A serial murderer is strangling women with a necktie. The London police have a suspect, but he is the wrong man.A serial murderer is strangling women with a necktie. The London police have a suspect, but he is the wrong man.A serial murderer is strangling women with a necktie. The London police have a suspect, but he is the wrong man.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 8 nominations
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAlfred Hitchcock: Hitchcock originally planned to do his cameo as the body floating in the river. A dummy was even constructed to do the shot. The plans were changed, and a female body, a victim of The Necktie Murderer, was used instead. Hitchcock instead became one of the members of the crowd who are listening to the speaker on the river bank. The dummy of Hitchcock was used in the typically humorous trailer hosted by Hitchcock.
- GoofsMrs. Blaney's receptionist estimates Blaney's weight only in pounds. No British person would do this; they would state the weight more likely in stones and pounds or (rarely) in kilograms.
- Quotes
[last lines]
Chief Inspector Oxford: Mr. Rusk, you're not wearing your tie.
[Robert Rusk is speechless for a moment]
Robert Rusk: I...
[he drops the trunk that he has just dragged into the room]
- Crazy creditsThe Universal Pictures logo does not appear on this film.
- Alternate versionsThe original UK cinema and initial 1989 CIC video releases were cut by 19 secs by the BBFC to remove shots of underwear removal and closeups of neck strangling from the murder scene. The cuts were restored in all later Universal video and DVD releases.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Dick Cavett Show: Alfred Hitchcock (1972)
Featured review
A good if uneven late entry by Hitchcock
Frenzy follows the misadventures of ex-RAF man Jon Finch, who is framed for a particularly nasty series of 'necktie' murders for which his hot-temper and self-pity do not help..
The more one sees this film, the more holes appear or seem to appear. Finch is supposed to be an ex-squadron-leader with a fine record, but is too young to have done anything in WWII. The original novel came out in 1949 or thereabouts, so a little tweaking should have been in order. The first murder / assault shown seems to be done in rather too much detail and is possibly too lurid. In addition, there doesn't seem to be anything to tie him up with the previous murders.
These grumbles aside (and one could pick a few more holes if required), Frenzy held my attention reasonably well, and although at times it doesn't look too Hitchcockian, there are enough bits to make one aware of his presence. He is ably served by his cast of Barry Foster, Clive Swift (a fellow RAF man, but 'under the thumb'), the late Billie Whitelaw as Swift's acid-tongued wife, Barbara Leigh-Hunt as Finch's successful ex-wife, Anna Massey and Bernard Cribbins, to name a few.
The police are represented by Alec McCowen and Michael Bates, together with a series of running jokes on the frightful dishes McCowen's wife (Vivien Merchant) is serving up as a result of a gourmet course she is attending. This was Hitchcock's first British film in about twenty years, and had a mixed reception. The years have been kind to it, though, and it seems to have become more generally accepted, and there is enough action in it to keep one interested.
The more one sees this film, the more holes appear or seem to appear. Finch is supposed to be an ex-squadron-leader with a fine record, but is too young to have done anything in WWII. The original novel came out in 1949 or thereabouts, so a little tweaking should have been in order. The first murder / assault shown seems to be done in rather too much detail and is possibly too lurid. In addition, there doesn't seem to be anything to tie him up with the previous murders.
These grumbles aside (and one could pick a few more holes if required), Frenzy held my attention reasonably well, and although at times it doesn't look too Hitchcockian, there are enough bits to make one aware of his presence. He is ably served by his cast of Barry Foster, Clive Swift (a fellow RAF man, but 'under the thumb'), the late Billie Whitelaw as Swift's acid-tongued wife, Barbara Leigh-Hunt as Finch's successful ex-wife, Anna Massey and Bernard Cribbins, to name a few.
The police are represented by Alec McCowen and Michael Bates, together with a series of running jokes on the frightful dishes McCowen's wife (Vivien Merchant) is serving up as a result of a gourmet course she is attending. This was Hitchcock's first British film in about twenty years, and had a mixed reception. The years have been kind to it, though, and it seems to have become more generally accepted, and there is enough action in it to keep one interested.
helpful•110
- AlsExGal
- Oct 13, 2023
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy
- Filming locations
- The Globe pub, Bow Street, Covent Garden, London, England, UK(pub where Blaney, Babs and Forsythe work)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $4,940
- Runtime1 hour 56 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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