We are watchers on the wires;
We are tenants of the skies;
Symbols of when man aspires;
Keepers of the flinching eyes;
Witnesses of every creature,
Evil, good, and in between,
Whether as a nimbus reacher
Or a prisoner to preen.
We are victims cursed by weakness,
Kept by cage or mortal mesh;
Though you know us by our meekness,
We will feast upon your flesh.
We are biders of the ages;
We are conquerors in wait.
When our wingéd warring rages,
You will comprehend too late.
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(Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt was for a riddle poem, one that doesn’t reveal its subject, unless you count the title.)
I had never seen The Birds before and was curious about the film often considered to be Hitchcock’s last masterpiece. While many old suspense/horror films are sapped of their power by the passage of time, this one manages to retain most of its efficacy. Despite its potentially silly concept, the visual effects and Hitchcock’s direction manage to milk the tension and plausibly transform birds into a lethal nightmare, mainly due to their sheer numbers.
As the film begins, it follows the only mildly interesting courtship games of wealthy Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) and Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor), and as she goes to improbable lengths to deliver a couple of lovebirds, my VC and I were waiting impatiently for some kind of bird-related havoc to happen. Of course, it does come and progresses gradually, from a single gull to a flock to a shocking discovery at a neighbor’s house (by a younger Jessica Tandy). Once the actual avian carnage begins, the film becomes vastly more entertaining. This transition from romantic comedy to terror was intentional, since Hitchcock wished to prey on his audience’s anticipation as they wondered when the attacks would start. While the gambit works for the most part, I can’t help but feel that Hitchcock was given a pass for a tactic that wouldn’t fly (pardon the pun) with someone of lesser prestige. Many films since have fused comedy and horror, but to shift from an unfunny comedy with no horror to a horror with no comedy would normally be criticized nowadays as being unbalanced or jarring.
Just as 1960’s Psycho established the slasher genre, The Birds actually foreshadowed two other horror sub-genres. Its depiction of nature rising up against humanity would be rehashed with various other animals over the years in lesser imitators (Frogs, Bats, Slugs). Likewise, the climax, in which the Brenners and Melanie barricade themselves within their home and defend against the swarming enemy, prefigured countless other such trapped room invasions throughout the horror genre (Night of the Living Dead, Aliens, The Mist, etc.). When the lights go out during the birds’ attack, I halfway expected someone to say, “They cut the power.” “What do you mean ‘They cut the power?’ How could they cut the power, man? They’re animals!” Unfortunately, The Birds also features the usual victim stupidity common in horror films, like sitting outside for a smoke after birds have attacked or inexplicably stepping into a room that clearly is full of birds and then losing the ability to open a door.
While one could speculate about the presence of caged birds being a possible impetus for the attacks, there is no explanation for the birds’ behavior. Perhaps Hitchcock felt any clarification would detract from the film by adding in some cheesy exposition, like radioactive something-or-other, a favorite device in B-movies. My VC would have preferred something of that sort, as well as a less sudden, ambiguous ending, which offered little closure for the characters. While some of the effects are dated and the beginning could have been improved, The Birds is still a film deserving of its classic reputation, one which succeeded in making even the mere flapping of wings an opportunity for dread.
Best line: (a naysaying ornithologist) “I have never known birds of different species to flock together. The very concept is unimaginable. Why, if that happened, we wouldn’t stand a chance! How could we possibly hope to fight them?”
Rank: List Runner-Up© 2015 S. G. Liput
292 Followers and Counting
Two years since the big divorce,
And Tracy Lord has no remorse.
The wealthy heiress soon will wed,
And tabloids, wanting to be read,
Will stop at nothing to inveigle
For what news they can finagle.
Macaulay Connor’s sent by Spy
To get the story none can buy,
Accompanied by pressured Dex,
Miss Lord’s both sore and spiteful ex.
To Lord’s dismay, she lets them stay,
Despite her coming wedding day.
Their presence tends to complicate
And spark unusual debate,
Which makes the vain Miss Tracy Lord,
That goddess always so adored,
To wonder of her selfish life
And who she’ll choose to call her wife.
______________________
News reporter Kimberly Wells was hired,
For her pretty face and the ratings it drew.
Hard news is the journalist’s grail desired,
Dauntless and brand new.
She discovers just such a story when she’s
Sent to film a nuclear power station.
Sudden shutdown captured on film may displease
That corporation.
Cautious Jack Godell at the plant is worried:
Noises from the accident he alone fears.
Work to bring the plant back online is hurried;
Nobody there hears.
Those behind the overpriced project will block
Whistleblowers trying to thwart their tactic.
Brave Godell’s forced warnings yet hope to cause shock
With stunt climactic.
_________________
Attorneys need a home in which to practice proper law.
Bendini, Lambert, Locke have quite the lawyer-luring draw.
Can anyone resist a wealthy, prosperous career?
Doubt not that it is tempting for young hotshot Mitch McDeere.
Enjoying all the pleasures that the firm has deigned to give,
Family and barbeques, a house in which to live,
Good times that lack a down side just as far as he can tell,
His wife and he are happy…till they lose some personnel.
In no time, Mitch is well aware that something isn’t right;
Jobs shouldn’t cause the FBI to come to you at night.
Know-nothing newbie lawyers like McDeere don’t have a clue;
Like often said, beware an offer too good to be true.
Mitch finds out that the mafia employ his newfound firm;
Nobody leaves the company or life becomes short-term.
On every side, there’s pressure: worry, guilt, concern, and shame,
Plus conscience-stinging ethics that he never can reclaim.
Qualms urge him to uncover ways to flee his latest job,
Replete with all the pleasures and the dangers of the mob,
So quick to reel him in and think that he would play along.
The Feds will be no friendlier should anything go wrong.
Undaunted by the challenge, Mitch discovers how to weigh
Veracity with justice at the climax of the day.
With those he cares the most for, he attempts a daring play;
Excitement follows after when the firm gets in the way.
Yet Mitch has all the intel and integrity he needs:
Zip right into the lion’s den and hope the plan succeeds.
_________________
Rhyme and Reason 