Visual Analysis of Hitchcock's "Rope" Anonymous College

Visual Analysis of Hitchcock's "Rope"

Alfred Hitchcock claimed that Rope was merely a “stunt,” and it is more well-known for its achievement in its technical aspects compared to the film’s actual story. An adaptation from Patrick Hamilton’s play, Hitchcock wanted to utilize fluid motion of the camera between the characters, mimicking what is visible on a stage of a play, and opted for a “one shot” method. Thirty-five millimeter film could only hold ten minutes of footage at a time, but through clever transitions in editing, Hitchcock made the entire film seem as one continuous shot. The camera does utilize traditional shots with the camera, but instead of intercutting between shots, the camera moves and zooms accordingly. The interaction between Rupert and Phillip at the piano is one such scene with no close-ups or various cuts in framing shots. At this point, the audience has been aware of David’s body in the chest, and David’s killers Phillip and Brandon have not yet run into any obvious issues at the party; the guests themselves are unaware of what transpired minutes before they arrived and do not know the whereabouts of David (all they know is that he is missing). This scene serves to escalate the initial tension in the...