Week 3 Blog: Shadow of a Doubt

Alfred Hitchcock's film "Shadow of a Doubt" is about a young woman, Charlie, and her evolving relationship with her Uncle Charlie, whom she is named after. In the beginning of the film, it shows Charlie in a state of weakness, seeing as she did not see the hope in the world anymore. But once she heard news of her uncle's visit to their home, it was as if she was a brand new woman. Everything seemed normal but after noticing some of Uncle Charlie's odd behavior, Charlie begins to suspect things about him that she did not realize before.

Throughout the movie, Hitchcock uses different techniques to portray Uncle Charlie's character. In part 1 4:53, the number 13 appears on the door, which we also saw in the Lodger as well. Also in part 1 9:47, it shows a shot of Charlie lying in bed in a daze, just as her Uncle Charlie was in the beginning of the film. The bed is a recurring object in Hitchcock films and often shows the strength or weakness of the connection between two people. The scene at part 2 9:08 infers some idea about Uncle Charlie's character when he and Joe are getting him settled, and Joe told him to not throw the hat on the bed because he didn't "believe in inviting trouble." Although he had been warned, Uncle Charlie threw his hat on the bed moments after Joe left. The use of the hat in this scene is almost a slap in the face to Joe and it gives the audience a chance to question Uncle Charlie's motives and intentions for coming home.

In part 3 3:02, Hitchcock uses light in this scene in such a clever way that subtly hints to the audience that Uncle Charlie has something to hide, and Charlie is this much closer to finding out what it is. In this scene, Charlie and her uncle are talking and she bets him that there is something inside him that nobody knows about, but she will find out. The shot is focused on Charlie but in the corner there is some darkness (the contrast of light and dark was strong). But when Charlie talks to her uncle, she moves closer and closer to that darkness, which can possibly mean that she is getting that much closer to finding out the truth. The use of POV shot in part 4 1:16 is intended to show the emotion on Uncle Charlie's face when Charlie confronts him about the missing pages in the newspaper. When Uncle Charlie reaches to grab her, it is almost as if the audience is in Charlie's shoes, and we can see how angry and defensive Uncle Charlie is. His reaction alone is enough for the audience to see the true Uncle Charlie.