Rope (dir. Alfred Hitchcock)
Known for: Psycho (1960), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959)
What it’s about: When Brandon (John Dall) and Phillip (Farley Granger) murder their classmate, they hide his body in the living room and, in order to test the perfection of their crime, host a dinner party with those closest to the victim. It’s all a game to Brandon, so he invites the one man Phillip is convinced will figure out the truth: their philosophy professor, Rupert Cadell (James Stewart).
Why it’s worth watching: Hitchcock detested this film, so much so that he withdrew it from public access (along with the other “Missing Hitchcocks” – Rear Window, The Trouble with Harry, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Vertigo). Even though it has its faults, especially in terms of its aged technical experiments, Rope is a suspenseful entertainment from the mind of the master.