Review: Hitchcock/Truffaut

Hitchcock/Truffaut (12A) 

USA 2016 Dir: Kent Jones Cast: Alfred Hitchcock, Francois Truffaut, Martin Scorsese, David Fincher, Paul Schrader, Wes Anderson, Richard Linklater

Far from being a mere anecdote or footnote in the annals of cinema lore, the 1962 series of interviews between legendary Psycho director Alfred Hitchcock and then-burgeoning French New Wave talent Francois Truffaut were in fact history in the making. It’s inconceivable now but at the time, Hitchcock was regarded as little more than a populist entertainer by the majority of critics; it took Truffaut’s interviews, and his subsequent landmark book, to cement Hitchcock as one of cinema’s pioneering directors in the minds of audiences and filmmakers.

It’s this seemingly unassuming tête-à-tête between two titans of world cinema that provides the jumping-off point for Kent Jones’ engrossing and lively documentary. Utilising talking head interviews with several of Hollywood’s finest plus carefully selected archive footage, Jones compellingly makes the case, in the manner of Truffaut’s own research, for Hitchcock’s movies being much more than sensationalist thrillers. The breakdown of 1958’s eerily dreamy Vertigo is especially well-handled, Hitchcock’s familiar drawling tones playing out over the chilling reveal of Kim Novak’s transformation to expose the story’s disturbing sexual undercurrents.

At the same time, Jones’ movie exposes distinct and intriguing differences between two very different men utilising the medium of film for their own ends. The studio-educated Hitchcock, having made the jump from British cinema to Hollywood, was famously open about emphasising visual imagery and ditching logic where necessary (dismissing it as “dull”). He also had little patience for actors (“they’re cattle”), his cutting nature amusingly exposed in several behind the scenes anecdotes. Truffaut by contrast was the bright young whippersnapper who had recently emerged from trendsetting French film magazine Cahiers du Cinema, Hitchcock’s apparent polar opposite in his use of raw, untested actors, improvisation and experimental camerawork (his classic The 400 Blows gets a good look-in).

Nevertheless, Jones’ carefully researched documentary also emphasises the obvious warmth between the two directors (a flash of Hitchcock’s flattered written response to Truffaut’s initial interview request is very touching). Far more than just a sprightly 80 minute documentary about one series of interviews, Jones’ movie also encompasses the wide-ranging impact of Truffaut’s work on the next generation of genre-defying filmmakers, the likes of Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson, David Fincher and Richard Linklater all chiming in with intriguing contributions that will surely have all cineastes smiling in acknowledgment.

Although the movie does unfortunately skimp on Hitchcock’s British years, focusing almost exclusively on his Hollywood work to their detriment, this is a hugely compelling and entertaining celebration of moviemaking guaranteed to hold appeal for both newcomers and those already well-versed.