Kick-Back Friday: #160

When watching any Hitchcock classic, we make some intangible accommodation that preserves the movie's effectiveness and, by extension, cements its timelessness. But at the same time, we can acknowledge the implausibility of the story in the present (or the difficulty of adapting the story to the present). For instance, think of the headache to be had when attempting to update Vertigo, Rear Window, or The Birds. Or better yet, just watch a few minutes of the existing remakes of Hitchcock's masterpieces—including Gus Van Sant's shot-by-shot misfire of Psycho (from 1998).

The same paradox can be found when viewing Henri-Georges Clouzot's Les Diaboliques (1955), a mesmerizing tale of revenge-as-murder with Simone Signoret. Suffice it to say that a critical plot point rests on the cardiac fragility of one the perpetrators—an aspect of the story that remains acceptable (and, in the end, utterly horrifying) in situ, but that would be ridiculous (and potentially laughable) in any attempted update.*

My point being (if I have one): Pop some popcorn and watch the original.

* Which was, nevertheless, foolishly made in 1996--with Sharon Stone in the Simone Signoret role.