Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Ava-Grace Willis Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

rodrig58 Well, that's a cool role for Mr. Anthony Hopkins! Super cool! And Helen Mirren is absolutely exceptional! A super actress! I always liked her, in all her movies, she was born to be an actress, she has a bright star in her head and a deep deep fire in her heart! I always liked Anthony Hopkins, except for the obvious role for money in "Transformers: The Last Knight". And follows Odin in "Thor: Ragnarok," they probably pay him terribly well to get involved in such productions... Hitchcock is one of my favorite directors, I love him and I admire him. And I wish I had a wife like Alma! Congratulations Sacha Gervasi!

jc-osms I've already seen "The Girl", the controversial BBC film starring Toby Jones which centred on Hitchcock's relationship with his leading lady Tippi Hedren during the making of "The Birds". This Hollywood movie takes us back another couple of years to the fraught creation of his slashterpiece "Psycho" and stars Anthony Hopkins as Hitch and Helen Mirren as his diminutive wife / muse / screenwriter / sparring partner Alma Reville. It's fair to say that while this characterisation of the great director is less jaundiced than the cruel manipulator depicted in "The Girl", it's still very much a warts and all portrait we get here.However, whilst not denying the obsessive / eccentric / warped (take your pick ) side of Hitchcock's nature, a perhaps uneasy balance is struck giving at least a more balanced view of this obviously complex, driven man. So yes, he is depicted as voyeuristic, creepily looking through his secret spy-hole as Vera Miles undresses, temperamental (natch!) as he loses himself while directing "Psycho's" famous shower scene and jealous as he suspects Alma of having an affair with handsome, suave, screenwriter Whitfield Kemp. But these are balanced out to a degree by his portrayal as an avuncular old man with a taste for cotton candy in his playful scenes with Janet Leigh, played by Scarlett Johansen, his staunch support for Alma, always crediting her for her input to their marital and creative relationships and of course his genius as a director making a landmark movie.I've read a number of books on Hitchcock and so got most of the situations shown here, but I didn't go along with all of the director's choices. It seemed a bit much for one thing to have Hitchcock actually haunted by the supposed inspiration for the original "Psycho" novel by Robert Bloch, the American murderer Ed Geins, but this was balanced out by a fine scene where we see Hitchcock "conducting" the shower scene in the foyer at the film's premiere as he hears the audience's terrified screams from inside.Whilst not denying the talent of the A-list cast, it's clear that neither Hopkins or Mirren resemble Hitch and Alma and for all he's a celebrated mimic I didn't think Hopkins got Hitchcock's rich vocal delivery. I also didn't think enough room was given to important subsidiary characters, particularly his screenwriter Joe Stefano who gets the one-scene-and-gone treatment. One also suspects some of the anecdotes here are apocryphal even while I accept some of them may have started with Hitchcock himself. I did enjoy the backstage scenes especially the staging of key scenes in the movie.Well acted and staged, this movie struck me as being a little light on facts and heavy on legend and so lacking a little depth and some truth. By the end though I still couldn't particularly differentiate between Hitchcock the family man and the directorial genius, which might have been the intention anyway.Well, I guess it's only a movie as he once famously said.

zkonedog While some movies are made to attract the widest audience possible, others instead try to find a niche. "Hitchcock" is most definitely a "niche film" primarily appealing to those interested in the Master himself, "Psycho" buffs, or just fans of the movie-making process in general.For a basic plot summary, "Hitchcock" falls into third main plot lines: First and foremost is Hitchcock's (Anthony Hopkins) tumultuous relationship with wife Alma Reville (Helen Mirren). Second, is his fascination with serial killer Ed Gein (Michael Wincott) that leads him to stand firm behind "Psycho" even when the major film studios want nothing to do with it. Third, are the interactions between him and the cast of Psycho, primarily Janet Leigh (Scarlett Johansson), Vera Miles (Jessica Biel), and Anthony Perkins (James D'arcy).For fans of Hitchcock the director, this film sheds some potential light on what must have been churning through his mind while making the motion picture he ultimately became best known for. His obsession with murder and his total devotion to his work are adeptly portrayed in the movie by director Sacha Gervasi, leading of course to a roiling home life that inevitably creeps into his movie-making ways. Even just seeing the larger-than-life Hitch (played marvelously by Hopkins) come to life on the big screen is a treat for fans of his work.Another interesting avenue this film explores in-depth is the process by which a movie gets made in Hollywood. Hitchcock is constantly in need of money, battling the censors, and struggling to meet deadlines. On a more micro level, his interactions with the main players of "Psycho" lend greater understanding into why the film ultimately became such a huge success.Overall, then, being a big Hitchcock fan for many years, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing this movie. If this kind of stuff doesn't seem like it would interest you, then more than likely it probably will not.

zhongzl-kelley2014 I clicked open this film because I admire Alfred Hitchcock's fame and his work, but this is far more tedious than I anticipated. Alfred Hitchcock is indisputably a genius, and we are eagerly curious about his personal life, but it gives me the impression that it's rather boring and bereaved of any adventure or romance. Even though the film strives to exaggerate his love towards his creative and independent wife Alma, that obscure and plain love affair cannot support the legendary atmosphere fox company grants his films.Although I feel obliged to comment on Scarlet Johansson and James Darcy's acting skills, I barely seen any of their charms because all young actors are shaded under the glory of great Alfred Hitchcock, who according to Anthony Hopkin's depiction, is a pervert and self- centered wrinkled ball that breathes like a old bellow with tons of coal crumbs stuffed in it. Although I admire Alfred Hitchcock's talent, it doesn't interest me whether he keeps his swimming pool or have his reservation in a luxurious truffle from somewhere in Europe . They are fist world problems, and I have seen old artists sleeping on the street with newspapers as their blankets and granite as beds.In the shower scene Hitchcock was under the delusion that Janet was Whitfield, the knucklehead that had an affair with his wife. And the scene gave audience the impression that he was going to stab Janet, which gave the shower scene in Psycho an authentic texture. But you know, most people would at least confront Alma before murderous thoughts emerge, and the stress depicted caused by the imaginary affair in the movie is beyond the reasonable level. Failure of this emotional twist makes the whole film sort of artificial.I must click acclaim for the ending. That promotion manual is exciting, and the audience's reaction is palatable, and the spotlight around the red carpet lights up the mood just right. But when Sir Anthony Hopkins is seemingly directing waves of screaming, I hope they can remove that waiter from the background. His presence is really awkward. And probably a revolving shot would be better, in a more open and larger field, because that major highlight scene makes Hitchcock seems like a self-absorbed weirdo