The films of Alfred Hitchcock, Oct. 28, 1994

By DONALD PORTER
Standard-Examiner

Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock and Charles Chaplin form what is perhaps the cinema's most exclusive club: film directors who enjoy wide name recognition with the moviegoing public.

Spielberg -- the director of "E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial," "Jurassic Park," "Jaws" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" -- is certainly the most famous director of the past two decades. Prior to that time, however, it had to be Alfred Hitchcock.

People went to see "'the new Hitchcock movie." It was the filmmaker's name, as much or more than his stars, that sold the movies. He was billed as the Master of Suspense and the Minister of Fear, and the titles were truth in advertising.

"Gore Galore" ("Outtakes" movie column), Oct. 30, 1987

Photo illustration taken at the Cinedome Theater in Riverdale.

Time was when a horror movie opened, people lined up at the box office -- then went back again the next week for more. They just couldn't get enough.

It all began in the 1930s, really, with "Frankenstein" and "Dracula." And it's continued right up to today. The latest love affair with shockers was kicked off by "The Exorcist" in 1973, but began to die out in 1985 with "Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning."

After all, a discerning public will take only so much.

The numbers of horror films being produced may have declined, but the fact remains that people love them. Or, rather, people love to be frightened by them. Horror movies present an undeniable attraction: If it's a good one, you'll be terrified -- the ultimate movie-going experience.


It's one thing to be moved by a love story, challenged to think by a whodunnit, or stirred to cheers by a sports movie. But to be scared out of your seat -- well, that's where it's at, man. It doesn't get any better than that.