[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/alfred_hitchcock.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[CatchPhrase "Good evening. I'm Alfred Hitchcock."]]]]
The acknowledged master of cinematic [[{{Horror}} suspense]], "Hitch" is one of the most famous directors of all time, if not ''the'' most famous. Most people have probably seen one of his films at some time. He was "Sir Alfred" for a brief four months before his death in 1980. He also produced and hosted the television anthology series ''AlfredHitchcockPresents'' from 1955 to 1965, although he only actually directed a handful of the show's episodes. Many of his films are adaptations of novels or short stories. Made frequent use of the 'MacGuffin' and popularized the term.

Most people consider either ''Film/{{Vertigo}}'' or ''Film/{{Psycho}}'' to be his MagnumOpus, although Hitchcock himself regarded ''Film/ShadowOfADoubt'' as his personal favorite. ''Film/NorthByNorthwest'' and ''Film/TheBirds'' are also frequently cited as favorites among fans.

Played by Creator/AnthonyHopkins in ''Hitchcock'', a film by [[Film/AnvilTheStoryOfAnvil Sacha Gervasi]] about the making of ''Film/{{Psycho}}''. Hopkins [[http://content.foxsearchlight.com/sites/default/files/images/hitchcock-300.jpg certainly looks the part]] while the significant artistic contributions of his wife, Alma (Played by HelenMirren), are given their belated due as well.

It should be noted that Hitchcock did '''''not''''' direct ''Film/TheThirdMan'', as is widely believed. He didn't do ''Film/{{Charade}}'', either, although the latter was referred to by one reviewer as "the best Hitchcock film that Hitchcock never made".

To see a list of all of his movies, [[FilmsByAlfredHitchcock click here]].
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!!Known for:


