“Are they?” he asks Charlie, and us as well, looking directly into the camera. Uncle Charlie whips his head to the right. Then young Charlie, off camera, mentions that these women are alive, are human beings.
As he speaks of “horrible, faded, fat greedy women” the camera slowly zooms in, until his face fills the screen. We are watching Uncle Charlie in profile, from niece Charlie’s point of view on her uncle’s right. As he speaks he becomes more passionate, and his choice of words more shocking. As the Newton family sit at the dinner table, Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) begins to talk about widows. It wouldn’t be a Hitchcock movie if he didn’t use subjective point of view at least once. Joseph A Valentine was the cinematographer on this film, and two others for Hitchcock. This bold camera move heightens Charlie’s shock, and her feeling of being alone with her knowledge. Hitchcock has the camera start tight in on the ring then pull back, and keep pulling back, until the camera is far above the library floor. When young Charlie (Teresa Wright) reads the newspaper at the library she discovers an article that both implicates her uncle in a series of murders and offers explanation for the inscription on her ring. Charlie visits the library and learns a secret.Hitchcock never let the camera set-ups become boring. Although there are several standard coverage shots in this film, they are interspersed with moments of ingenuity. Rather than an in-depth look at one scene, I decided to do a more brief overview of several scenes. There are a lot of great camera moments in Shadow of a Doubt. THE MANXMAN (1929): "I've promised myself to him, but I've given myself to you.".THE BIRDS: Deconstruction of a scene - The death of a farmer.HITCHCOCK (2012): "Don't upset yourself darling, it's only a bloody movie.".REAR WINDOW (1954) PART TWO: THEMES AND IDEAS.TORN CURTAIN: Deconstruction of a scene (the killing of Gromek).NORTH BY NORTHWEST: Deconstruction of a Scene (The crop duster sequence).THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH: Deconstruction of a Scene - Royal Albert Hall (1934 vs.PSYCHO Deconstruction of a Scene: Arbogast questions Norman Bates.REAR WINDOW: Deconstruction of a scene - The death of a dog.SABOTEUR Deconstruction of a scene: The Statue of Liberty finale.HITCHCOCK AND SELZNICK by Leonard J. Leff.SHADOW OF A DOUBT Deconstruction of a Scene: Signature Scenes.ROPE Deconstruction of a Scene: A trunk, a talk and a hat.VERTIGO Deconstruction of a Scene: Argosy Book Shop.Hitchcock on Hitchcock Volume 2 – Edited by Sidney Gottlieb.Footsteps in the Fog – Alfred Hitchcock’s San Francisco by Jeff Kraft and Aaron Levanthal.PSYCHO Deconstruction of a Scene: Arbogast questions Norman Bates.MARNIE Deconstruction of a Scene: Marnie steals the money.
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