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• Dial M For Murder

Alfred Hitchcock showcased his talent for shooting suspenseful scenes in nearly every one of the fifty-plus movies he made. But out of all his work, this scene from the 1954 film Dial M For Murder is a favorite because it still holds up to this day as terrifying.

In the scene, Margot Mary Wendice (Grace Kelly) is in her house alone as her husband (Ray Milland) and her secret lover (Robert Cummings) are out on the town. However, the reason she is home is because her husband guilted her into staying in because he’s arranged a man to break into the apartment and kill her.

What works so brilliantly about this scene is the delay of action. When Margot holds the phone to her ear, she has no idea the killer is right behind her, but the audience does. The killer is waiting for her to drop the phone so he can strangle her, but that ten-second delay adds much suspense to the scene. You also have to admire Hitchcock’s camera movements and placement. Hitchcock is famous for meticulously storyboarding all of his films, so much so that when he got to the set, he didn’t even have to look into the camera.

Watching this scene will help you understand one of Hitchcock’s famous quotes, “Film your murders like love scenes, and film your love scenes like murders.”