NZIFF Film Review: "My Name is Alfred Hitchcock" (2022).

"You certainly wanted us to look at faces - desire - didn't you?" This is My Name is Alfred Hitchcock. This documentary film written and directed by Mark Cousins. The film re-examines the vast filmography and legacy of one of the 20th century’s greatest filmmakers, Alfred Hitchcock, through a new lens: through the auteur’s own voice.

Born on August 13, 1899, English filmmaker, Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, was born. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over fifty feature films, many of which are still widely watched and studied today. Known as the "Master of Suspense", he became as well known as any of his actors thanks to his many interviews, his cameo roles in most of his films, and his hosting and producing the television anthology Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955–65). His films garnered forty-six Academy Award nominations, including six wins, although he never won the award for Best Director despite five nominations. Hitchcock initially trained as a technical clerk and copywriter before entering the film industry in 1919 as a title card designer. His directorial debut was the British-German silent film The Pleasure Garden (1925). His first successful film, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927), helped to shape the thriller genre, and Blackmail (1929) was the first British "talkie". His thrillers The 39 Steps (1935) and The Lady Vanishes (1938) are ranked among the greatest British films of the 20th century. By 1939, he had international recognition and producer David O. Selznick persuaded him to move to Hollywood. A string of successful films followed, including Rebecca (1940), Foreign Correspondent (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), and Notorious (1946). Rebecca won the Academy Award for Best Picture, with Hitchcock nominated as Best Director. He also received Oscar nominations for Lifeboat (1944), Spellbound (1945), Rear Window (1954), and Psycho (1960). Hitchock's other notable films include Rope (1948), Strangers on a Train (1951), Dial M for Murder (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Trouble with Harry (1955), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964), all of which were also financially successful and are highly regarded by film historians. He received the BAFTA Fellowship in 1971, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1979, and was knighted in December of that year, four months before his death on April 29, 1980.

For all that the film may come up short, for lovers of film, it is still wonderful to see these pieces of history that have not really been seen before. A very personal, first-person meditation on that late creator, particularly viewing his life and work through the lens of the voluminous body of work he left behind. The combination of Hitchcock's films and his colorful life make for a fascinating study of the influence on the man and his many creative skills. Certainly, it is a side to Hitchcock that I was previously unaware of, and I suspect many other viewers, too. That immediately gives it something of a leg up.

Simon says My Name is Alfred Hitchcock receives:

Also, see my review for Robot Dreams.