Review of The Birds

The Birds (1963)
6/10
Two bad scenes ruin the credibility
2 July 2001
Warning: Spoilers
I like this film, especially the clever beginning. However, two unbelievable scenes stretch credulity a bit too far. The first is when Suzanne Pleshette is found dead in front of her house after pushing a completely unhurt little girl into the house. One would think that if she could get the little girl inside the house without a scratch then she could also manage to get herself inside.

Along the same vein is the infamous attic scene, which supposedly took four days for Hitchcock to shoot. He certainly didn't spend those four days trying to make the scene believable! Tippi Hedren blunders into an attic full of attacking birds. She gropes interminably for the doorknob but can only manage to collapse in front of the door. Come on! These are seagulls and crows! Turn the knob and go out the way you came in girl.

The ending scene and closing shot are great. The birds are most ominous when they are not attacking.
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