Week 5: North by Northwest

Sorry, I wanted to get this in before class today but I had to upload it just before class and I forgot my computer! Anyway, without further adieu:

               The scene in which Roger evades the crop duster is one of the defining scenes of North by Northwest. Hitchcock begins at 01:03:40 by showing Roger getting off of the bus, waiting to meet with Mr. Kaplan. Until 01:06:50, the silence of the barren bus stop is only broken by the far-off hum of the airplane, and the occasional car whizzing past our protagonist, only to pass him up and continue on their journey down the long, hot, sun-drenched road. Hitchcock builds up suspense for more than three minutes, and elicits a feeling of isolation and desertion while Roger waits for a man who is but a figment.  

               The aerial shot of the field in which Roger waits reveals a dead, barren landscape. The rows of crops show no color, but rather reminisce of a disgusting stain, like spilled food on a carpet or rot destroying wood. The flatness and open-endedness of the landscape make the road seem to go on forever, reaffirming the idea that this man is alone in the middle of nowhere. The sun beats down relentlessly, evoking an image of 19^th century cowboys at high noon. When the action finally starts to commence (01:06:50), the silence is interrupted only by a man arriving to catch a bus, who knows nothing about Mr. Kaplan. He casually remarks that the crop duster is flying over an area with no crops, clueing the audience into the fact that Roger has been set up. It’s not until about 01:08:55, as the plane is coming toward him, that Roger realizes he’s been duped. The tension created by the intense silence, desolateness, and isolation finally gets relieved when the battle between Roger and his assassins breaks out, and Hitchcock engages the audience in the action.