A man confronts his accuser atop the Statue of Liberty, where one false move will spell death. A wolf in sheep's clothing allows the beast lurking within to bear its teeth. A housemaster slowly, oh so slowly, pieces together the heinous crime perpetrated by two former students. A woman searches for clues in a suspected murderer's apartment just as the man returns home. Four people work to keep the demise of a fellow smalltown resident a secret from a local deputy. An assassin's gun slides out from behind a curtain as an ordinary man races to thwart his plot. An airplane buzzes then roars past as a man dives for cover. The hiss of a shower masks the approach of a madman with a knife in his hand. Countless birds gather on a jungle gym as a woman smokes a cigarette nearby. A husband barges into his new wife's bedroom and has his way with her as she retreats into a near-catatonic state. A physicist discovers killing a man isn't as easy as it might seem, wrestling with his victim right up until the violent end. A purple dress billows out beneath a dying woman like spilled blood. A serial killer retrieves his pin from a woman's grasp, one dead finger at a time. A fake psychic tries to squirm out of a thief's vice-like grip as he pushes a syringe closer and closer. Be it drama, horror or comedy, psychological stunner, monster movie or international spy thriller, is it any mystery that filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock was known as the Master of Suspense? Is it any wonder his movies still hold hypnotic sway over filmfans all these years later?
A woman is terrorized when thousands of birds attack a small seaside town...
Hitchcock was far more interested in the human monster than the supernatural sort, which should warn anyone new to The Birds that Hitchcock's stab at the subgenre is anything but a conventional monster movie. Deceptively minimalistic -- "birds attack small town" doesn't even begin to cover it -- the critically hailed classic is one of the director's most tailored and refined. No small feat considering the director originally wanted Grace Kelly and Cary Grant as Melanie and Mitch, roles that would eventually go to Tippi Hedren and Rod Taylor, or that the production wasn't short on obstacles and challenges, both technical and personal. The story isn't even the draw. That honor falls to the mystery of it all. Why are the birds attacking? Are they a punishing force? A manifestation of chaos? An agent of something more sinister? Or simply nature unleashed? Why does their frenzy center around Melanie? And just what are we to make of the film's final minutes, one of the most suspenseful scenes Hitchcock committed to film? Ambiguity, sharp dialogue and a near-unbearable lack of answers make The Birds horror at its finest, and every second holds viewers on the edges of their seats. Will the birds' bloodlust be satiated? Will the town turn on Melanie? Even if she escapes, will it be the end of the attacks? Questions, questions, questions. Don't dare watch The Birds only once. Take it in, savor it, dissect it and watch it all over again.
This is a tough one all around. Special effects sequences, of which there are many, haven't aged well at all, and the scrutiny high definition brings only exacerbates the inherent issues and eyesores that litter the bird attack scenes. If that was the only problem, though, this would be an entirely different review; one with a 4.5 video score and nothing but praise for Universal's restoration and 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer. Instead, The Birds suffers from many of the same issues as the studio's more problematic catalog presentations: noticeable edge halos, some rather heavy-handed digital tweaks and fixes, brief bouts of invasive noise reduction, occasional crush, at-times soupy grain and other anomalies that aren't derived from the original film elements. To be absolutely clear: there are soft shots. I'm not talking about soft shots. Matte lines and grain discrepancies also pop up throughout the composited special effects sequences. I'm not referring to any of that either. Even if you removed the special effects sequences, the presentation would still be uneven, and the restoration team has left its fingerprints all over the image. All that said, there are a number of striking shots, masterfully preserved scenes, wonderfully detailed closeups and ideal stretches of the film; so much so that I wouldn't dismiss anyone awarding the transfer higher marks. Colors are quite accurate, skintones are generally lifelike and black levels are deep and ominous too, and there isn't any encode-born macroblocking, banding or aliasing, all of which certainly helps. The end result? The Birds is chaotic and unpredictable, sometimes to its detriment.
Fortunately, Universal's faithfully frightening two-channel DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track is something of a revelation. Dialogue is clean and clear, without any dropouts, muffled lines or significant noise floor to contend with. Effects are vicious and aggressive, which is a definite plus in a movie like The Birds, and Hitchcock's unconventional avian score and deafening silences, though confined to the front speakers, pierce and punctuate the proceedings, and only enhance the already unnerving soundscape. I have to admit I would have loved to hear an immersive 5.1 remix -- so long as it accompanied rather than replaced the original mono mix -- but the Masterpiece Collection's tenth lossless track is easily one of its best.
The Birds: Hitchcock's Monster Movie (HD, 14 minutes): The only Blu-ray exclusive in The Masterpiece Collection amounts to a terrific but somewhat short analysis of The Birds' place in horror movie history, Hitchcock's attraction to the project, the mystery behind the avian monsters' attack, the birds as a manifestation of disharmony and disruption, and the film's ambiguous ending.
All About The Birds (SD, 80 minutes): Rather than the retrospective analysis of the newly produced "Hitchcock's Monster Movie," this excellent DVD-era documentary pulls back the curtain on the production, from its inspiration to its development, scripting, story elements, characters, performances, special effects and more.
Hitchcock-Truffaut Interview Excerpts (SD, 14 minutes): Excerpts from filmmaker Francois Truffaut's 1962 interview sessions with Hitchcock (for his book, the aptly titled "Hitchcock") are set to a montage of clips and stills from the film.
Deleted Scene and Original Ending (SD, 8 minutes): A deleted scene comprised of script pages and production photographs followed by an alternate ending, comprised of script pages and sketches.
Storyboards (SD, 24 minutes): A lengthy storyboard/still comparison reel.
Tippi Hedren's Screen Test (SD, 10 minutes): Hedren's screen test, with audible instructions from Hitchcock.
100 Years of Universal: Restoring the Classics (HD, 9 minutes): Rather than a Birds-centric restoration featurette, this is a general catalog-wide catch-all. It's appreciated, but not nearly as revealing as it could be.
100 Years of Universal: The Lot (HD, 9 minutes): The Universal backlot in all its glory.
The Birds is Coming (SD, 1 minute): A Universal international newsreel highlighting pigeon races with special guest Alfred Hitchcock and actress Tippi Hedren.
Suspense Story: National Press Club Hears Hitchcock (SD, 2 minutes): Another Universal international newsreel.
Production Photographs (SD, 14 minutes): Movie posters, vintage ads, production photos and more.
The Birds demands multiple viewings, and not because of some contrived twist or third-act surprise. Hitchcock doesn't attempt to do anything other than fire the gun he loads at the outset, it's the mystery, suspense and ambiguity of it all that makes his quote-unquote monster movie the classic thriller it is. Universal's Blu-ray release isn't quite so flawless, though. Its DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is revelatory and its supplemental package is more than generous, but its hit-or-miss restoration and subsequent video transfer are beset with issues that can't solely be attributed to the original photography and source elements. Does it detract from the film? Not much honestly. It's disappointing but only for a moment or two. Once the movie grabs hold, any flaw or shortcoming is soon forgotten.
