I have always been a fan of Alfred Hitchcock films since my parents first showed me PSYCHO when I was kid. Back then I didn’t appreciate it much, because mother’s voice always scared the crap out of me. When I was in High School my cinema teacher reintroduced the classic to me, and launched my obsession with the English director’s work. So when a film titled DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK was made by a man whom many consider to be the “Italian Hitckcock”, I was not only eager to check it out, but I found myself wondering if it was just a title of coincidence, or if it was truly about Hitchcock himself. What I got is a very original piece of film that not only talks a lot about Hitchcock’s films, but echoes them, in a murder mystery giallo film, by director Dario Argento.
DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK is about a young film student named Giulio whom suspects a killing at the apartment complex across the street from his (Ala Rear Window) is related to that of a Hitchcock film, which happens to be his favorite filmmaker. Giulio is a voyeur and is always looking in on his neighbors, (Ala Rear Window) and has been spying and watching people since he was a child, as is shown by the films beginning. When he witnesses the murder, he tries to solve the crime by suspecting the murderer is into Hitchcock films much like himself. He thinks that the murderer is using Hitchcock’s films to commit murders, but soon finds himself entangled in a web of trouble as he dwells deeper and deeper into the mystery.
The script for DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK is actually not half bad. It takes elements from Hitchcock’s films like REAR WINDOW, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, DIAL M FOR MURDER, and even a bit of PSYCHO, VERTIGO and ROPE thrown into the mix. There are also references to many of other Hitchcock films mentioned throughout the whole film. The script does have a few things here and there that can confuse the viewers and at times does seem to be full of holes. But it’s main drive is that of Hitchcock references, and the rest kind of takes a backseat, such as character development and dialogue.
Being that this film was actually a made for television movie, it does not have the professional film quality that we all have grown accustomed too. In fact I believe, by looking at the movie that the film was shot on digital rather than on film, as it has a very flat look to it. The production values was nothing great either and the sets were barely dressed up to look like they were actually a place where people lived or worked. It all looked very bard bones. The acting also was nothing special either. Why I’m well aware their is a difference between the way television series are made here in the U.S. than they are in Europe, as well as the styling of acting. With this film I felt like the acting was equivalent to that of acting you would see in an amateur or Independent film here in the states. The make-up effects were not that bad, but were nothing we all haven’t seen before, and were really nothing special.
In a nutshell I was not a big fan of the overall production. I though the quality of the film and the lack of production value really affected my feeling on the film. I liked the script and it’s clever way of incorporating some of Hitchcock’s films into a murder mystery script, and it was fun to be able to point out all of the shots in the film that had a reference to a Hitchcock film, but that was about it. It’s a film that in order to at least have some appreciation for it you really need to know your Hitchcock. If you don’t know a thing about Alfred Hitchcock and his films, then you’ll be lost watching this movie, and will likely not care for it at all.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
