‎Rope (1948) directed by Alfred Hitchcock • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

Rope

1948 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

It begins with a shriek… It ends with a shot!

Two young men strangle their "inferior" classmate, hide his body in their apartment, and invite his friends and family to a dinner party as a means to challenge the "perfection" of their crime.

James Stewart John Dall Farley Granger Constance Collier Douglas Dick Edith Evanson Dick Hogan Joan Chandler Cedric Hardwicke

81 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by brat pitt ★★★★ 4

what’s up with dudes who went to harvard and accusing their friends of chicken cruelty
Review by CinemaClown ★★★★★ 18

One of the most innovative films of its time, Alfred Hitchcock's Rope introduces a number of filmmaking experiments which, even today, remain widely unexplored in the world of cinema. It is an immensely captivating tale of two men who strangle one of their acquaintances, hide his body in their apartment, and then throw a party to determine the perfection of their crime.

Filmed in a manner that gives the illusion of being shot in a single take, the biggest strength of this film is how effortlessly it manages to engage the viewers in its expertly crafted plot & sustain the tension throughout its runtime even when the audience is aware of how the movie will end. The direction by Hitchcock is…
Review by Arielrocks5 ★★★★½ 20

I often forget how much I love stage. Something about the twisty nature and slow burn pace of most shows kicks in a certain tension not seen in reading or watching.

Filmed stage is harder to pull off, due to how much you want to replicate that feeling while also remaining cinematic enough to justify your own existence. I don't mind most attempts feeling like filmed stage, due to my own bias, but I can see how it could be an issue for some.

However, I think Hitchcock had the best idea when it came to filming a stage show and turning into a movie; by attempting to film it all in one take. Granted, at the time (and even…
Review by Aaron Michael ★★★★ 5

This is so gay. I mean, this is SO gay. Maybe you think you know how gay this is. Maybe you thought, "Oh, this is a lil gay" or "Oh, I'm sensing some undertones of homo-eroticism." Except you were wrong because Rope is perhaps the gayest movie in the history of gay movies and I loved every single second of it.

Oh yeah, good long takes, too.
Review by tysan ★★★★ 1

these guys went to harvard and think of themselves as superior beings yet they call THIS the perfect crime?

...they truly were gay though!
Review by Those Eyebrows ★★★★ 1

We only ever see the "S" on that huge blinking neon sign outside but I'm pretty sure the rest of it reads "-U-B-T-E-X-T."

Recent reviews

Review by Michael Jones ★★★★½

Really liked this as, again, a critique of the privileged slipping in to crime as a result of boredom and a perceived need to do something. And in Brandon’s case, it’s a desire for somebody to know that you’ve done something. The gimmicky real-time run-time means that the pressure cooks quickly and we almost forget that it’s a ridiculously short dinner party. This is dark, fun, and experimental for its time. Jimmy Stewart as slick as always.
Review by Kevin Matthews ★★★★

Alfred Hitchcock once said something about how an explosion will give audiences a fright but showing a ticking bomb under the chair of some unsuspecting potential victim would have them on edge right up until the explosion. I'm paraphrasing but I remember the essence of his message. He liked to scare people, but he equally enjoyed making them tense.

Rope starts with a murder, committed by Phillip (Farley Granger) and Brandon (John Dall). The body is hidden in a chest and, for the rest of the movie, there it stays while the two murderers host a small dinner party, all the while hoping that nobody suspects that they're sharing a room with a hidden corpse. The one person who may…
Review by JRruisenor ★★★★½

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Review by Luke Nelson ★★★

6.5/10

Despite a solid performance from James Stewart and simple yet perfect production design, Hitchcock fails in setting the tension when the movie relies on it more than anything else.
Review by marcy ★★★★★

my boy phillip morgan did nothing wrong you can't change my mind like yes he killed a guy but i'm sure he didn't mean it
Review by Mercy ★★★★

Ive been having trouble connecting to Hitchcock’s films, but this one was actually really cool and unexpected. It was almost as good as the murder mystery episode of Lizzie McGuire! I really liked that it all took place in one apartment and the whole “no takes” style. It’s cool!
Review by Charles Arpin ★★★★

Letterboxd season challenge week 2: A film that takes place in one location.

Really impressive techniques and the performances and mystery are so fun.

Dvd
Review by Joana ★★★

The actings (phillip, in particular) and the direction annoy me in this one. I don't think the "one shot sequence" + only one scenario really worked. The characters are interesting but the dialogues get a little bit exhausting after a while. Altough the third act and final scenes get a lot better and have the classic feeling of suspense.

This would have been a lot better if it was a play.
Review by sethwood ★★★★★

Quite possibly the greatest staged movie of all time, the amount of suspense that is created in one room over ninety minutes is unbelievable. Some of the best Hitchcock dialogue ever and one of it's greatest performances. Stewart's final speech is a masterclass.