Frenzy

(1972)

Although this was the second to last film that I watched, I saved this review for last so I could end on a high note. Hitchcock is by and far my favorite director. The most amazing thing about him is how he knew exactly what buttons to push to get a rise out of his audience. In this film as with many other Hitchcock films, he shows us the bad guy right up front instead of making us guess throughout the film about who the villain might be. With the whodunnit portion of the film out of the way there is no need to be looking at each character with suspicion they all become potential victims. Then he fucks with us by putting innocent, unaware regular every day Joe types in peril as we squirm in our seats and yell pointlessly at the screen. I love this man, his films evoke emotions in me like no others.


I first saw Frenzy at the Bay State drive-in theater with my parents and my brothers & sister. Re-watching it now after all this years, I have to question my parents judgment in thinking this was a family movie. I was pretty young and my memories of the film were vague at best. I did however remember the opening scene, a dead woman whom is discovered floating in the Thames river. After that the film was a blur and now I can see why. As a kid I would have been bored stiff with the character building time after the initial shock opening. My guess is that it was the second feature and I most likely fell asleep and missed the rest of the film. So, this very well could be the first time I watched this film in it's entirety.


The plot is simple, a serial rapist/murderer known as the “Necktie Murderer” is terrorizing London. The police are hot on the trail of a suspect, but they are fingering the wrong man. Poor hot headed Richard Blaney, his life is a mess. He's lost his job, he drinks too much and can't seem to control his temper. Now the cops are badgering him as a suspect in a series of murders. Good thing he has his best friend local fruit seller Bob Rusk to have his back. The only problem with Bob is that he's the real murderer and it's real convenient for him that the police have their eye on Richard instead. Watching Bob charm and manipulate everyone around him was mesmerizing. He's one smooth character full of cockiness and self assurance. At one point he notices a pin is missing from his lapel then realizes with horror that it must be on the body of the victim he just disposed of. This leads to an incredibly tense sequence involving Bob, a dead woman and a potato truck. Incredible scene that just sent this film over the top for me.


This concludes my reviews for Horrorthon 2009 wrapping it up with 99 films this year. I don't know that I'll ever be able to top last years 110 count. Perhaps I'll go for quality instead of quantity next year. I'm looking forward to reading more reviews as the rest of you finish your postings. Horrorthon!