Themes and Plot Devices in The Films of Alfred Hitchcock - Birds

Birds

There are countless images of birds in nearly all of Hitchcock's films. Some of the most prominent are listed below.

Psycho - The film begins in Phoenix, Arizona and a Phoenix is also a mythological bird. Marion's last name is "Crane." Norman practices taxidermy as a hobby and his favorites are birds. Norman describes Marion's eating behavior as "eats like a bird".
Vertigo - Gavin's last name is Elster, which is German for Magpie.
The Birds - The film's plot revolves around birds attacking Bodega Bay.
To Catch a Thief - Hitchcock's cameo is that of a man on a bus holding a bird cage with a bird inside it.
Sabotage - the front for the bomb maker is that of a bird seller and the instructions for the bomb are in the base of a bird cage.

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