Film Review: The Birds (1963)

The Birds (1963) can be interpreted in two ways- Literally and metaphorically.
This film fits into the category of a 'disaster movie'. It starts off with a woman (blonde, of course.) named Melanie Daniels who travels to Bodega Bay to drop of a pair of love birds for a man's sister. She meets this man named Mitch Brenner in the city of San Fransisco. When she arrives at this island, she notices the strange behavior of the birds that inhabit it. They appear to be getting more and more violent as the time progresses. As reviewer Boseley Crowther states,"Mr. Hitchcock and his associates have constructed a horror film that should raise the hackles on the most courageous and put goose-pimples on the toughest hide."Crowther,Boseley.(1963).The New York Times Film Review. The Birds (1963)

Fig 1: The Birds Film Poster

 There are classic 'Hitchcock' elements present in this film. One would be the creation of tension amongst the audience. The scene where Melanie is waiting on a bench outside a children's play park and the crows are silently assembling on the climbing bars behind her. The main reason for this is because the audience is aware of what is going to happen before the character in the film. The audience feels helpless and frustrated with the character for not noticing any sooner. As reviewer Gary Panton states, "one of the most memorable coming when the crows gather at the school gates like common lunch money-stealing bullies while the oblivious kiddies inside belt out some atrocious song or other." Panton, Gary.(2004). Movie-gazette.com Film Review. The Birds. 

Fig 2: The Birds Assembling On The Climbing Bars

 There are also close up montage shots to depict an event. The scene where Melanie goes to a room in Mitch's house when they are hiding from the birds and opens the door only to discover that part of the roof of the house has been taken apart and the birds have entered the room. They attack her as soon as she opens the door and trap her there. Her attack is shown with close-up shots of the parts of her body that are being attacked by the birds. This is reminiscent of the shower murder that takes place in Psycho (1958). According to reviewer Christopher Null,"Hitchcock aimed to do for avians in The Birds what he did for showers in Psycho, and by and large he succeeded." Null, Christopher.(2004). FilmCritic.com Film Review. The Birds

Fig 3: Melanie Being Attacked By Birds In Mitch's House

Throughout the film, the lovebirds never attack. They remain calm and non-hostile. That is an aspect of the film that can be perceived as a Metaphor. That love always survives in the end.
The end of the film shows the characters of Melanie, Mitch, his sister and mother and the two love birds driving off to the city while the birds sit watching.
The story never thoroughly concludes. It leaves the essence lingering. It is up to the audience to decide the fate of the characters and how they would tackle the birds. Maybe they are messengers of Earth and are trying to depict a message to the humans to stop ruining the planet. Or maybe they're just a bunch of crazy birds.

Bibliography:

Crowther,Boseley.(1963).The New York Times Film Review. The Birds (1963). Available online at: http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9D05E7D9143CEF3BBC4953DFB2668388679EDE
Accessed 2nd March 2012

Null, Christopher.(2004). FilmCritic.com Film Review. The Birds Available online at: http://www.filmcritic.com/reviews/1963/the-birds/ Accessed 2nd March 2012

Panton, Gary.(2004). Movie-gazette.com Film Review. The Birds. Available online at: http://movie-gazette.com/645/the-birds Accessed 2nd March 2012

Hitchcock,Alfred. (1960).Psycho.

List of Illustrations:

Figure 1: Hitchcock,Alfred. (1963). The Birds http://hitchcock.tv/mov/birds/birds.html Accessed 2nd March 2012

Figure 2: Hitchcock,Alfred. (1963). The Birds http://diaryofascreenwriter.blogspot.com/2012/02/alfred-hitchcock-on-making-birds.html Accessed 2nd March 2012

Figure 3: Hitchcock,Alfred. (1963). The Birds http://www.best-horror-movies.com/the-birds.html Accessed 2nd March 2012