The Influence Of 'Sound In Hitchcock's Blackmail'

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Hitchcock’s Blackmail (Hitchcock, 1929) made history in 1929, by releasing the first British “talkie.” His background in German expressionism had a great influence on the making of Blackmail. Even though Blackmail initially started out as a silent film, Hitchcock was given the go-ahead to add sound by the British International Pictures (BIP) during shooting. However, most theaters did not have speakers to accommodate films with sound, but that did not deter Alfred Hitchcock’s enthusiasm for this new innovation in film making. According to Weis, Hitchcock regarded sound as the “new dimension of cinematic expression” (Weis 1982, p.14). This dimension allowed Hitchcock to move away from the norms of the visual aesthetics and construct a world that is deeply rich in cinematic realism. This essay will analyze the merits of the cinematography and the effect of sound had on the sequences filmed around the murder.
Hitchcock helped shape the thriller genre that we are all familiar with today. The thriller genre consists of films that promote suspense, uncertainty, a high level of anticipation, anxiety and intense excitement. Usually the main character is placed under some difficult situation or mystery, or they might have to escape a dangerous …show more content…
The scene when Tracy walks into the shop with the intention of Blackmailing Alice and Frank about the murder, a door chime sounds indicating the door has opened and with that all the sounds of the streets fill the room. Tracy also whistles while seated at the breakfast table to intimidate Alice into Blackmail. Tracy uses these methods to tease and torment Alice with the knowledge that he knows her secret and holds the power in this particular situation. As he tries to decide if he should extort money from them or not, he whistles “The Best Things in Life are Free” (Belton 1999) which meant if they pay him they too can be
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