Rebecca McCallum
Looking Out/Listening In: Masculinity in Crisis in Rear Window and The Conversation
Using two masterpieces made by two iconic directors, this presentation will examine the mirroring that exists between L.B. Jefferies, Harry Caul and their respective environments in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954) and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation (1975). From their fixed costumes to their reflective pastimes of looking and listening, to themes covering the violation of privacy, weaponization of information, voyeurism and eavesdropping, Hitchcock and Coppola offer an uncomfortable and brooding look at masculinity in crises. Their final moments, representing a questionable reset for Jeff and a more definite descent into paranoia for Harry, offer multiple interpretations which I will use to assess what remarks these films are making about the destructive nature of surveillance, guilt and obsession.
About
Rebecca is a writer, editor, speaker and creator/host of Talking Hitchcock , a podcast that explores the work and the world of her favourite director. She has written at length about Hitchcock’s films both online and in print for many publications including Fangoria, Grim Journal , Hemlock Books and Moviejawn. A curator of screenings and events across the UK, she shares her passion and perspectives on Hitchcock and has programmed a Hitchcock festival entitled The Apartment Trilogy in addition to hosting anniversary screenings of Rear Window, North by Northwest and speaking at the Wide Screen film festival at the National Science and Media Museum. Previously, she has spoken at HitchCon and co-hosted a programme Hitchcock and Me on BBC Radio. Most recently, she has delivered a lecture on the The Absent, Omnipresent Women of Hitchcock with Final Girls Berlin and she is currently immersed in writing her first Hitchcock focused book.
Follow Rebecca on Instagram @talkinghitchpod and @pendlepumpkin