Rope: The Movie

Jackie Henke

Hour 6

Movie: Rope

"Rope" is an Alfred Hitchcock movie loosely based off of the Leopold-Loeb murder in the 1920's. Hitchcock's tale differs from the event noticeably, but along with its differences, there are many similarities.

First, the movie talks about the perfect crime, one only a superior individual could commit without remorse. In real life Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb believed that they needed to prove their ability to commit such a crime without fear. While the movie portrays the 2 murderers as young to middle-aged men, in real life Leopold was 19 and Loeb was 18. In the beginning of the movie we see the victim being strangled. Again the movie portrays the victim as much older, while in real life the victim was Bobby Franks, a 14-year-old boy. The setting of the movie is based in an upscale apartment, and throughout the entirety of the plot it remains in this location. Through the uses of many different characters, Hitchcock communicates to the audience all key events.

A key factor in the story is the actual murder though. The title of the movie is Rope, but Hitchcock does not give us a reason why. The importance of the word had to do with the actually murder. The symbolism of the rope was so that both men would kill their victim, each would hold an end of the rope, and each would be equally guilty. While the representation of the importance of the rope could have been better portrayed, other aspects shown through better. The theme of the murder was to show superiority by having no fear of being apprehended. Hitchcock takes the subject to an extreme. Not only do his character's kill, but also they hide the body in a chest during a fancy dinner. The risks are quite high due to the fact that they know that the party guests will be worried when their dear friend doesn't appear. Despite all the risks, Brandon, one of the murderers insists that hosting the party around the body will seal the deal and put the finishing touches on the crime. The second murderer, Philip is remorseful. While this is not evident with either Leopold or Loeb, it adds depth to the characters.

Other differences in the story are more or less surface details. Because the film is only inspired by the murder, not a reenactment, these details are expected to be