Devon Seltzer’s review published on Letterboxd:
**Dinner with Hitchcock - Film 6**
I always have trouble going back and reviewing a movie that I've seen before and loved. A few years back I tackled the highlights of Alfred Hitchcock's career, except The Birds, for some reason that one has always eluded me. One viewing of Rear Window was enough to cement it as my favorite of his numerous amazing works. A second viewing has done nothing to change this fact, though I still need to get around to The Birds.
The setting for Rear Window is one of the most unique in cinema history. We see the entire story unfold through the window of daredevil photographer L.B. Jefferies, as he is confined to a wheelchair with a broken leg and seeks to amuse himself by watching his neighbors. Using this set-up, Hitchcock turns a New York apartment block, and by extension all of humanity, into his own private stage to unfold drama or comedy as he wills. While full of characters, only a handful get clear speaking lines, yet all of them feel fully realized through a mix of talented pantomime and Hitchcock's masterful staging.
We do manage to get close to a few of our myriad of personalizes, and what a delight they are. James Stewart is phenomenal as Jefferies, delivering a perfectly appealing character who channels his boredom through snark and conspiracy. Though Stewart is often outdone by co-star Grace Kelly as Jefferies' high class girlfriend Lisa Fremont. Kelly is stunning here, she imbues Lisa with an aura of wonder about her, while never feeling anything less then loveable and charming. Rounding out the cast you have a specular performance from Thelma Ritter as Jefferies' no-nonsense nurse and the always amazing Raymond Burr as Lars Thorwald, Jefferies' neighbor from across the way who may or may not have killed his wife.
Always the subversive, Hitchcock goes above and beyond with Rear Window, presenting us with a bevy of stereotypical characters, and then turning most, or all of them on their ears. From the socialite dancer, to the newly weds, to unassuming Thorwald himself, no one in this picture is quite what they seem, which all wonderfully plays into Jefferies' ever growing boredom induced paranoia. This time around Hitchcock breaks his own rule and keeps the murder mystery ambiguous, leaving us to doubt whether or not Thorwald really did kill his wife, or if Jefferies' is just trying too hard to keep himself entertained and avoid his real world problem of looming domesticity. Which brings me to my absolute favorite thing about this story, the role Lisa plays. Being an uptown girl of wealth, Hitchcock keeps Lisa from ever falling prey to stereotype, she is strong-willed, independent, and not afraid to get her hands dirty, but she's also still incredibly feminine, all-in-all she's the perfect kind of female hero and when Jefferies' says he's not good enough for her, he isn't lying.
So I think that about covers it, I doubt I've said anything about this film that countless others haven't said before me, and probably better then me. I consider Rear Window Hitchcock's masterpiece, and while I still have plenty more of his work to see, plus revisits to Vertigo and Psycho yet to come, it would take quite an amazing movie to dethrone this one as top of the pack. If you somehow haven't seen it yet, do yourself a big favor and seek it out immediately, you won't be sorry!