The Birds (1963)

A wealthy San Francisco socialite pursues a potential boyfriend to a small Northern California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds of all kinds suddenly begin to attack people there in increasing numbers and with increasing viciousness.

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

Daphne Du Maurier (story), Evan Hunter (screenplay)

Stars:

Tippi Hedren, Suzanne Pleshette, Rod Taylor

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tippi Hedren	...	Melanie Daniels (as 'Tippi' Hedren)
Suzanne Pleshette	...	Annie Hayworth
Rod Taylor	...	Mitch Brenner
Jessica Tandy	...	Lydia Brenner
Veronica Cartwright	...	Cathy Brenner
Ethel Griffies	...	Mrs. Bundy - Ornithologist
Charles McGraw	...	Sebastian Sholes - Fisherman in Diner
Doreen Lang	...	Hysterical Mother in Diner
Ruth McDevitt	...	Mrs. MacGruder - Pet Store Clerk
Joe Mantell	...	Traveling Salesman at Diner's Bar
Malcolm Atterbury	...	Deputy Al Malone
Karl Swenson	...	Drunken Doomsayer in Diner
Elizabeth Wilson	...	Helen Carter
Lonny Chapman	...	Deke Carter - Diner Owner
Doodles Weaver	...	Fisherman Helping with Rental Boat

Storyline

Melanie Daniels is the modern rich socialite, part of the jet-set who always gets what she wants. When lawyer Mitch Brenner sees her in a pet shop, he plays something of a practical joke on her, and she decides to return the favor. She drives about an hour north of San Francisco to Bodega Bay, where Mitch spends the weekends with his mother Lydia and younger sister Cathy. Soon after her arrival, however, the birds in the area begin to act strangely. A seagull attacks Melanie as she is crossing the bay in a small boat, and then, Lydia finds her neighbor dead, obviously the victim of a bird attack. Soon, birds in the hundreds and thousands are attacking anyone they find out of doors. There is no explanation as to why this might be happening, and as the birds continue their vicious attacks, survival becomes the priority.

---

Plot Keywords:

bird | socialite | bird attack | school | california | 

---

Taglines:

Nothing You Have Ever Witnessed Before Has Prepared You for Such Sheer Stabbing Shock!

---

Genres:

Horror | Thriller

---

Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 May 1963 (Argentina)

Also Known As:

Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds

Filming Locations:

17110 Bodega Lane, Bodega, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Alfred J. Hitchcock Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) (uncredited)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the little girls at Cathy's birthday party (at the very end of the 'attack' scene , she was standing alongside another girl....holding her cheek) was played by Suzanne Cupito. She later changed to her stage name, Morgan Brittany. Dallas fans may remember her as Pamela Ewing's evil half-sister, Katherine Wentworth.

---

Goofs

When Melanie gets out of the boat after the seagull attack she appears not to have her purse on the pan-and-scan version.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Melanie Daniels: Hello there, Mrs. MacGruder.
Mrs. MacGruder, pet store clerk: Oh, hello, Miss Daniels.
Melanie Daniels: Have you ever seen so many gulls? What do you suppose it is?
Mrs. MacGruder, pet store clerk: Well, there must be a storm at sea, that can drive them inland, you know. I was hoping you'd be a little late because he hadn't arrived yet.
Melanie Daniels: Oh, but you'd said three o'clock...
Mrs. MacGruder, pet store clerk: Oh I know, I know. I've been calling all morning. Oh, Miss Daniels you have no idea. They are so difficult to get, really they are. We have to get them from India, when they're just baby chicks,...
[...]

---

Crazy Credits

There were no ending credits. And in the opening credits the title "THE BIRDS" was slowly pecked a way by the passing crows.

---

Connections

Referenced in Plotting 'Family Plot' (2001)

---

Soundtracks

"Arabesque nr. 1 in E"
(1888) (uncredited)
Claude Debussy
Played on the piano by Tippi Hedren

User Reviews

The last movie Senator Gill ever saw

An old friend, the late State Senator Ted Gill, of Holyoke, Colorado, once told me that The Birds was the last movie he ever saw. He gave up movies after seeing this flick...they were just getting too weird and disturbing for an old rancher like him. It's still pretty terrifying, even if you've seen it again and again. You know what bad, brutal scenes are coming and don't want to see the carnage again, but can't help yourself. It's ominous as the crows flock tighter and tighter, always more and more, on the schoolyard Monkey-Bars and it's also exciting to see the school kids chased down by the crows a few minutes later. Subplots like the pitiful neurosis of Lydia Brenner, Mitch & Annie's lost-love-affair, Mitch's indifference to the needs of others, and the poor-little-rich-girl Melanie, who still just wants her mommie, are all well-written and acted. Loved best by me is Hitchcock's humorous characters who are CHARACTERS! The old drunk at the bar quoting Holy Scripture, the nosy neighbor done wonderfully by Richard Deacon, the dowdily-dressed old intellectual in the cafe buying her cigarettes and evidently a scientific expert for any field. Sir Alfred's macabre touches of comedy are unmatched, even in today's thrillers. I'm repulsed and attracted by such scenes as the one in the farmhouse, where Jessica Tandy discovers an old friend pecked to death, with his eye sockets bloody and empty. I find myself still searching for gory details on the farmer's body because Hitch didn't let the camera dwell on the horrible face too long. But he DID give us two rapid jump-cuts with closer and closer close-ups, and we end up seeing just as much detail as Jessica just did - enough to know that "We gotta git outta there!" Overall, a fine time. 119 minutes of revolting fun!