Rent Frenzy (1972)

Dark Thriller. - Frenzy review by Steve

 For his penultimate film Alfred Hitchcock returned to London and the east end where he was born. And he was rejuvenated. This is a superb exhibition of Hitchcockian suspense with one of the tightest sewn up of all his wrong men. Jon Finch looks set to pay the price for Barry Foster's necktie murders.

There is one of his least glamorous environments; shot around Covent Garden when it was a busy, shabby vegetable market. This is far from Cary Grant and Grace Kelly on the Côte d'Azur. There's a grimy location for a disturbing story. The sexual assault is hard to watch, and arguably lacking in taste. Though scarcely by the standards of the present day.

There is bravura camerawork, with many fascinating tracking shots and startling close ups. And there's a classic example of the Hitchcock gallows humour in the tussle between Barry Foster and a corpse in the back of a potato truck culminating in the serial killer breaking its fingers to get back some incriminating evidence.

Credit to Anthony Shaffer for the downbeat humour of his screenplay- adapted from a novel by Arthur La Bern. There are superb comic performances from Alec McCowen and Vivian Merchant as the investigating police inspector and his gourmet wife. I wanted to see a lot more of them. This is a late return to form by the great director.

Hitchcock in London - Frenzy review by JD

A thriller with great humour. This film has scenes of disgusting violence (rape/murder) done in disturbingly personal horror. Then scenes of light gentle humour. The best is of the chief detective at home with his wife, who has prepared him inedible haut cuisine while he goes over the cases of the serial killer. Very dated in a good way. Covent Garden fruit and veg market pictured beautifully. 70's attitudes and 70's film production and acting. Today's target viewer will be in their 60's, a bit too dated for anyone younger.