His Legacy Screams...

Many of Hitchcock’s films have certain themes to it. Looking closely in the plot and structure of most of his movies lays the mark of Hitchcock’s "signature", so to speak. Several critics reviewing his films discovered three main themes that reappear in Hitchcock’s films: the innocent man falsely accused of a crime, the criminal woman who implicates a man in her crime, and the clever psychopath whose true nature is uncovered through nail-biting plot twists." Using these signature themes along with editing sound, music, and almost anything else he felt needed a change in order to make his audience sweat with anticipation."The director paid immaculate attention to working out every detail, and often claimed that, with the script and storyboard complete, the actual filming itself was an anti-climax."(St. James). Hitchcock's understanding of human complexities such as fear and emotion is the key to instilling that anticipation people feel in the theaters and making that lasting impact.

The film industry became Hitchcock's home and the audience became his friends. Hitchcock received five Oscars by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for best direction in Rebecca, Lifeboat, Spellbound, Rear Window and Psycho. Although he never won an Oscar from these nominations, the Motion Picture Academy did present him with an honorary Oscar. American Decades wrote “In 1974, the Film Society Lincoln Center honored Hitchcock with a nationally televised party, which presented a montage of his film highlights” (American). In 1976 he went on to become commander of The French Order of Arts and Letters. Hitchcock was also knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1880 and named a Knight of The Legion of Honor.Alfred Hitchcock died April 29th 1980 in Los Angeles, California home. In some strange honor to Hitchcock’s death the announcer for CBS news reported his death with a hint of implied mystery. The reporter claimed he “died yesterday, apparently of natural causes.” Alfred Hitchcock became what he was born to do, direct films. His strange methods are now common to film makers and are still in use today. His legacy lives in every suspense thriller movie people see today. Every time I see an audience jump in their chairs, sweat with anticipation, screams, pee their pants, cry, gets goose bumps, or almost loses their minds with excitement, all the while keeping their eyes glued to the screen. I remember Hitchcock.

Sources Cited:

American Decades. Gale Research, 1998. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2010. http://ezp.tccd.edu:2055/servlet/BioRC

St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. 5 vols. St. James Press, 2000. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2010. http://ezp.tccd.edu:2055/servlet/BioRC