This having been the first time watching Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, I was amazed at the dimensionality of the narrative, regardless of the limited point of view.  The theme of relationships immediately stood out to me and as I watched the film, I thought about how the setting, particularly the placement of the characters in their apartments, influenced the tendencies of Jeff in his voyeuristic habit. 

In his conversation with Stella at the beginning of the film, it is clear to the viewers that Jeff is against marriage and often questions his relationship with Lisa, their social status a major factor in his perspective.  As we, the viewers, get a panorama of the surrounding “neighborhood”, we also get several instances of other relationships, seemingly all at different stages in their maturity.  First off, we are introduced to Miss. Torso, Miss. Lonely Hearts, and the nosey woman.  If we consider where they are in relation to love, Miss Torso has an abundance of suitors, yet Lisa claims she loves none of them, Miss Torso cannot even find a date, and the one she brings home is consumed by lust, not love, and so love eludes her though she clearly desires it.  Last but not least we briefly meet the nosey woman who doesn’t seem to care about love and the world doesn’t really care for her either.  The bachelor in this film is the pianist, who seems in many ways like Miss Torso in his abundance of admirers, yet no one that is identified as a love interest.  He too seems to want love, yet doesn’t find it until the very end when him and Miss Lonelyhearts meet, perhaps symbolizing the early stages of a blooming romance.  Next we meet the newlyweds and though it is very clear they are in love at the beginning of the film, their relationship turns sour and continues to be sour even until the end of the movie. 

Arguably the most important relationship in the film, aside from Jeff and Lisa’s relationship, is the Thorwald’s.  When we meet this couple, it is clear their relationship is strained.  Mrs. Thorwald is sick and as Mr. Thorwald attempts to take care of her, it is clear he has grown tired of his duties and his wife does not seem to think much of him either.  In my opinion, the Thorwald’s relationship is an affirmation of why Jeff thinks poorly of marriage, even while we are introduced to the newlyweds, which at first embody a cookie-cutter image of what marriage is supposed to be.  The fact that the newlyweds’ relationship goes south is also a sort of re-affirmation of why Jeff shouldn’t marry.

 Because Lisa is such a compelling woman, the “perfect” woman, I often questioned why Jeff wouldn’t want to marry her as she seems a wonderful match for him being that he comes from different, arguably worser, circumstances.  This brought me to how power is represented and seen in relation to the way the setting is designed.  As was previously said, Lisa represents the epitome of class and femininity, yet Jeff often rejects her implications of marriage, stating they are just to different to make things work—in fact, Jeff implies she is not worthy of him by actually being too worthy to join him in his adventures. 

Though it is clear that clothing is a major focus of the class system and often represents the “essence” of the characters, one must consider the apartment structure itself.  Being as the higher classes often lived at the top of the apartment structure, just as our pianist does, the audience gets a clue to where our characters stand.  Jeff we know is not a rich man, and his placement in the middle of the apartments represents his average working class status.  The Thorwald’s are placed on the opposite side, yet on the same level as Jeff is, which again can be considered a mirror into his own life, or what we can consider his thoughts on what life could be for him if he married. 

In consideration of their relationships, the pianist and Miss Lonelyhearts are at opposite ends of the spectrum, yet share the same woes.  Additionally, Miss Torso, the newlyweds, and the Thorwalds seem to live relatively close to the same level and if thought of in succession imitate a sort of progression of love.  Those characters with no love interest are not seen as much, such as the nosey woman, and even the couple who sleep on the balcony.  Though they are married, the only real love witnessed is the love the woman had for her dog, and is otherwise ignored by Jeff.  Indeed, Jeff’s focus on those with romantic issues says something of the intriguing lure of love and often the drama that extends from it.

Rear Window has been by far my favorite film seen thus far.  Hitchcock accomplished a wonderfully in-depth commentary on the implications of love and relationships seen from a different perspective.