The Birds | 100 Movies Bucket List

 

This was one of my most highly anticipated rewatches on the bucket list. I love this movie, and for me it's definitely one of Hitchcock's most underrated.

And thankfully this rewatch was just as great as all the other times I've seen this movie, which is a lot!

I really like that the film took the time to establish the characters before the horrors start. We really get to know our main character, Melanie, and it's so much fun to follow the story with her.

The result of this, though, is that it can make the beginning of the movie feel a bit slow, but because you're interested in the characters, you're interested in the entire story. So when the horrors start, you're that much more invested.

In particular, I really liked the development of the female characters, who make up the majority of the film. Not only is it female-led, but the women are the centre-piece and absolutely who we're watching the film for. It was very ahead of it's time in that way.

That being said, I did also love the romantic angle, and the fact that this was teased, established, but then became a background feature when we start getting into the real story.

The horrors start slowly, building up in a fascinating way. We're pulled into the story, and each time something happens, we sink deeper and deeper in. The story is so engaging that no matter what's happening, you're completely locked in.

And when it gets going, it's actually scary! Not in the sense that you'll have nightmares after watching it, but imagining yourself in that situation is scary, particularly because the 'villain' is an animal that we experience on a daily basis. Even in a modern time period, you can imagine this happening.

Some of the scenes are so iconic! In particular, the scene at the school and the ending scene, where we see the true extent of what the birds are capable of.

Visually, the film is definitely a product of its time, but because the story is great, and honestly a really fun watch, it doesn't matter that the special effects aren't as great to a modern audience as they might have been at the time.

There are a lot of conversations that feel too long, or don't add much to the story. Even as someone who appreciated the character building, some of them just left me wondering what was happening and why they were included, other than to boost the runtime (which wasn't necessary).

But that being said, the film is still a really great watch. Definitely worthy of being on a classic movies bucket list and definitely worth a couple of watches (at least!).