悬念

摘自Charlie Keil "1913 Movies and the Beginning of a New Era"

race-to-the-rescue

• the first version of a rescue that suggests, from the woman's point of view, what is at stake when an intrusion occurs.

"Earlier treatments tended to highlight the male rescuer's ingenuity or determination, framing the rescue as a test of a man's ability to protect that which belongs to him. Suspense redirects the viewer's attention toward male aggression and female fear, repositioning the rescue an instrument designed to render domestic space safe for its chief inhabitant

• triptyph (split-screen)

"Rather than conveying a sense of speed, these shots offer a rather claustrophobic sense of imminent capture, with the police car often within arm's reach of the pursued vehicle. Tellingly, the emphasis on the mirror relates these shots visually to the bedroom space within its prominently positioned vanity mirror. In its insistence on the shared vulnerability of husband and wife, Suspense downplays heroic to convey the sensation of the threat to the marital bond from an external source."

• treats situations affecting women with sensitivity

"Suspense demonstrates how the race to the rescue, though traditionally aligned with the thrills of an action-oriented cinema, could still be employed for other ends, be its lighthearted social critique or the embodiment of psychological stress."

这部只有10分钟默片，不仅片名，且其中许多表现手法都很容易让人联想起希区柯克电影。例如，追车时的汽车后视镜与《火车上的陌生人》中掉落到草地上眼镜一样，都在通过镜面折射向观众呈现危机惊悚时刻；而与格兰特端牛奶上楼有几分相似的歹徒持刀上楼的段落则似乎更精彩：歹徒从画面右下角开始，一步一步逼近画面。整个镜头极具压迫感。特别是歹徒的那双眼睛，貌似直视着镜头，但真到了近前却突然失焦。人从镜头前划过！

不过，本片导演用以制造紧张和悬疑的交叉蒙太奇，却不是希胖的最爱。希区柯克认为像格里菲斯那样用飞奔的马蹄与家人危在旦夕（《一个国家的诞生》中3K党救急）交替切换的方式，不如让镜头只去表现其中一方的进展的效果来的好。观众知道那边的救援的马队已出发，却不知道什么时候能到。于是便会更加焦虑。

这一理念很好的体现在《狂凶记》当中。主人公与女友入住酒店。早间，女人裸起入厕，镜头跟摇并引出门下塞进的晨报。那头版上分明印着通缉告示。接着镜头一转，酒店接待处，女老板也在看报并发现相片与昨天入住的客人相貌吻合，于是打电话报警。至此，希区柯克的镜头再也没有切回给主人公的房内而是始终对着大厅。直至警察到来，大家一起上电梯，找到房间，最终打开房门，才发现报纸摊在床上，两人已经逃之夭夭。观众的紧张得到释放……