Alfred Hitchcock Blogathon – Frenzy (1972) – Isaacs Picture Conclusions

Fopr the next review for our Alfred Hitchcock blogathon, Here’s a review from the creator of Shitfest, Eric Isaacs of the IPC   of Frenzy, Hitchcock penultimate feature film

I’m sure most of you already follow Eric’s antics every day, but if you don’t get your butt over to the IPC and hit “follow me” (he’s the head of a cult)  🙂

 

There’s a joke going around Twitter that I’m a stalking serial killer. At least I hope these people are joking. I mean, just because I like songs like “Jigsaw Girl” and “Tyler” by the Toadies and “Still Remains” by Stone Temple Pilots DOESN’T MEAN I’M A CRAZY STALKING WEIRDO!!! Also – just because you see me outside your window every now and then DOESN’T MEAN I’M STALKING YOU!! I’m PROTECTING YOU!!! Except maybe Luke. But I’m sure I can get all of this cleared up when I talk about my favorite Hitchcock movie – you know – the one about the dude who goes around London doing some raping and strangling. Oh. Wait. I – um – I – it – er…..

 

 

To be honest, I haven’t really seen many Hitchcock films, but the ones I have seen all seem to be real “serious-y”. Like Strangers on a Train. Did he really have to show the ENTIRE tennis match? Oh well – I think the reason I like this so much is because it’s funny. No, not the raping and strangling, that’s not funny – but the dialogue and the expressions on the actors faces crack me up. This is my kind of humor – I don’t need balls in your face or playing drums with dongs – that shit doesn’t make me laugh. Like the other night, a bunch of us went to a bar and some of us started playing pool. Two of us are old men and the other two are twenty-something in-laws. Well, they grew up around pool tables and they whipped our asses the first two games and then we started a third and they scratched on the break and Chris screams out “WE WIN!!!” I thought that was pretty funny so we racked them up again and, in an attempt to show those fuckers how strong and badass I am, I ripped off a beautiful and mighty break that scratched immediately. Now that shit’s funny.

 

 

There’s a sequence early on in this where our lead is pouring himself a nice shot of gin first thing in the morning. He’s in the bar where he works and lives and the owner catches him. It goes something like this:

 

The Owner: You’ll pay for that you sot! Get out on the street, you’re canned!

Bargirl (Babs): He always pays! I seen him put the money in the tiller!

Owner: You! Always taking up for him! Piss off! You shacking up with him more than you work your wages!

Babs: What?? Piss off!!! You fingering me all the time!!

 

Here’s a couple of other quotes I lifted off of the internet:

 

Richard Blaney:

Do I look like a sex murderer to you? Can you imagine me creeping around London, strangling all those women with ties? That’s ridiculuous. For a start, I only own two.

 

Chief Inspector Oxford:

I expect she’ll turn up sooner or later. These days, ladies abandon their honor far more readily than their clothes.

 

Doctor in Pub:

In one way I rather hope he doesn’t. We haven’t had a good juicy series of sex murders since Christie. And they’re so good for the tourist trade. Foreigners somehow expect the squares of London to be fog-wreathed, full of hansom cabs and *littered* with ripped whores, don’t you think?

 

 

So, yeah – it’s the humor that makes this movie for me. This movie was made in ’72 so it’s very tame – no blood or guts or fiery car chases. But there are some boobs. And some potatoes. And handkerchiefs. But there is also a guy who does some raping uttering “LOVELY!! LOVELY!! LOVELY!! LOVELY!!” while he’s after it.

 

 

There’s also a few humorous bits where the police inspector is forced to eat his wife’s horrendous cooking – she’s going to “Cooking School” and all. He’s British so he does it as gentlemanly as possible but it’s awful funny. That soup with the fish head in it scene is a crack up!! I can’t go off and say that this is not a typical Hitchcock film – because I haven’t seen many of them, but this one is a lot of fun – aside from the raping and strangling.