* DeadpanSnarker: The man was known to have an absolutely cutting sense of humor, as well as a contempt for anyone who interfered with his own creative process. One of his most famous quotes was "I never said actors are cattle. I said actors should be ''treated'' like cattle."
* DirtyOldMan: See Yandere, below.
* EnforcedMethodActing:
** In the attic scene in ''Film/TheBirds'', Hitchcock had crew guys hurling real gulls and crows at Tippi Hedren...for five straight days of shooting. As a result, she was plagued by dreams of flapping wings. The birds themselves had been fed whiskey to make them more aggressive. Needless to say, this was ''long'' before the NoAnimalsWereHarmed certificates.
** The story of ''Literature/{{Rebecca}}'' called for Joan Fontaine to be nervous around the other actors, so Hitchcock told her that no one else on set liked her.
** When filming ''Film/The39Steps'' he needed a shocked reaction from Madeline Carroll. He achieved this by pretending to pull his cock out.
** A popular UrbanLegend has it that Janet Leigh's terrified scream in ''{{Film/Psycho}}'''s shower scene was achieved by Hitchcock turning on the cold water unexpectedly, though apparently this is untrue.
* FreudianExcuse ([[ItWasHisSled you have to ask?]])
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Examples are too numerous to list.
* InsufferableGenius
* MissingEpisode: Hitchcock's first film, a 1923 release called ''The White Shadow'', was thought lost for more than 80 years--until its first three reels were [[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/8781253/Lost-Alfred-Hitchcock-classic-shown-after-80-years.html found]] as part of a private collection in New Zealand.
* MyBelovedSmother
* PrimaDonnaDirector: Much beloved for many good reasons, but let's face it, the man was a control freak extraordinaire.
** He planned his movies in meticulous detail, at least as much as Creator/StanleyKubrick... to the extent that he was often depressed when pre-production was finished, because actually ''shooting'' the film was boring and required less effort. However, unlike Kubrick, performances tended to be better because Hitchcock didn't have the propensity to do as many takes.
** However, there are some people who had worked for Hitchcock who would go out of their way to defend him at the drop of a hat. A prime example of this is actor Norman Lloyd, later to play Dr. Daniel Auschlander on the NBC medical drama ''StElsewhere'', who worked for Hitchcock as an associate producer and director on ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'', and with good reason. At the time, Hitchcock was the only person willing to give him any type of gainful employment. Other than that, he had been blacklisted in the entertainment industry for refusing to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee and identify suspected communists and as a result, had been branded as a communist himself.
** He was also known for his appalling treatment of his female leads, even beyond his infamous {{Yandere}} actions toward Tippi Hedren. Farley Granger noted he bullied Ruth Roman on the set of Film/StrangersOnATrain, and whenever he needed Madeline Carroll on set in ''Film/The39Steps'' he would cry out 'Bring on the Birmingham tart!'. He also managed to elicit a shocked reaction from Carroll by pretending to whip it out. He planned to make Vera Miles a big star but lost interest in her once she became pregnant and had a baby, although he did eventually cast her in Psycho.
*** Although as counterpoint GraceKelly never complained of mistreatment and actually rather loved working with him.
* RailEnthusiast: ''Film/StrangersOnATrain'', ''Film/The39Steps'', ''TheLadyVanishes'', ''ShadowOfADoubt'', and ''Film/NorthByNorthwest'' all have extensive scenes aboard trains, Hitchcock's preferred mode of travel.
* ScareEmStraight: When Hitchcock was a child, his father once punished him by sending him down to the local police station with a note explaining his misbehavior and asking the police to lock him in a cell for ten minutes. The incident left him with a lifelong fear of the authorities. The irony of it all was that the young Hitchcock never learned what he had done to deserve that punishment. Neither his father or the police told him anything.
* SignatureStyle:
** ActionSurvivor: There is a Hitchcockian pattern of an ordinary man or woman, through one bad turn, falling into extraordinary circumstances and fighting his or her way out: ''Film/ShadowOfADoubt, Film/StrangersOnATrain, TheWrongMan, Film/{{Vertigo}}, Film/NorthByNorthwest, TheManWhoKnewTooMuch.''
** AmbiguouslyGay: Numerous villains, henchmen, thugs, goons and mooks in his films fall into this category, bearing in mind that these films were made in a different era of Hollywood and American culture. Cases in point: ''{{Rope}}'', ''Film/NorthByNorthwest'', ''Film/StrangersOnATrain''.
** AuthorAppeal: Most female main characters will be blondes.
** BlackComedy: Frequently.
** {{Claustrophobia}}: ''Lifeboat'', ''Rope''
** CreatorCameo: He appears in every film in a nonspeaking role. This habit became so famous that he confined his appearances to the first fifteen minutes of his films so that audiences would not be distracted watching for him among the extras. In ''TheWrongMan'', he appears personally in silhouette and introduces the film, apparently because it was based on a true story.
** DepravedHomosexual: Mrs. Danvers in ''{{Rebecca}}'', the Leopold and Loeb stand-ins in ''{{Rope}}'', Bruno in ''Film/StrangersOnATrain'' and Martin Landau's character in ''Film/NorthByNorthwest''.
** DramaticIrony: Hitchcock placed his heroes in formal social gatherings, where they conceal something dark and horrible and yet can’t tell a soul: ''Saboteur'', ''Film/{{Notorious}}'', ''TheManWhoKnewTooMuch'', ''ShadowOfADoubt''
** MacGuffin: ''Number Seventeen, ''Film/The39Steps'','' ''{{Psycho}}'', ''TheManWhoKnewTooMuch, Film/NorthByNorthwest''
** TheOner: ''Film/{{Notorious}}'', ''{{Rope}}'', ''Young And Innocent''
** ThePeepingTom: ''TheLodger, Notorious, Film/RearWindow,'' ''{{Vertigo}}'', ''{{Psycho}}''
** PoliceAreUseless: ''TheWrongMan'', ''Rope'', ''Film/RearWindow''
*** Subverted in ''DialMForMurder''
** SceneryPorn:
*** MonumentalBattle: The StatueOfLiberty in ''Saboteur'' and Mount Rushmore in ''Film/NorthByNorthwest''
*** The Golden Gate Bridge and other San-Francisco-area locations in ''{{Vertigo}}''
** SilenceIsGolden: Even movies Hitchcock directed after the silent era occasionally manage to create drama without dialogue. Hitchcock was a painter and was very interested in visuals, almost to the point of expressing disdain for acting and dialogue.
** ThatsWhatSheSaid: Yes, even Hitch wasn't above them. Possibly has [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z8mSwzSQQk the first FILMED instance]] of a "That's What She Said" joke.
** VertigoEffect: He basically invented the Tracking Zoom technique.
** WronglyAccused: ''TheWrongMan'' (ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin). ''Film/The39Steps''. Also ''Film/NorthByNorthwest'', ''Film/StrangersOnATrain'', ''IConfess'', ''DialMForMurder'' ''ToCatchAThief'', ''The Lodger'', and ''{{Frenzy}}''. Subverted in ''Film/StageFright'', where [[spoiler:it turns out the man whose name the heroine has been trying to clear really WAS guilty]].
* TropeNamer: MacGuffin (via one of his screenwriters) and helped popularize "FridgeLogic" when describing a scene in Film/{{Vertigo}}. [[note]]See [[Trivia/{{Vertigo}} that page's Trivia]] for more info[[/note]]
* {{Yandere}}: Towards Tippi Hedren — he made a point of ruining her career, allegedly because she rejected his advances.
** His behavior toward his actresses may have just been an expression of his sexual frustration -- it wasn't made public for obvious reasons, but Hitch was ''impotent'' most of his life.
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