Transcript: 7 Essential Christian Themes in Alfred Hitchcock Films Explained

Good evening. Tonight on Classic Cinema Plus. Okay, wait a minute. That's, that's, okay. No. Tonight on Classic Cinema Plus, this is, of course, Pastor Jay, Jason Lockett here with you. Today we are talking about our top seven favorite Hitchcock films. Yes, love the great Alfred Hitchcock. Wow, such an amazing director. He did so many amazing things and, you know, wow. He really deserves a lot of credit for all the great stuff that he did over his career. And tonight, right now on this video here on Classic Cinema Plus, we're counting down our top seven favorites. Let's start it off with number seven. We're talking about The Man Who Knew Too Much, the only film that Hitchcock ever remade. He started off with this film many, many years ago. The very first one, The Man Who Knew Too Much, which is in this collection here, as you can see there, stars the great Peter Lorre and Leslie Banks. Very, very good film. But then I think Hitchcock was not exactly happy with the way the story fleshed out. He wanted to flesh it out more, make it a little bit bigger and a little bit better. And so thus he remade it with James Stewart and Doris Day. And wow, this story is really something special. It's about a guy who, let's just say he knows too much. He knows, that's the point of the film, the title, A Man Who Knew Too Much. he knows a little bit more than he needs to know and we're not going to go into great detail on that but he knows a little bit more about things than he should and some very evil people decide to target him by targeting his family and wow, thrilling, just filled with awesome stuff and it is really something that we do highly suggest The Man Who Knew Too Much Alfred Hitchcock, number 7 Vertigo This is another James Stewart film And wow Vertigo is Wow an achievement It is probably Visually Probably one of the most stunning Hitchcock films that he ever did It is just Shot in such a way That the Scenes really almost Give you Vertigo It is shot so intensely and so amazingly. It's all about a detective who has a fear of heights. And he rescues a blonde-haired beauty, Kim Novak. And he starts to unravel the secrets to her past and finds out that it kind of links maybe to his future a little bit. I don't know. It a really really interesting film and it is so well well done It is really a masterpiece in Hitchcock I cannot say how much I think this is a film that everybody should check out at least once It is so awesome. Vertigo stunningly shot. It proves that Hitchcock was truly a master at what he did. North by Northwest. This is one stunning film starring Cary Grant. Hitchcock loved working with Cary Grant and James Stewart. He did it four times with both of these actors in his films, and this one is great. Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason. And it's all about an ad man who is thrust into spy and espionage and all that. and is framed for murder and all kinds of stuff. Oh, it's just a lot of stuff going on, but it is so awesome, and it's got that famous chase scene of Cary Grant being chased by the plane, and wow, it is truly one of the best action films that Hitchcock ever did. I do highly suggest checking out this one. It's just a great film. It is just action-packed, and even Marie Saint and Cary Grant are just great in this film. And of course, James Mason is great in anything he did. And so yeah, it really deserves number five on our list. What would happen if nature attacked the birds? Coming in at number four. Oh, I could easily put this number one on my list, but it is so difficult. I love this film. probably one of my favorite Hitchcock films. I really love it. But the only reason I put it down a little further is because some of them, the ones you're going to see, are a little more iconic, and so that's why we kind of bump this one down a little bit. But this is a great film. It's so scary at times. It's so visually terrifying. And it just eats away at you for the simple fact that we're talking about a creature that we look at as something so pretty and so beautiful that if they all decided to turn on us, we're in trouble. Yeah, and that's kind of what happens. It's just a quiet day, then all of a sudden birds attack, and people are just running for their lives. It is a scary film, and it is so iconic and so great, and it really deserves higher on our list, but we bring it in at number four. What would you do if you were given the opportunity to eliminate somebody that you don't care about that much? That's the whole idea of strangers on a train. Yeah, it all comes down to an idea of two guys having an idea of if I murder someone that you don't like, you murder someone that I don't like we both murdered a complete stranger and no one would be the wiser I have an alibi you have an alibi we all and we get away with it Wow this is crazy and wow so well shot Now I have to say with Strangers on a Train, I was watching Hitchcock films my whole life and Strangers on a Train, I first watched it as a young teenager. And I have to be