The Birds : Hitchcock’s last unflawed film : Review

Suspense , horror , mystery, thrill and ambiguity were the hallmarks of Alfred Hitchcock and these are amply in display in The Birds released in 1963 three years after his greatest film Psycho.

 Based on a short story it is set in a small town in California where large flocks of birds attack the residents and injure and kill people for some unexplained reason .

 This is a debut film of Tippi Hedren .It also starred Rod Taylor among others . Both are around 50 years later.

 The film has an open ending as the lead characters drive into the night as hundreds of birds roost and perch quietly but menacingly around their house. The last shot was considered the most difficult and challenging to shoot in the entire film .

 In The Birds Hitchcock makes his customary brief appearance at the beginning with his two real life pet dogs. He can be seen walking out of a pets shop with them.

 The soundtrack is unusual , a mix of birdcalls and electronic noises. Surprisingly it was only nominated for just one Oscar ,for special effects .

 The Birds has also been called as the last unflawed film of the great Hitchcock.