Leap day kicked off Alfred Hitchcock Film Retrospective at Kino Aero

In one of the most iconic scenes in cinematic history, Roger Thornhill (played by Cary Grant), mistaken for a government agent, runs through a barren corn field as a crop dusting plane chases him; he dives on the ground as he is narrowly missed. In the same film, Eve Kendall (played by Eva Marie Saint) clings on for her life on the cliffs of Mount Rushmore, escaping from men who are trying to kill her. These scenes are from North by Northwest, which kicked off Hitchcock’s Retrospective at Kino Aero in Prague 3, on Feb. 29th. At this showing, the seats were filled and the audience was buzzing with anticipation before the movie started rolling.

Hitchcock’s best-known films, including newly restored digital copies of Vertigo, The Birds, and Psycho in 35mm will be screened at Kino Aero till March 4th.

Hitchcock was born in London, but moved to Hollywood in 1940 where his career took off. The retrospective focuses on his Hollywood films, from his earliest thriller Strangers on a Train (1951), to the psychological horror The Birds (1963). Nicknamed the “Master of Suspense,” he built the tension in his films through camera angles and movement mixed with precise music, sound and editing; his film techniques are still strongly admired and closely studied to this day.

Along with the screenings, Czech and Polish posters of Hitchcock’s films are on exhibit in the Kino Aero lobby till May 31st. The posters date back to the 1960s, and there are newer posters by Czech art students. At the box office, you can also buy an official poster reprint of Psycho by the Czech artist Zdenêk Ziegler.

More information about Hitchcock’s retrospective can be found on Kino Aero’s website: www.kinoaero.cz