The Birds on DVD (1963)

Average rating: 73%

from 3,417 members

3 Critics reviews
66 Members reviews

Starring:	Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Jessica Tandy, Suzanne Pleshette, Ethel Griffies
Director:	Alfred Hitchcock
Studio:	UNIVERSAL PICTURES UK
Run time:	115 mins
Certificate:
Collections:	100 Horror Films, 100 Top Thrillers
User collections:	The best Horror ever, Top 10 Scary movies, Kult Kamp, Jalapenojo's supercool films to see before you die, one film per year, Stef's Top 100 - A Miscellany, Fortean Films, Greatest Movies I've seen, The best films ever made in the universe so far!, The movies you must see before you die
Genres:	Thriller
Languages:	English
Released:	21/04/2003

Brief synopsis of The Birds

In THE BIRDS, Alfred Hitchcock's heart-pounding followup to PSYCHO, the director couples a tone of rigorous morality with dark humor to create a thriller that begins as a light comedy and ends as an apocalyptic allegory. Wealthy, reformed party girl Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) enjoys a brief flirtation with lawyer Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor) in a San Francisco pet shop and decides to follow him to his Bodega Bay home. Bearing a gift of two lovebirds, Melanie quickly strikes up a romance with Mitch while contending with his possessive mother and boarding at his ex-girlfriend's house. One day, during a birthday party for Mitch's younger sister, a flock of birds attacks the children in what seems to be a random incident. In fact, it signals the beginning of a massive avian assault on the residents of the town--a mysterious assault that no one can explain and from which no one might come out alive. Hedren (Melanie Griffith's mother) carries the picture in her first film role ever, embarking on a career as an icy-cool leading lady. Loosely based on a Daphne du Maurier story and a Santa Monica newspaper story, "Seabird Invasion Hits Coastal Homes," THE BIRDS also features groundbreaking special effects.

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Critics Reviews

Radio Times

This Hitchcock classic somehow strayed from favour for a while, yet in the realm of popular mythology it is now rivalled only by Psycho. Set in the remote California coastal town of Bodega Bay, the story concerns a small group of unsatisfied creatures. Two women and a young girl are all fixed on one man (Rod Taylor), and when a fourth (Tippi Hedren) arrives from San Francisco with a certain determination in her heart, a menacing populace of birds descends on the town, wreaking terror and havoc, right up until the film's inscrutable ending. But, as ever, Hitchcock is also having a laugh.

Rating of 3
stars out of 4 Halliwell's Film Guide

A curiously absorbing work which begins as light comedy and ends as apocalyptic allegory, this piece of Hitchcockery has no visible point except to tease the audience and provide plenty of opportunity for shock, offbeat humour and special effects (which d

Time Out

'The Birds Is Coming' the advance posters twittered ungrammatically but with justifiable excitement. With death... Read more on www.timeout.com

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Members Reviews

Reviews Voted Most Helpful

Scary as hell, but weak!!!

Stephen Daniels from Swindon , 06/12/2005

I am a massive fan of psycho! it is one of my favourite films of all time! so this had a lot to live up to! some people will think i am harsh with my review, however, read the rest of them, they all say what i am about to say and then rate it as five stars???!! that makes no sense!

This is a very tense and sinister film which really ratchets up the tension and is very enjoyable on that level! (possibly 3 stars!) however the film is let down by it's ridiculous storyline - i am refering to the woman pursues man to place she's never been to, after speaking once in a bird shop!!! and then it fails to give a rationale as to why the birds are attacking! it doesn't even try. The ending is abysmal after setting the film up for two hours it then leaves it unfinished! this is poor film making, however the tension and scariness of the film really are good! but i was so let down i consider this to be 2 hours wasted!

17 out of 28 people found this review helpful

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Terrifying

A customer from Berkshire , 13/11/2003

It amazes me how Hitchcock can scare you with subject matter you never found scary before. He is a master of suspence and this builds to a peak by the end of this story.

The storyline is rather weak, Melanie travels to a quiet costal town to hook up with a man she only just met. Once there however the town is overtaken by the birds. You don't really pay attention to the story particularly but the eerie silences followed by bizare attacks is what captivates you.

It's a serious Hitcock film and if you haven't seen it yet I recommend that you rent it now.

8 out of 9 people found this review helpful

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A customer from Bournemouth , 02/06/2005

The Birds is considered a favorite among Hitchcock fans, and whilst still accessible to modern audiences, it seems dated mostly in terms of character. The thriller explores the concept of human fragility and is practically bursting with typical Hitchcock tension. This tension however, stumbles in between deftly woven excitement and frustration. Much of this is due to several frustratingly contrived characters, predominantly female. The very inciting act of the piece is driven by one woman, seeking out a man who awed her during their first meeting at a bird store in San Francisco. She then pursues her target to the small coastal town of Bodega Bay where it becomes apparent that she is merely one of many who seek this suave gentleman. Previous lovers, little sisters, and creepily Oedipal Mothers all desire the man?s attention. As the attacks begin the female characters are proven to be weak, foolish, misdirected in their confidence and of course act as the typical damsel in distress. Such ill conceived and harshly stereotypical characters do little to highlight the underlying themes of fragility of the film but instead serve to draw away from the story. The story itself moves at a casual pace until we are well within in act two and begin to see the threatening potential of the birds. The screenwriter often offers wry humor at the lack of reason for the attacks (not that a reason was truly needed), but more of an apology is required from the writer for the constantly howling, poorly constructed female characters. Despite this, Hitchcock?s direction shines through, with some of the most startling and memorable shots in modern cinema, most notably, the haunting final moments of the picture.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful

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