honest with you, When I first watched it, I wasn't that into it. I sat through it, and at the end of it, I was like, eh, whatever. I wasn't really impressed with it. Then I bought it on DVD, and I tried it again. And I was like, okay. And I watched it again many years later, and I was like, I still wasn't into it. I still wasn't into it. I was like, it's okay. It was a little better, but eh, I still didn't like it. But then all of a sudden, one day, one evening, I was all by myself in the house, and Turner Classic Movies was playing Strangers on a Train, and I thought, eh, try it again. So I watched it again from Turner Classic Movies, and then it popped. I finally got it. I finally got all the nuances. I finally got the stunningness of the shots and all the different things that Hitchcock was doing. It took me three views to really get it, but once I got it, man, Hitchcock did a great job in this film. It is really something special. Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, just an amazing cast. It really is a great film, and it took me three times, but now Strangers on a Train is truly one of my favorite Hitchcock films. That's why we put it on the list. Rear Window. This is probably one of James Stewart's best with Hitchcock. I mean, it is... Wow. The whole set that was built... When you watch this film, this whole thing was built. This was a set. This wasn't an apartment complex that they went and shot at. This was built. This whole humongous set that they, where people are looking at all the different, you know, where James Stewart playing a photographer who's laid up because of a broken leg. He starts looking and viewing all the different people in the apartments. That was built for this film. I mean, it is so amazing when you look at it. And, wow, what it all comes down to here, James Stewart plays a guy who's sitting in his wheelchair because he has nothing else to do. and he's looking through the binoculars and kind of seeing what's going on and just watching all the different people in the apartment complex right across from him. And lo and behold, one night, he witnesses somebody get killed. And while that's all well and fine, the problem is he's sitting there watching him through the binoculars, and all of a sudden the man looks right at him and sees him. Oh, wow. And then it just builds from there. It is unbelievable It is tense It is unbelievable It a great film It probably one of the best This could easily be Rear Window could easily be the number one film of Hitchcock of all time It is that intense and that great. But there's one more. What is number one? We know it ain't Rear Window. So what is it? Let's find out. Now before we take you to number one, we just want to just say we definitely suggest picking up the Alfred Hitchcock Ultimate Collection. It is unbelievable. I love this. It's like a digibook, okay? It's a digibook. It's got all the amazing, all kinds of the amazing films of Hitchcock, select films, and there's just so many great ones on here. You get Saboteur, which is unbelievable. You get Shadow of a Doubt, unbelievable. Another James Stewart film, Rope, is in this. You get kind of more of a lighthearted one, The Trouble with Harry, a really cool one from Hitchcock. So many great films are in this, just awesome stuff. Marnie is in this. Torn Curtain is in this, just awesome stuff. Topaz and so many different things. And then you also get some episodes of the Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the Alfred Hitchcock Hour. Just a great, great collection. Definitely wanted to just highlight that and say you definitely need to check this out if you've never seen it. It's great. Now to number one. What's the number one film on the Art Hitchcock Top 7? Well, you know it'd have to be Psycho. Psycho is just unbelievable. It became a thing. It became so, so scary that people didn't even want to take a shower after seeing this film. It just affected people. It really became something. And it spawned so many different movies and TV shows and different things to delve into the idea of Psycho, which probably Hitchcock never dreamed it would do. But it really has become a thing and definitely is worth checking out. All about a guy, well, I don't want to go into great detail on it, but about a guy that just, he has mommy issues. Let's just put it that way. I won't go any further than that because I don't want to spoil it in case you never saw it. But it is really, really an awesome film and it really deserves number one on our top seven list. So what is your favorite Hitchcock film? Let us know in the comments, and we'd love to hear from you. Be sure to like, share, and subscribe. And until we see you next time, be sure to go to our official website, Classic Cinema Plus, and read articles and see videos and reviews and all kinds of stuff. Check it all out, our podcast, so much more, all at Classic Cinema Plus. And until we see you next time with another Top 7 list, this is Jason, Pastor Jay Lockard, wishing you a blessed day, and we will see you next time. Bye. Have a blessed day. Thank you.