'Rear Window' Ethics: Remembering and Restoring a Hitchcock Classic

Rear Window Ethics (2002)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Very good documentary about not only the making of REAR WINDOW but also the major restoration work that had to be done to restore it to its original look. Peter Bogdanovich, Pat Hitchcock, Curtis Hanson, Herb Steinberg (Paramount publicity director), Herbert Coleman (assistant director), Robin Woods (Hitchcock author), Georgine Darcy (ballorina in film) and Doc Erikson are interviewed about the film and Robert A. Harris and James C. Katz are interviewed about the restoration. Those who were actually involved in the production share some wonderful stories about the making of the film. This includes how they built the sets the give the film its look as well as its lighting, which was an interesting thing because they basically set up four different lights to tell what time of day it was. There's also some great discussions about the changes made from the story to the movie as well as a story dealing with a scene that was discussed but not shot. Bogdanovich talks about his opinion on the film as well as a few discussions that he had with Hitchcock. An audio interview (or conversation) between the two is played in parts here. The stuff dealing with the restoration is actually one of the major highlights here as both Harris and Katz explain about the poor condition of the prints and go into good detail about what they had to do to try and get the film back to its original look. Fans of the film will certainly enjoy hearing both aspects of the film. The documentary does a very good job at showing what all went into the picture as well as everything it took to save it.

This is the documentary on the DVD of Rear Window. It consists of interviews(including one with Hitchcock... and yes, this does hold a little of his impeccable, sardonic wit; the elevator story is a real kneeslapper), clips of the film and excerpts of the script. And in case you're wondering what my summary means, it's that the title of this isn't entirely correct; this is a making-of of the movie, and only briefly near the end does it go into the restoration of it(and I must say, it was surprisingly interesting... I mean, the two guys are still pretty dull to listen to, but this time(as opposed to when I heard them go over it in relation to Vertigo, which this featurette also has footage of), I was actually engaged by it). We get great analysis of Alfred and what this picture meant, and they talk about the voyeurism(of the lead and of us all), how Miss Torso winged her dancing moves(so it looked more casual and natural, because she didn't know she was being watched), how there is no score, other than what the characters play, and how everything was photographed from inside Stewart's apartment(and that it wasn't the only time The Master put limitations on himself like that). This is a quite informational and enjoyable 55 minutes. I recommend this to any fan of the flick itself. 7/10

Directed by the greatest film-related documentary maker of all time, faeturing a wealth of new and old footage chronicling the making and reflections of REAR WINDOW, this is a must-see for all fans (it is included on the R2 Special Edition, and -- I assume -- on the R1 as well).

It even features some old interview snippets with Alfred Hitchcock, which -- to be honest -- I'd never seen before. (I'd never seen any interviews with Hitchcock.)

All in all, interesting and amusing -- not "great" but very good and worth renting the DVD for. If you haven't seen the movie in a long time, you NEED to see it with the new digital restoration transfer. The documentary is the cherry on top.

4.5/5

Available on "Classic Collectables" Region 4 DVD for 'Rear Window,' the exhaustively-titled '"Rear Window Ethics': Remembering and Restoring a Hitchcock Classic" is an excellent retrospective documentary detailing the making-of one of Alfred Hitchcock's finest masterpieces. In order to compile a thorough and accurate documentary of the film, director Laurent Bouzereau (who has over 200 such works to his credit) approached those who were most knowledgeable about the production of 'Rear Window,' including Hitchcock's daughter Patricia, MCA/Universal publicist Herb Steinberg and respected film director Peter Bogdanovich. These present-day interviews are combined expertly with a great abundance of archival footage, including a fantastic radio interview been Bogdanovich and the Master of Suspense himself, in which the pair discuss many of the themes and scenes of the film.

Running for just less than an hour, the documentary is an excellent, comprehensive chronicle of 'Rear Window,' brimming with entertaining and colourful anecdotes of the film's production. Bogdanovich's closing account, of Hitchcock's baffling "elevator story," perfectly sums up the mind and talents of the great director, and the documentary is worth viewing for this anecdote alone. Also in abundance is a multitude of the film's posters, publicity stills, snippets from the theatrical trailer (featuring James Stewart's excellent narration) and interviews with notable film critics and restorers.

One of the most fascinating components of the documentary is the section detailing the exhaustive restoration of the film, which, in some cases, required the replacement of entire yellow layers of the negative. Because existing restoration techniques were insufficient to bring 'Rear Window' back to all its former glory, new practices were required to be invented, and the result is a print that is even more beautiful, colourful and contrasted than it must have been back in 1954. The vast amounts of work that these men and women invested in the restoration really makes you appreciated how valuable their efforts are; without them, we could quite possibly very soon lose such classic films as 'Rear Window.' As an informative companion to such a remarkable film, this is an excellent documentary.