“Rear Window” (1954)

In the film “Rear Window,” top tier photographer L.B. Jefferies is portrayed by Oscar winner, Jimmy Stewart (The Philadelphia Story). His character has a broken leg. As the viewer learns at the start of the film, Jefferies has been confined to a wheelchair, in his apartment, for the past six weeks. He’s trapped with nothing to do, nothing that is, except gaze out at his neighbors in the apartment complex across the way.   

On a daily basis, Jeffries, or ‘Jeff,’ (which is what his friends call him), has two people who spend time with him. One is his sharp witted, but caring nurse Stella, played by six time Oscar nominee, Thelma Ritter (Pillow Talk). She provides the comic relief in the film. The other is his love interest, the optimistic socialite, Lisa Fremont, a role acted by Oscar winner, Grace Kelly (The Country Girl). She is very keen to turn her relationship with Jeff into a marriage. Stewart’s character, however, makes an assortment of excuses as to why marriage would never work for them. He’s normally a man of action, who travels the world and packs lightly, is frequently in danger, eats whatever local cuisine is available, no matter how disgusting it might look, and has to go stretches of time without showering, as well as, getting very little sleep. He implores Lisa to realize that the life he lives, compared to the crowd she normally socializes with, would not be something that she would enjoy.   

The weeks of boredom pass for Jeff. The voyeuristic pursuits he engages in, by spying on the apartment complex across the way, yields him information regarding those whom he watches. He takes to giving names to the people in the building based on their behavior. There is Judith Evelyn, who portrays Miss Lonelyhearts. She is a woman who goes through all of the motions of preparing a romantic dinner, replete with table settings, wine, and conversation that she shares with her non-existent suitor. Miss Torso (Georgine Darcy) also throws parties, but hers are attended by several different men, all of whom are vying for her affections. Sara Berner and Frank Cady are cast in the roles of a married couple who take to sleeping on the fire escape to try to stay cool during the stifling heat that has taken hold of the city. Rand Harper and Havis Davenport are a newly married couple whose blinds are quickly drawn after they move into their new apartment. Each time the husband sticks his head out for a breath of air, he is called back to the marital bed by his new bride. In addition, there is the musical composer, acted by Ross Bagdasarian, who, based on his actions, is discontented with the way his career is progressing. Lastly, but of central importance to the story, is two time Emmy winner, Raymond Burr’s (Perry Mason) character of Lars Thorwald. He is married to a woman that spends all day in bed and makes his life difficult with her constant nagging. One day, she is viewed no more by the ever prying eyes of Jeff. He comes to the conclusion that Thorwald has murdered her. His reasoning behind that mindset is based on the clues he has pieced together. Mrs. Thorwald is no longer present in the apartment. Jeff spots Thorwald with a knife and a saw. He witnesses him making three early morning trips out of his apartment, carrying his metallic suitcase, the contents of which are left to the imagination of both Jeff and the viewer. Then, there’s a spot that Thorwald has recently dug in the garden of the courtyard that becomes of interest to a small dog owned by the people who sleep on the fire escape.

Jeff calls his friend on the police force, an old army pal of his, Detective Doyle, played by Wendell Corey (The Search). After listening to what Jeff has to say about what has been transpiring, he is dismissive of Jeff’s accusations. When he does conduct an investigation into the validity of Jeff’s claims it leads nowhere. There are two witnesses who claim to have seen Thorwald leaving the apartment complex with his wife, in order to take her to the train station. One of the witnesses is the building superintendant. Doyle also tells Jeff that a trunk, which Thorwald had two moving men pick up, was searched when it arrived at its destination and contained nothing but Mrs. Thorwald’s clothing and that Mrs. Thorwald eventually showed up to retrieve it. None of those revelations deter Jeff for a minute. He truly suspects murder has been committed. Jeff is going to hold on to the validity of his suspicions until the end. His perseverance sets up the second half of the film.

One of the brilliant aspects of the movie is that even though, we as viewers, get to see everything that Jeff sees, we still can’t be certain that a crime has been committed. The presentation is done in a manner that, at least initially, makes one wonder if Jeff’s imagination is over-active due to his being confined to his apartment. Is he merely projecting onto Raymond Burr’s character of Thorwald what he wants to be taking place rather than reality? Jeff is joined on his mission to validate his suspicions by Stella and Lisa. They take active roles in an attempt to help Jeff solve the mystery, including what could be a very dangerous move by Lisa.

The suspenseful, “Rear Window,” was directed by BAFTA winner, and five time Oscar nominee, the iconic, Alfred Hitchcock (Vertigo). Written for the screen by two time Oscar nominee, John Michael Hayes, (Peyton Place), it was based on a short story by Cornell Woolrich, (Original Sin). Parts mystery and thriller, the movie has a runtime of 112 minutes. The film premiered on August 1, 1954 in New York, New York. In 1998, there was a remake of the film, which starred BAFTA winner, Christopher Reeve (Superman); Daryl Hannah (Kill Bill); and Oscar nominee, Robert Foster (Jackie Brown).

Trivia buffs take note: With the exception of his usual cameo appearance, where he is winding a clock in the apartment of the composer, Hitchcock directed only from Jeff’s apartment. In order to communicate with the other members of the cast, the director had them wear earpieces so that he could radio instructions to them as to what he wanted them to do in a particular scene. John Michael Hayes based the character Grace Kelly played on his wife, Lisa, who had been a fashion model. The 35mm camera that Jimmy Stewart used in the movie was a 1950’s Exakta VX. The apartment complex that Jeff looks at for most of the film was all built on a single set. At the time of production, it was the largest indoor set that had ever been built at Paramount Studios. 

Will Lisa be caught? Has Thorwald really committed murder? What did he do with his wife’s body if he did kill her? Will Jeff be proven right that foul play has taken place? All of those questions and more will be answered if you take the time to view this classic. The American Film Institute has honored the movie on two separate occasions: once in 2007, as number forty-eight on their list of the one hundred greatest films of all time; and again in 2008 as number three on their list of the top ten greatest films in the genre of mystery.