Frenzy
In modern-day London, a sex criminal known as the Necktie Murderer has the police on alert, and in typical Hitchcock fashion, the trail is leading to an innocent man, who must now elude the law and prove his innocence by finding the real murderer. Jon Finch, Alec McCowen and Barry Foster head this British cast in the thriller that alternates suspense scenes with moments of Hitchcock's distinctive black humor.
Member Reviews
Review - Frenzy - maw-
I was not familiar with this later work of Hitchcock, and it stands up well against his earlier work. I'm giving it three starts for a couple of really horrendous rape jokes (did they really find that funny in the 70s???), otherwise it would rate more. The basic plot line and camera work will be very familiar, but to me that was part of the attraction.A Great Movie, But In The End It's Just Too Simple - revsdd
Until the last 15 minutes this was a great story. A serial rapist and killer was loose on the streets of London. Richard Blaney (Jon Finch) becomes the prime suspect on the basis of very strong circumstantial evidence. The only problem is that despite all this evidence he's innocent. This doesn't hold any secrets. We know from the start that he's not the murderer. We also find out long before the movie ends who the real murderer is. Blaney doesn't even try to find the real murderer - he just wants to stay away from the police. For all the lack of suspense, though, you keep watching to see if this innocent man is going to be railroaded. Finch was excellent, as were Barry Foster as Robert Rusk and Alec McCowen as Inspector Oxford. Anna Massey as Barbara Milligan and Barbara Leigh-Hunt as Blaney's ex-wife Brenda (the last two murder victims, both of whom have clear connections with Blaney which lead to him being suspected) are also great.
Alfred Hitchcock did a great job of creating a movie that holds you without being particularly suspenseful. There's some great humour - the scenes in which Oxford sits down to some particularly unappetizing dinners from his wife are truly funny - and the murders of Brenda and Barbara are portrayed very differently but very effectively. Unfortunately, the ending was far too simple. Blaney gets convicted of the murders and is sentenced to life in prison. But then, in the space of that 15 minutes or so, he contrives to get himself hurt in prison and transferred to a hospital. The hospital is pretty well guarded, but he contrives to escape pretty easily. Oxford, who has been convinced of Blaney's guilt, has a sudden epiphany moment and realizes who has really committed the murders and goes out to get him. After a pretty good job of building this movie, it's almost as if Hitchcock just decided to get it over with as fast as he could. It was ultimately unsatisfying as a result. Very good - but not brilliant.Late Hitchcock at his best - Coconut_Willy
After a few attempts at different genres, Hitchcock returns to the murder movie with great success in my opinion. He also returns to his native England and the wrongly accused man theme which he had done many times before. True, it is a much more adult movie and even possibly more contemporary in style but he stills brings us magnificent shots and scenes that he had been bringing to the screen probably since his silent movie days. The storyline is great and is very well developed with the expected unpredictable twists. Despite its occasional violence, this movie also contains quite a bit of humor but of the darkest kind. The cast of unfamiliar faces is great doing a very good acting job with a well written dialogue and well defined characters. The sets and locations are good as well as the soundtrack and the camera work is probably the best Hitchcock has done since Marnie. Great return to form for the Master that comes highly recommended.
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Review - Frenzy - maw-
I was not familiar with this later work of Hitchcock, and it stands up well against his earlier work. I'm giving it three starts for a couple of really horrendous rape jokes (did they really find that funny in the 70s???), otherwise it would rate more. The ...A Great Movie, But In The End It's Just Too Simple - revsdd
Until the last 15 minutes this was a great story. A serial rapist and killer was loose on the streets of London. Richard Blaney (Jon Finch) becomes the prime suspect on the basis of very strong circumstantial evidence. The only problem is that despite all ...Late Hitchcock at his best - Coconut_Willy
After a few attempts at different genres, Hitchcock returns to the murder movie with great success in my opinion. He also returns to his native England and the wrongly accused man theme which he had done many times before. True, it is a much more adult movie ...