Frenzy

Synopsis

A sex criminal known as the Necktie Murderer is preying on women around London's West End. The trail leads to an innocent man (Jon Finch) who must elude the law and prove his innocence by finding the real murderer (Barry Foster). This gritty, unnerving film is the only Hitchcock film to be rated 18 by the BBFC. Yet it is also one of his funniest films, especially the black humour around the Chief Inspector's (Alec McCowen) dinner table as his wife (Vivien Merchant) cooks up more and more experimental meals.

Hitchcock's penultimate film was his first in Britain since 1939's Jamaica Inn and is in part an homage to the Covent Garden Market, where his father had worked as a wholesale greengrocer and which was shortly to close as a fruit and vegetable market. The film is also notable for its use of location settings, natural light and handheld cameras, unusual for Hitchcock who would typically film in the studio.