The Birds (1963)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Starring: Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Suzanne Pleshette

Synopsis:
A small town is menaced by birds that have suddenly turned violent.

Impressions:
I'm kinda surprised it took me so long to finally give this movie a watch. It's a bit of mixed bag when viewed objectively, but what's effective is done so well that you won't mind. The menace is very meticulously built up so that the few attack scenes have a lot of punch. A number of people have noted that the story plays out a lot like a zombie film before Night of the Living Dead codified a lot of the tropes of the subgenre. One fan theory that I think will improve your viewing experience is to think of Cathy as Annie's illegitimate daughter. Trust me. It does a lot more for the character dynamics. Speaking of Cathy, I guess Veronica Cartwright was establishing her scream queen bonafides sooner than I originally thought. The effects were groundbreaking for their time but haven't aged well at all. The unnatural sound effects they use for the birds may either enhance or detract from the ambiance depending on your perspective. While it can be a bit cheesy in some spots and slow in others, there's a lot to appreciate here and that makes it worth a watch.

Rating:
Watch It