Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Madman

R4 DVD

Reviewer: Bob Estreich

Sir Alfred Hitchcock started work directing in Britain, but moved to the United States in 1939. Most of his best work was done here. Traditionally the Producer set the tone of a film but Hitchcock soon made the Director’s role more critical. He directed over fifty feature films like Dial M For Murder, Lifeboat, North by Northwest, Psycho, and The Thirty Nine Steps. Although his film work was popular with film audiences, it was the TV series Alfred Hitchcock Presents that really showed his skills.

The long series of (initially) 30-minute plays began in 1955. They were mostly suspense-based but he also sometimes brought in an element of fantasy. His main theme was the inherent weaknesses in all of us. He would sometimes highlight this by transferring those weaknesses to another character to show different reactions.

Many well-known actors appeared on the show over the years. Some like Claude Rains appeared many times. This tends to give the lie to the rumour that Hitchcock was “hard to work for”. He may have been a perfectionist but many up and coming actors and actresses got a start by appearing on the show. To be invited back by “The Master of Suspense” was an accolade.

Hitchcock started nearly all episodes with a silhouette of himself walking on stage and lining up with a drawing of his rather rotund profile. He would then begin “Good Evening ....” and introduce the night’s episode. He would then recap at the end and provide the compulsory information that the killer was caught and was now doing time, etc. The final comments were usually to satisfy the wowsers who wanted to see justice triumph. Left to Hitchcock the audience would probably be left hanging, a more satisfactory state of affairs for such a show. He would sometimes include a sly little dig at his sponsors as well. “You see, crime does not pay, even on television. You must have a sponsor”.

The first DVD set covers Season 1’s 39 episodes and is a good introduction to Hitchcock’s work. Seasons 2 and 3 are also available through Madman. Each set includes a booklet with a brief episode summary and sometimes details of the actors. After the first series the series was recognised as a showplace for quality actors. The list of actors includes many great names and quite a few newcomers who went on to achieve fame. The quality is excellent for early TV film. Don’t be put off by the black and white cinematography - the plays are more powerful for the lack of distraction of colour.

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This review will appear in Volume 3 No.1 of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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