The Birds

Considering when it was made, the special effects are absolutely excellent. Hitch did a good job and how he builds up the atmosphere, layer after layer, from one attack to another, is genius. Never a dull moment, even before the feathered actors arrive on the scene. The very nicely constructed, relatively untraditional courting storyline is amusing and captures your attention. If only all directors and screen play writers also dedicated such care to their projects these days. (01/02/2011)

The Birds is an absorbing character study with beautiful color composition, a masterfully built atmosphere and hypnotically captivating fluidity of the action. At first glance, it is “only” a wonderful-looking commercial supernatural horror movie, but on closer inspection, it is a work of art with a poignant existential subtext. With the passage of time, it has become a cinematic gem. (11/23/2004)

I really like Hitchcock, but I never understood the enthusiasm around this film by the Master of Suspense. It's not one of his worst, but there are plenty (read dozens) of much better films in his oeuvre. The big problem is that technically it has become somewhat outdated - which wouldn't matter if it had an atmosphere to disguise it. Unfortunately, there is not a shred of it in The Birds; and in its essence, it is almost offensive to the ingenious chamber atmospheric original story (yes, I adore Daphne). And thus even the infinitely charming Tippi Hedren cannot save it. (01/12/2007)

The first half is a very, very long exposition. Hitch tries to gradually build up the tension, but the result is a bit boring with all the unnecessarily long dialogues that don't move the plot anywhere. But the second half is a different story. A terrifying, omnipresent threat from an unusual enemy, brilliantly filmed. So, the overall result is very good. BTW: The short story is still better :) (04/13/2003)

The horror passages are truly chilling and excellently filmed, but we wait an awfully long time for them. The meticulous character study in the first half only works at first, but gradually Hitchcock falls into stereotype, and as the wait for "something" drags on, boredom slowly creeps in, which is the first time this has happened to me in his films. Regardless, The Birds is still incredibly well-crafted for its time, from the patient direction and sober script to the superb editing and eccentric use of colour, and it's hard to imagine a remake ever challenging its refinement in the future. Hitchcock may have made better stuff, but the same can be said for Spielberg and his Jaws – even that one is now seen as a major cult classic. 75% (04/29/2013)