During a Party, Two Friends Hide a Secret in Plain Sight: A Retro Review for "Rope"

From left: Farley Granger, James Stewart, and John Dall in "Rope"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

As Alfred Hitchcock exemplified in his 1944 film “Lifeboat” and his 1954 film “Rear Window,” he doesn’t need much to give audiences the thrills to which they have become accustomed to when watching his films.  With a limited setting for this movies, he showed unwavering resourcefulness as a filmmaker.

However, another notable example of this emerged between the releases of these two films with his 1948 psychological thriller, “Rope,” in which he doesn’t only make use of a limited setting, but also a limited runtime (80 minutes), to give audiences a thriller that packs just as much excitement as in his longer films.

One day, best friends Brandon Shaw (John Dall) and Phillip Morgan (Farley Granger) strangle and kill a former classmate, David Kentley (Dick Hogan), in their Manhattan apartment.  They soon finalize their preparations for a party that they are hosting, and as the guests begin to arrive, the two conspirators find it becoming difficult to keep their secret from revealing itself, which is made more difficult by the inquisitiveness of one guest, Brandon and Phillip’s former prep-school housemaster, Rupert Cadell (James Stewart).

Granger, who worked with Hitchcock on “Strangers on a Train,” delivers a performance where you see the guilt taking over Phillip.  Wanting to keep the truth concealed, Granger displays his character trying his hardest to maintain his composure as his and Brandon’s guests become more suspicious as the party goes on, with Phillip’s facade starting to crack and threaten to expose his and Brandon’s dark secret.  There’s a strong palpability to the pressure that Phillip experiences in keeping his composure, and the nervousness that tends to compromise his appearance of calmness has you tense up whenever he interacts with the other characters.

Where Granger exhibits someone who threatens to be overtaken by the crushing guilt of the crime, Dall presents an unflustered and suave persona of someone who’s able to keep this big secret.  Dall exhibits his character’s expert navigation skills in dodging the suspicion of others, always managing to be the most pleasant of hosts as he shields his murderous tendencies from his guests.  Dall’s ability to convey his character’s charm serves as an unsettling example of how even the most affable person could be harboring the most disturbing of secrets, ensuring that we remain hooked throughout as we see for how long he can remain confident in getting away with murder. 

Although Stewart, who would go on to star in “Rear Window” and “Vertigo,” is in a supporting role and is the biggest star within the cast, he never tries to overshadow Dall and Granger.  It’s a character who’s understated, but allows for Stewart to display his talent as his Rupert pieces together the clues concerning what Phillip and Brandon have done.

The screenplay by Arthur Laurents, which is based on Patrick Hamilton’s 1929 play of the same name, is somewhat of a retelling of Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” but still manages to be its own story.  At just 80 minutes, this movie doesn’t waste any time in getting started, as it opens with the murder, and then the rest of movie is the aftermath.  Given the film’s confined setting and the characters always being together and conversing, this is a movie that relies all on dialogue, and there’s never a conversation that doesn’t hold your attention.  And, although this is a dark premise, Laurents injects some clever humor here and there that never seems intrusive, but serves to ease the tension on occasion. 

The cinematography by Joseph A. Valentine and William V. Skall uses a series of long takes to create the effect of this movie being told in real time, with the cuts ranging from over four minutes to over 10 minutes.  The continuous flow of motion allows for an authenticity of how the movie is presented because we experience the events and stress at the same rate as Brandon and Phillip.  The adeptness of these long takes is a significant example of the many technical proficiencies that would be seen throughout Hitchcock’s career.

With the movie placing us in a setting that includes the victim, the culprits, and their guests, Hitchcock is able to put us in an apprehensive state with everyone being near each other and having tensions rise; and, throughout the film, he keeps us anxious through a series of close calls of the crime being revealed as the characters congregate mere inches from where the body is stored.  Hitchcock presents is title of “Master of Suspense” in a different way for this film because, whereas his other movies withhold details as he builds anticipation in waiting for various factors to converge, this movie has all of the pieces in front of you, confined within the apartment.  We know who committed the murder, so the movie comes down to when Brandon and Phillip will be exposed, and this proves to be just as suspenseful as anything we see in movies like “Rear Window,” “Vertigo,” and “Psycho,” among other Hitchcock movies.

“Rope” may be short, but the amount of thrills that it offers is undeniable, and the film will have you tethered to the screen.

Grade: A