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13 Best Hitchcock Films

Alfred Hitchcock’s best movies, of which there are a record number for a director, balance their subject matter between dark psychology and thrilling adventure, but it is their brilliant and consistent cinematic technique that really propels the films.

He uses it most impressively in Vertigo, a haunting subjective study of love and death, and Rear Window, a witty and visually clever exploration of suspicion and human relationships. Psycho adds the elements of shock and morbidity to Hitchcock’s mix of suspense and cinema, and initiates an adversarial relationship between audiences and the director. North by Northwest is the summit of Hitchcock’s chase adventures, perfectly balancing suspense, surprise, romance and wit. Hitchcock experiments with horror in The Birds and Frenzy, extending the boundaries of subject matter for a genre that sometimes seems frozen in cliches. He emphasizes character and relationships in Shadow of a Doubt and Notorious, objectively but sympathetically analyzing the ironic specifics of human behavior. And Strangers on a Train combines all of his interests, psychology, adventure, romance and cinema, in a profound study of the impossibility of perfect innocence.

Dr. Steve Haberman is a screenwriter, author and film historian. He received his PhD in Film Studies from De Montfort University in Leicester, England, and earned his BA in Cinema from the University of Southern California.

See other ‘best of’ lists by Dr. Steve Haberman: Best Dracula Films, Best Frankenstein Films, Best Poe Films

13 best Alfred Hitchcock films as chosen by Dr. Steve Haberman

  • *** indicates available on Blu-ray
  • ** indicates available on DVD
  • * indicates No disc
Title Year IMDb Rating
**** Vertigo 1958 Vertigo (1958) on IMDb
**** Rear Window 1954 Rear Window (1954) on IMDb
**** Psycho 1960 Psycho (1960) on IMDb
*** North by Northwest 1959 North by Northwest (1959) on IMDb
*** Strangers on a Train 1951 Strangers on a Train (1951) on IMDb
*** Notorious 1946 Notorious (1946) on IMDb
**** Shadow of a Doubt 1943 Shadow of a Doubt (1943) on IMDb
*** Frenzy 1972 Frenzy (1972) on IMDb
**** The Birds 1963 The Birds (1963) on IMDb
*** Lifeboat 1944 Lifeboat (1944) on IMDb
*** Foreign Correspondent 1940 Foreign Correspondent (1940) on IMDb
*** The 39 Steps 1935 The 39 Steps (1935) on IMDb
*** The Lady Vanishes 1938 The Lady Vanishes (1938) on IMDb
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