 Tagline: Suspense and shock beyond anything you have seen or imagined! Nothing equals The Birds for sheer terror when Alfred Hitchcock unleashes his foul friends in one of his most shocking and memorable masterpieces. As beautiful blonde Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) rolls into Bodega Bay in pursuit of eligible bachelor Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor), she is inexplicably attacked by a seagull. Suddenly thousands of birds are flocking into town, preying on schoolchildren and residents in a terrifying series of attacks. Soon Mitch and Melanie are fighting for their lives against a deadly force that can't be explained and can't be stopped in one of Hollywood's most horrific films of nature gone berserk. Storyline: Melanie Daniels is the modern rich socialite, part of the jet-set who always gets what she wants. When lawyer Mitch Brenner sees her in a pet shop, he plays something of a practical joke on her, and she decides to return the favor. She drives about an hour north of San Francisco to Bodega Bay, where Mitch spends the weekends with his mother Lydia and younger sister Cathy. Soon after her arrival, however, the birds in the area begin to act strangely. A seagull attacks Melanie as she is crossing the bay in a small boat, and then, Lydia finds her neighbor dead, obviously the victim of a bird attack. Soon, birds in the hundreds and thousands are attacking anyone they find out of doors. There is no explanation as to why this might be happening, and as the birds continue their vicious attacks, survival becomes the priority. Written by garykmcd Cameo: The Birds - 1963 - 0:02 - Leaving the pet shop with two of his own Sealyham terriers, Geoffrey and Stanley, as Tippi Hedren enters. Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Kenneth Brown, November 8, 2012 -- 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? 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. 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. Cast Notes: Rod Taylor (Mitch Brenner), Jessica Tandy (Lydia Brenner), Suzanne Pleshette (Annie Hayworth), Tippi Hedren (Melanie Daniels), Veronica Cartwright (Cathy Brenner), Ethel Griffies (Mrs. Bundy), Charles McGraw (Sebastian Sholes), Ruth McDevitt (Mrs. MacGruder), Lonny Chapman (Deke Carter), Joe Mantell (Traveling Salesman), Doodles Weaver (Fisherman), Malcolm Atterbury (Deputy Al Malone), John McGovern (Postal Clerk), Karl Swenson (Doomsayer in Diner), Richard Deacon (Mitch's City Neighbor). IMDb Rating (02/11/17): 7.7/10 from 134,409 users
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