THE BIRDS

 "THE BIRDS" (1963)

MY THOUGHTS:

I was just a kid when I watched this movie for the first time, and it scared the hell out of me! I probably shouldn't feel bad about that, since it has also scared the hell out of adults, for a number of decades now. It did for birds, reputation-wise, what "Jaws" did for sharks. The only difference is, I'm not likely to run into a shark (let alone more than one) unless I'm at the beach. With birds...well, you see them everywhere and quote often ... often hanging around in large numbers. I'd be lying if I said that once in a while, when I see a large number of them gathered, I don't think about the movie and say to myself "what are the odds," before continuing on my way. But that is part of the genius of this movie. Hitchcock chose as his "killers" to be creatures we almost always consider "harmless", let alone "murderous." It is just as creepy today, as it was when it was made, and I still get a bit spooked when watching.

SYNOPSIS:

"Melanie Daniels meets Mitch Brenner in a San Francisco pet store and decides to follow him home. She brings with her the gift of two love birds, and they strike up a romance. One day birds start attacking children at Mitch's sister's party. A huge assault starts on the town by attacking birds."

STARRING:

Tippi Hedren, Rod Taylor, Jessica Tandy, Veronica Cartwright, Suzanne Pleshette and Richard Deacon.

SCREENPLAY:

Evan Hunter, based on the story by Daphne du Maurier.

DIRECTOR:

Alfred Hitchcock

AWARDS & OTHER HONORS:

It was nominated for eleven (11) awards (including one (1) Academy Award) from various entities and won four (4) of them.