THE BIRDS

Directed in 1963 by Alfred Hitchcock, “The Birds” is inspired by the eponymous short story by the English neo-Gothic novelist Daphne du Maurier (which he would adapt two other times, with “Rebecca” and “Jamaica Inn”).

A classic of horror cinema, the film tells the story of the unexplained attacks suffered by the inhabitants of Bodega Bay by birds of all species. The socialite Melanie Daniels (played by Tippi Hedren who chose the name of the heroine by taking that of her daughter, Melanie Griffith) meets in a bird shop in San Francisco the lawyer Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor), who has come to acquire a pair of lovebirds for his little sister Cathy who lives with their mother in Bodega Bay.

Pretending to mistake Melanie for an employee of the bird shop, Mitch tests Melanie’s knowledge of birds, which is non-existent. He discloses his prior knowledge of her and leaves without buying anything. Cut to the quick, Melanie decides to buy and deliver the lovebirds to Cathy. She rents a boat to cross the bay and drop the lovebirds off at the Brenner farm, but she is attacked by a seagull. Mitch, who sees the incident from afar, comes to help her and invites her to dinner that same evening at the family farm. Despite this incident and despite the hostility shown towards her by Mitch’s mother, Melanie nevertheless decides to stay a few days in Bodega Bay. As the days go by, the behavior of the surrounding birds becomes more and more erratic to the point of attacking the town’s inhabitants.

We will never know the reason for the birds’ violent behavior. Is there even a reason? Hitchcock is, during the writing sessions of the screenplay, very clear: no rational explanation for the birds’ violent behavior should be formulated, believing that an explanation would completely neutralize the anxiety of the viewer (the word “THE END” does not even appear in the credits).

Also, the light first part of the film, focused on a budding love story, strongly contrasts with a much more dramatic second part which turns into horror.

It takes three years of preparation before the film is shot: thousands of birds are trained for the occasion and the use of numerous special effects contributes to creating the atmosphere full of terror desired by Hitchcock.

The atmosphere of terror is very real for Tippi Hedren, who must face real birds since the technicians launch real birds on her that are supposed to attack and some are even attached to her costume by invisible wires during the attack in the attic – leaving her hospitalized with an open eyelid.

A novice actress, she probably accepts what a more seasoned actress would have refused outright and many at the time of the movie release see in the attic scene a thinly veiled metaphor for a rape scene, sadistically filmed by a director known for his perverse and obsessive relationship with his young actress. He would have her act a second time in “Marnie“.

The movie is inspired by an incident that occurred in 1961 in Santa Cruz, where hordes of birds dive-bombed the houses. It is also very loosely inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s short story.

The short story takes place in the English countryside after WWII. One day, Nat Hocken, a war veteran who is worried about the strange movements of certain birds in the sky. That very night, his children’s bedroom, whose window was left open, is invaded by sparrows that have come to attack the children. Nat understands that the attack will grow, that the incident of the night will happen again and that it is therefore necessary to defend his family by organizing a siege. And the incident does indeed happen again, throughout England and even maybe throughout the world.

In about forty pages, Daphne du Maurier describes the anguish of a man who we can guess is methodical and on a war footing, who finds himself confronted with apocalyptic and inexplicable circumstances under which Nature has turned against Humanity.

Daphne du Maurier’s short story, published in 1952, draws a parallel between the birds and the warplanes of a still recent armed conflict through a strong military vocabulary. However, the contemporary reading of “The Birds” remains terrifying in an era of great climatic changes, where the natural elements of water and fire, or diseases that cross species barriers, become a danger to a Humanity that has caused its own downfall through its inconsequential actions.