The second to last full-length Alfred Hitchcock movie ever made was Frenzy (1972). The distinctly British production is set in London, England. The Anthony Shaffer screenplay is based on the Arthur La Bern novel Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square. The movie itself is simultaneously the most explicitly risqué and explicitly visceral movie presentation of any in the Hitchcock canon.
The story of Frenzy deals in the underlying subject of the serial murder of women by someone called the “Necktie Strangler”. We in the audience are presented our first primary suspect in the way of Richard Blaney, who until recently had led a squadron in the Royal Air Force (RAF) of the United Kingdom. Blaney is fired as a bartender in Covent Garden, near the produce stand of his friend, Robert Rusk. Covent Garden is located in the City of Westminster, an inner borough of London, England. Blaney and Rusk are portrayed by Jon Finch and Barry Foster, respectively.
Rusk offers Blaney a horse racing tip that Blaney cannot possibly use, given his having just been fired. Displeased, Blaney visits Brenda Margaret Blaney, his ex-wife at her matchmaking agency. Having complained loudly about his overall situation. Brenda sends her secretary to lunch as a means to avoid further embarrassment. Appearances are not in Blaney’s favor when he gets caught leaving the matchmaking agency as the secretary returns. Brenda Margaret Blaney, as portrayed by Barbara Leigh-Hunt, had been murdered.
That the Necktie Strangler looks like Blaney is clear, which leads Blaney to seek help from Barbara Jane Milligan, as portrayed by Anna Massey. Milligan, a former colleague for Blaney at the pub, makes love to Blaney in a nearby hotel after becoming convinced of his innocence. While later retrieving Blaney’s belongings from the pub, the later rape and murder of Milligan leads to a series of mistakes for the legitimate Necktie Strangler, whose identity was revealed to the audience after the first murder.
The course of the investigation, coupled with the progress being made in identifying the true nature of the killings, leads Chief Inspector Timothy Oxford, Sergeant Spearman and the suspect, Richard Blaney, to be multiple steps behind the reality of who was committing the crimes. The treachery that reveals to Richard Blaney the truth is what gets Blaney charged, and additionally. The extended take with Mrs. Oxford and dinner offers a distinctly British study on the humor of manners. Chief Inspector Oxford, Mrs. Oxford and Spearman were portrayed by Alec McCowen, Vivien Merchant and Michael Bates, respectively.
The comedic tone of Frenzy as a murder film feels quite deliberately done and executed with clear effect. The film was received with more critical than audience acclaim, as shared here by the folks at Rotten Tomatoes. Overall, I found the movie well executed true to form, though not the best offered by Hitchcock. All things considered, I grant Frenzy as directed by Alfred Hitchcock 3.75-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.
Matt – Saturday, August 6, 2022
Matt Lynn Digital 