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When I was a kid, my grandma passed the time by sitting at her kitchen table, watching her neighbors’ every move. Then she’d report her findings to anyone who would listen. But Grandma found little more than new pets, kids’ social habits (which became entertaining when I went out with the neighbors’ son), and home renovations. But the same is far from true for L.B. Jeffries (James Stewart) in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window.
Confined to a wheelchair after breaking his leg on the job, Jeffries, a professional photographer, has little to do but sit in front of his window and watch his neighbors. The Songwriter, who spends his life in front of the piano. Miss Torso, the dancer who prances half-naked in front of her window. Miss Lonelyheart, who lives alone. And then there’s the Salesman (Raymond Burr), who begins to come and go at strange hours of the night. And when his nagging, bed-ridden wife mysteriously disappears, Jeffries becomes obsessed with the world outside his window. He begins to pull others into the action, too -- like his socialite girlfriend, Lisa (Grace Kelly), who joins him in his amateur murder investigation.
Rear Window is nothing like the constant suspense and terror of Hitchcock’s Psycho. Instead, it’s an interesting story -- one with humor and action and some suspense thrown in. It’s not in the least bit horrifying or gruesome (only if your imagination wants it to be). So don’t stay away from this movie if horror films give you nightmares. If you’re a horror film fan, however, you may be disappointed. Rear Window won’t make you scream or bury your face in your hands -- though it might make you look at your neighbors differently.
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