that up reason number six the lighting Hitchcock wanted to show a natural progression of the day throughout the run time of the film even reshooting entire segments just to make sure the lighting was correct watching the light of the early evening Fade Into the Darkness of night is a beautifully orchestrated situation within rope by the time the film ends Brandon and Phillip's apartment is flooded with the oscillating glow of neon greens Reds and white lights from outside Billboards Envy rage and innocence all spilling from the outside Street reflecting a complex reality indoors once again the social Mobility granted to these men who were products of nepotism is incomprehensible when looking at their view of the city we see how close they are to the Billboards high above in the sky its poetic symbolism that these two men who get to look down on New York City every day will consider everything below them inferior the fact that everything in the film's background is a constructed set created on the Warner Brothers lot makes me that much more appreciative of Hitchcock's Artistry as a World Builder the city feels real and alive making the innocent murder of David even more brutal and gut-wrenching the interior lighting is also perfectly situated and it's all a reminder that there was a wonderful team of talented artists behind the camera reason number seven the message I won't go in too much depth here because if you've seen robe then you know the message Laurent script and the ending monologue feels like it should have been tied to a Frank Capper picture rather than Hitchcock because of the social implications present Jimmy Stewart's ending monologue held weight at the time because Stewart had recently returned to the states after fighting against fascism in the war but the sad reality is that while Lawrence words were planted in the past they still rang all too clear as warnings today we continue to exist in a world where a person's personal beliefs makes them feel superiority over other human lives because of this they Empower lawmakers politicians and guns to control the day-to-day existence and pursuit of happiness for others they deem inferior killing innocent people in the process it's tragic how we refuse to learn lessons from the past and instead we want to repeat them wrote marked Hitchcock's first time working with James Stewart and Farley Granger both of whom would later reunite with hitch for their most iconic films with the director and arguably of their careers ropes long take idea would mark an Innovative style of directing that would have influence on films and television for years to come rope fell into slight obscurity for some time after its release before being reevaluated in the 1990s it continues to be Revisited today and I'm very glad it does because it is a fantastic movie despite my thoughts I recognize there are some flaws in the film's overall execution oh you've hurt your hand oh it's nothing just a little cut what happened nothing the glass was cracked and it broke that's all B10 will bring you great tables but that doesn't detract from the picture's enjoyment if you haven't seen rope I sincerely hope this video has inspired you to do so and then come back and let me know what you think any of you out there rope fans are there elements that I didn't mention that you love about this movie let me know in the comments and please like And 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Channel: Toyiah

Views: 28,406

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Id: YSBXytVvahM

Length: 14min 37sec (877 seconds)

Published: Sat May 06 2023