Happy Birthday, Hitch!

It's Friday The 13th, and as you may or may not know, today is Alfred Hitchcock's birthday. Hitchcock is one of my favorite directors, and many of his movies grace my DVD collection.

If you have cable and get the Starz Mystery Channel, tonite they will be showing a Hitchcock double feature: The Lady Vanishes and To Catch A Thief, starring Cary Grant & Grace Kelly.

I've listed a few of my favorite Hitchcock movies below, so make this Friday night Hitchock Movie Night at your house! I have hyperlinked each title below, to a brief synopsis online:

• Psycho (1960)
• Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
• Vertigo (1958)
• Rear Window (1954)
• Murder! (1930)
• The Birds (1963)
• Rebecca (1940)

And for those of you who are not into the classic films, here are a few suggestions that pay homage to the Hitchcock style, but were made more recently, that you might want to check out:
• High Anxiety (1978)- A hilarious film by Mel Brooks, co-starring some of my all-time favorites: Madeleine Kahn & Cloris Leachman. Why this movie has yet-to-be-released to DVD, is a mystery to me.
• Dressed To Kill (1980)- Directed by one of my all-time favorite directors, Brian De Palma. De Palma is often referred to as the American Hitchcock.
• Psycho (1998)- Though many hardcore fans of the original film shunned this shot-for-shot remake by Gus Van Sant, I thought it stood on it's own, with a fresh sense of style in both the sets and the wardrobe. Also, it stars my favorite hottie, Vince Vaughn.
• Still of The Night (1982)- I recently stayed up late and watched this on television and was mesmerized by it's overall look. Great performances by Meryl Streep and one of my favorite actors, Roy Scheider.

Happy 105th, Alfred, wherever you are.